Single:
Shilo entered the Australian singles chart* on 23 February 1970 and peaked at #23. It was the #65 song on the Top 100 of 1964.
Album:
The song is on Neil’s 1967 album Just for You and a 1970 compilation album Shilo.
Songwriter:
Neil Diamond
Producers:
Jeff Barry, Ellie Greenwich
Record label of Australian release:
Stateside
*Kent Music Report / Australian Chart Book. See About.
Shilo on Hot August Night, recorded at The Greek Theatre in Los Angeles, August 1972:
Songfacts:
Diamond wanted to release this song about an imaginary childhood friend as a single but his record label, Bang Records, thought it was too introspective. This upset Diamond and he consequently left the label. A couple of years later Bang suddenly issued the 1967 version of this song before withdrawing it again. They then re-recorded the instrumental backing behind his original voice track so that the song now sounded a lot like his more recent material. The partly re-recorded version was released as a single, peaking at #24 in the US. Diamond reacted by re-recording his own version.
Read more: www.songfacts.com/facts/neil-diamond/shilo
Lyrics:
Young child with dreams
Dreaming each dream on your own
When children play
Seems like you end up alone
Papa says he’d love to be with you
If he had the time
So you turn to the only friend you can find
There in your mind
Click for full lyrics
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