Classics: The Early Years is a compilation album by Neil Diamond

Neil Diamond

Neil Leslie Diamond is an American singer-songwriter with a career spanning over five decades from the 1960s until the present....

 released in 1983 featuring the early recordings he made for Bang Records

Bang Records

Bang Records was created by Bert Berns in 1965 together with his partners from Atlantic Records: Ahmet Ertegün, Nesuhi Ertegün and Jerry Wexler...

 in 1966 and 1967. After Columbia Records

Columbia Records

Columbia Records is an American record label, owned by Japan's Sony Music Entertainment, operating under the Columbia Music Group with Aware Records. It was founded in 1888, evolving from an earlier enterprise, the American Graphophone Company — successor to the Volta Graphophone Company...

 acquired the Bang Records catalogue, the twelve best recordings were reissued on this album. Columbia gave Diamond, a longtime Columbia recording artist, control of the Bang masters of his recordings. The original copyright notice of this album read "(C) and (P)1983 Neil Diamond and CBS

CBS

CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...

 Inc." CBS owned Columbia at that time. This compilation has a different track lineup compared to the 1968 Bang compilation album titled Neil Diamond's Greatest Hits

Neil Diamond's Greatest Hits

Neil Diamond's Greatest Hits was the first compilation album of songs recorded by Neil Diamond. It was released in 1968 by Bang Records after Diamond left Bang for Uni Records. Bang would eventually release four Neil Diamond compilation albums on top of the two original Diamond albums which Bang...

which contains two cover songs. All the songs in this album are original Diamond compositions and substitutes "I'm A Believer

I'm a Believer

"I'm a Believer" is a song composed by Neil Diamond and recorded by The Monkees in 1966 with the lead vocals by Micky Dolenz. The single, produced by Jeff Barry, hit the number one spot on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart for the week ending December 31, 1966 and remained there for seven weeks,...

" (which The Monkees

The Monkees

The Monkees are an American pop rock group. Assembled in Los Angeles in 1966 by Robert "Bob" Rafelson and Bert Schneider for the American television series The Monkees, which aired from 1966 to 1968, the musical acting quartet was composed of Americans Micky Dolenz, Michael Nesmith and Peter Tork,...

 covered) and "Shilo

Shilo (song)

"Shilo" is a song written and recorded by Neil Diamond.It was originally recorded in 1967 for Bang Records, but Diamond and Bang founder Bert Berns disagreed over Diamond's career path...

" in place of the Gary U.S. Bonds

Gary U.S. Bonds

Gary U.S. Bonds is an American rhythm and blues and rock and roll singer. He is also a prolific songwriter.-Career:...

 hit "New Orleans" and the Tommy James and the Shondells hit "Hanky Panky."

All of the tracks, with the exception of "Kentucky Woman", are in true stereo. Later Neil Diamond compilations contained the mono versions, which makes this album the only source for the stereo versions of his Bang Records releases. The only true stereo version of "Kentucky Woman" was released in 1978 by Frog King records on the album Early Classics.

Side one

1. "Kentucky Woman
   Kentucky Woman
   "Kentucky Woman" is a 1967 song written and originally recorded by Neil Diamond. Another well-known version is the 1968 recording by Deep Purple....
   
   "
2. "Cherry, Cherry
   Cherry, Cherry
   "Cherry, Cherry" is a song written, composed, and recorded by Neil Diamond. The song was arranged by Artie Butler and produced by Jeff Barry & Ellie Greenwich. It was issued as a 45 single in 1966 and became Diamond's first big hit, reaching #6 on both the Billboard Hot 100 chart, in October 1966,...
   
   "
3. "Solitary Man"
4. "You Got To Me"
5. "I Got the Feelin' (Oh No, No)"
6. "Thank the Lord for the Night Time"

Side Two

1. "I'm a Believer
   I'm a Believer
   "I'm a Believer" is a song composed by Neil Diamond and recorded by The Monkees in 1966 with the lead vocals by Micky Dolenz. The single, produced by Jeff Barry, hit the number one spot on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart for the week ending December 31, 1966 and remained there for seven weeks,...
   
   "
2. "Girl, You'll Be a Woman Soon
   Girl, You'll Be a Woman Soon
   "Girl, You'll Be a Woman Soon" is a song written by Neil Diamond, whose recording of it on Bang Records reached #10 on the U.S. pop singles chart in 1967. The song garnered a second life span when it appeared on the 1994 Pulp Fiction soundtrack, performed by rock band Urge Overkill...
   
   "
3. "Shilo
   Shilo (song)
   "Shilo" is a song written and recorded by Neil Diamond.It was originally recorded in 1967 for Bang Records, but Diamond and Bang founder Bert Berns disagreed over Diamond's career path...
   
   "
4. "Do It"
5. "Red, Red Wine"
6. "The Boat That I Row"