Several names come to mind when the discussion turns to the matter of who is the quintessential American musician - Bruce Springsteen, John Mellencamp, Johnny Cash, Randy Newman, and Tom Petty, to name a few. For my money, though it's hard to beat out Neil Diamond for pure Americana charm. Sure, he may be saddled with the stigma of the "adult contemporary" label, but that doesn't stop him from being an undeniable part of our cultural canvas. Consider how beloved songs like Sweet Caroline or Cherry Cherry have turned out to be. Chances are you know the words well enough to sing along from start to finish, and even the most cynical of listeners can't help but smile a bit whenever they hear those songs. Even those songs of his that aren't as thoroughly known, like Brother Love's Traveling Salvation Show, Thanks the Lord for the Night Time, or Shilo, still have a folksy roots rock charm will sound familiar and comforting across every demographic group.

To add to that all-American feel that he's got, look at the diverse acts that have covered his songs – The Monkees with I'm a Believer, Me First and the Gimme Gimme's with America, Urge Overkill with Girl, You'll Be a Woman Soon, UB40 with Red Red Wine, Frank Sinatra with Sweet Caroline, David Hasselhoff with Forever in Blue Jeans and so many more. Across genres, Diamond's have made the transition to universal pop standards.

So with all those covers of his songs in mind, it seems only appropriate that Diamond himself put out a record featuring covers of other people's songs. Diamond's new album, Dreams, isn't the first time he's tackled such a project. In 1993 he put out the cover compilation Up On the Roof, but that compilation leaned a little too heavily towards the schlocky, bubblegum side of sixties pop. Dreams, on the other hand, finds Diamond tackling much deeper, more pensive tunes befitting his strong Americana roots. (And yes, I make that "American roots" claim knowing full well that there are a few Beatles songs included on Dreams.)

Diamond's take on Bill Withers' Ain't No Sunshine starts the collection off with a slow burning mixture of folk and soul that hints at the tone of the highlights to come throughout the album. The track starts out with Diamond's sparse, mournful acoustic guitar, a fine complement to his gravelly vocals that really dig deep into the song painful sense of loss. Shortly into the second verse, the arrangement slowly fills out layer upon layer of strings and piano creeping into the mix until we've got a full orchestra rounding out the sound for a truly intense folksy rock experience.

Other noteworthy tracks include a slowed down, country ballad take on Gladys Knight's Midnight Train to Georgia, complete with melancholy harmonica line, a surprisingly bouncy acoustic guitar take on Alone Again (Naturally) that puts an unexpectedly (but enjoyable) whimsical spin on Gilbert O'Sullivan's weepy hit, a twangy, heartland take on The Beatles' Blackbird with a western-style fiddle line running through it, and an acoustic, downtempo, introspective version of the Monkee's I'm a Believer, which, as those well versed in pop history should know, was originally written by Diamond himself.

There are indeed some absolutely great interpretations of classic songs on Dreams, but unfortunately they make up less than half of the tracks covered here. For the remainder of the songs, the overly subdued and sedate arrangements sap the life out of the music. Diamond's interpretation of Randy Newman's Feels Like Home trudges lethargically through its lethargic acoustic guitar and piano arrangement, adding nothing new or distinctive to the song. The reverb-heavy guitar on his cover of Leonard Cohen's Hallelujah sounds indistinguishable from any of the hundreds of covers of that song we've gotten in recent years. Desperado, originally by the Eagles, maintains the slow, deliberate pacing of the original, but loses most of the raw emotional impact with the down-home folksy charm that Diamond tries to add into the vocals. And on The Beatles' Yesterday, he pours on the syrupy sentimentality, drowning the life out of the song (quite the opposite of Blackbird where he managed to breathe quite a bit of spirit and energy into the somber original).

The last track on the disk, a take on Harry Nilson's Don't Forget Me, at least manages to find some sense of redemption. Buoyed by a rolling gospel piano line and horns that seem borrowed from some forgotten New Orleans band, this last track builds to a fine emotional crescendo that plays up the songs mixture of sentimentality and sarcasm before quietly riding off into the sunset. A fitting and memorable end to ensure that , despite the musical missteps on the album, the highlights indeed will not be forgotten.

As much of a musical icon as Neil Diamond is, Dreams is certainly not a must-have album. Diamond completists and serious aficionados of cover songs will get the most out of this collection. While there's plenty of material that should be skipped over, the highlights are high enough to compensate for the album's numerous missteps.

Recommended: Yes