Diamond in the rough
GOSSIP. You have to hand it to Neil Diamond — the guy must figure that nearly everyone who goes to see him does it only for the irony factor, yet the 67-year-old keeps on belting out “Sweet Caroline” as though it were high art.
However, Diamond had problems with the ol’ baritone at Monday’s Ohio State concert, and his usual rich croon sounded more like a whispered rasp. Fans left in disappointment, many of them realizing that they couldn’t secretly laugh at his sequins if they couldn’t even hear him.
But Neil Diamond is going to keep it real, folks. Yesterday, the singer wrote an apology on his Web site, saying, “I haven’t let you down before and I won’t let you down now,” adding that all in attendance would receive a refund. Good thing he bombed after scoring that No. 1 record in May — the first in his 50-year career — when he can afford to be so generous, and not a couple years ago when he was still some has-been in the 99-cent discount bin.
When a man stops loving a woman
Sadly, the oddly compatible couple Nicollette Sheridan and Michael Bolton have called off their engagement, 
Usmagazine.com reports. The two had been engaged since March 2006. In related news, Michael Bolton just announced the release of a new album of soft rock breakup songs.
