"Two-Bit Manchild" is a song written and performed by Neil Diamond. It appears on Neil's 1968 album '' Velvet Gloves and Spit'', and was released as an A-side with a B-side of "Broad Old Woman (6 a.m. Insanity)". It is a "strong and interesting" song according to Robert Jamieson. "Two-Bit Manchild" also appears on the Neil Diamond compilation albums ''Glory Road 1968-1972'', ''Play Me: The Complete Uni Studio Recordings Plus'', ''Gold'', and ''Reflections''.

Reception

Allmusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databa ...

recommends "Two-Bit Manchild" as one of the top four songs on the album Velvet Gloves and Spit, calling it, "a fascinating adaptation of his Brill Building-era sound to a personal/introspective lyric and approach (picture the Monkees' sound melded to a singer/songwriter persona)." It has also been described as "brilliant and very

Bang Bang or bangs may refer to: Products * M1922 Bang rifle, a US semi-automatic rifle designed by Søren Hansen Bang * Bang, a model car brand * Bang (beverage), an energy drink Geography * Bang, Lorestan, a village in Iran * Bangs, Ohio, Uni ...

-ish" and a "jewel". The opening riff is also reminiscent of

Day Tripper "Day Tripper" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles that was released as a double A-side single with " We Can Work It Out" in December 1965. The song was written primarily by John Lennon with some contributions from Paul McCartney a ...

The Beatles The Beatles were an English rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the most influential band of all time and were integral to the developmen ...

. '' Billboard'' described the single as having a "driving rock groove" and called it a "powerful follow-up" Diamond's previous single "

Brooklyn Roads Brooklyn () is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. Kings County is the most populous Administrative divisions of New York (state)#County, county i ...

." '' Cash Box'' said that it is "danceable and sales oriented" with "a touch of Latin and a fine hand-clapping support."

Debut

Neil Diamond performed "Two-Bit Manchild" on July 2, 1968, on Showcase 68. Officially released as a 45 single in July, 1968 with the B-Side "Broad Old Woman (6 a.m. Insanity)" as UNI 55075. It eventually reached #66 on the charts. At least two versions of the 45 sleeve were released. One featured a picture of Neil Diamond. The other featured a swirly, psychedelic graphic. It was arranged by Renzetti, Altman, Cerone, Richards and Sandler.

International release

In the United Kingdom, "Two-Bit Manchild" was also released with Broad Old Woman (6 a.m. Insanity) as the B-Side. It was released by MCA records in August 1968, and licensed by MCA INC. USA as UK MCA MU 1033. It did not chart in the U.K.

Subsequent history

The copyright has been registered twice, first as EP0000284487 on December 12, 1970, and again as RE0000772415 on January 2, 1998. The poor chart performance of "Two-Bit Manchild" forebode the poor chart performance of ''Velvet Gloves and Spit''. "Two-Bit Manchild" is now considered one of the "obscurities" of Neil Diamond's catalog. "Two-Bit Manchild" was covered by Australian

pop singer Singing is the act of creating musical sounds with the voice. A person who sings is called a singer, artist or vocalist (in jazz and/or popular music). Singers perform music (arias, recitatives, songs, etc.) that can be sung with or without ...

Johnny Farnham John Peter Farnham Officer of the Order of Australia, AO (born 1 July 1949) is a British born Australian singer. Farnham was a Teen idol, teen pop idol from 1967 until 1979, billed then as Johnny Farnham, but has since forged a career as an Adu ...

on his second studio album Everybody Oughta Sing a Song released on EMI Records in November 1968. The song is now covered by the Neil Diamond coverers Nine Inch Neils, and Mike Tyler.

Non-performance on ''American Idol''

On April 29, 2008, contestants on ''

American Idol ''American Idol'' is an American singing competition television series created by Simon Fuller, produced by Fremantle North America and 19 Entertainment, and distributed by Fremantle North America. It aired on Fox from June 11, 2002, to Ap ...

'' sang Neil Diamond penned songs. One song they did not perform was "Two-Bit Manchild". Perhaps, as '' New York'' suggested, it was too "on-the-nose." Some were "desperate" that

David Cook David Cook may refer to: Entertainment * David Cook (game designer) (active since 1980s), American game designer for TSR * David Cook (singer) (born 1982), winner of the seventh season of ''American Idol'' * David Cook (writer) (1940–2015), Briti ...

perform it.

References

{{Neil Diamond singles 1968 songs 1978 singles Neil Diamond songs Songs written by Neil Diamond Uni Records singles Song recordings produced by Tom Catalano