When I was in college, a bunch of us took dates to our first musical. It felt like a very adult evening out. We made reservations at a nice restaurant before the show. The waiter suggested a bottle of wine. Sure, we were no strangers to drinking. Our beverage of choice back then was beer or shots of vodka or tequila. Shotgunning a beer or doing vodka slammers didn’t seem appropriate at such a nice restaurant. Although, we had no clue about wine, it sounded like a nice change of pace.
When I saw the waiter approaching our table with the bottle, all I could think of was,
Don’t come to me. Don’t come to me. Don’t come to me.
But of course, that just sealed the deal. He showed me the label, set the cork in front of me and poured a smidge in my wine glass. All eyes were on me and I thought, What the hell am I suppose to do? Sniff it? Take a sip and swish it in my mouth? I was totally clueless.
The waiter, immediately noticing my apprehension, without hesitation diverted attention to himself by announcing he’d like to provide a complimentary wine lesson for the table. Something he enjoyed giving to new customers to the restaurant. We all smiled and gladly accepted. Me? Well, I let out a silent sigh of relief and was appreciative for his grace, saving me from an awkward situation. I later learned my friends were repeating the same lines in their heads as the waiter arrived with the bottle. We agreed that guy was one cool dude. Needless to say, we tipped him a little extra that evening. This happened over thirty years ago, but I still remember it to this day. I’m appreciative of his lesson in kindness. It serves as a reminder that small acts of kindness have a lasting impact.
I grew up with UB40’s 80’s version, but the original came from Neil Diamond in 1967. Even in a non-reggae vibe, the original Red Red Wine is still pretty good. I grew up listening to Diamond, so maybe I’m an impartial judge. I’m curious about your thoughts. Let me know what you think.
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Red, red wine
Go to my head
Make me forget that I
Still need her so
Red, red wine
It's up to you
All I can do, I've done
But memories won't go
No, memories won't go
I'd have sworn that with time
Thoughts of you would leave my head
I was wrong, and I find
Just one thing makes me forget
Red, red wine
Stay close to me
Don't let me be alone
It's tearing apart
My blue, blue heart
I'd have sworn that with time
Thoughts of you would leave my head
I was wrong, and I find
Just one thing makes me forget
Red, red wine
Stay close to me
Don't let me be alone
It's tearing apart
My blue, blue heart
MyGenXerLife 
When i was about 14 i discovered my mom had been a Neil Diamond fan so i decided to take a listen and soon became a fan myself!
I honestly wouldn’t know what to do TODAY in that wine situation in a restaurant lol, I’ve never had that happen 😂😩
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I grew up listening to Neil Diamond, so always a fan!
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Oh no way! I didn’t realize Neil Diamond wrote that. And we just recently watched and really enjoyed Song Song Blue on Peacock. Red Red Wine wasn’t in it, but man, the guy wrote a lot of good stuff besides Sweet Caroline.
Great tie in with your date night story. I wonder if anyone ever has the nerve to send the wine back after tasting it.
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I grew up listening to him because my mom was a fan. A former coworker’s husband was a musician and used to tour with him when Diamond was in his 70s. Pretty wild he was touring at that age.
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Your mom has good taste. You were lucky!
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I’ll tell her that. They will make her day!
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What a classy move on the waiter’s part to spare your embarrassment!
I just clicked on your link to Neil Diamond’s original and I like that so much better than UB40’s remake! I remember cringing every time it came on the radio. It sounded whiny to me and I was frustrated that it dominated the airwaves in the 80’s.
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The original is pretty good! I always thought the ub40 version was the original for the longest time. I was surprised when I heard Neil Diamond’s version.
Yeah, that waiter was one cool dude.
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Acts of kindness are just like wine… they get better with age! Great story.
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Funny how a somewhat small generous act can stay with someone all these years.
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It sure is. Just goes to show the power of kindness. Some people are just so good at that. It’s a wonderful thing
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I love Neil, yet can’t remember ever hearing this before. Thank you!
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He’s got that cool voice
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Nice move by that waiter to give an impromptu wine appreciation lesson! Very cool dude.
Did you ever listen to the soundtrack to Jonathan Livingston Seagull? Features some Neil D you don’t hear every day. 😎
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I’ve never heard of this soundtrack before and listened to a few of his songs. Pretty good! Thanks for the recommendation. I’ll listen to the rest of the soundtrack this week.
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Whilst I like Neil Diamond I have to opt for the UB40 version. They formed way back in 1978 and all come from Birmingham and I loved the fact that they named the band after the form used to claim unemployment benefits (UB40) in the UK.
Ali Campbell’s vocals are so authentically reggae despite his English heritage.
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I grew up with the UB40 version and their CD is in my collection. I didn’t know they’ve been around since 1978. Now I’m curious to listen to some of their earlier work.
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Their first album was released in 1980 entitled “ Signing Off”, another reference to being unemployed! It reached number 2 in the album chart n basically launched them onto the music scene.
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I’ll check it out!
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