The significance of Neil Diamond’s 1969 song

Neil Diamond’s “Sweet Caroline” might be heard throughout England following the Lionesses’ victory in the Euro 2022 final.

In recent years, the song has been adopted as an unofficial anthem of the country’s sporting achievements, most recently appearing after England’s women’s team defeated Germany 2-1 in the final on Sunday night (31 July).

The competition represented the first major tournament victory for any England team since 1966, and “Sweet Caroline” was chanted throughout.

Diamond’s song was originally released in 1969 under the title “Sweet Caroline (Good Times Never Seemed So Good)”.

While the track may have taken on new meaning in a sporting environment, its origins remained unknown for many years.

However, Diamond stated in 2007 that he created the song for John F. Kennedy’s daughter Caroline, who was 11 years old at the time of its debut.

Diamond was inspired by a photo of Caroline that he spotted in a magazine while staying at a Memphis hotel.

“I’ve never discussed it with anybody before – intentionally,” Diamond told the media. “I imagined I’d tell Caroline about it when we met someday.

“It was a picture of a small girl dressed to the nines in her riding gear standing next to her pony. It was such an innocent, delightful image that I immediately suspected there was a song in it.”

Diamond revealed the song’s subject after singing it at her 50th birthday.

“It was a No 1 record and probably is the biggest, most important song of my career, and I have to thank her for the inspiration,” according to him.

“I’m glad I got it off my chest and conveyed it to Caroline. I expected her to feel embarrassed, but she appeared to be struck by it and really thrilled.”

Diamond subsequently revealed in a 2014 interview that he chose Caroline when looking for a three-syllable name to suit in a song he wrote about his wife Marcia, whom he married from 1969 to 1996.

Caroline is now an international ambassador, having been appointed as the US ambassador to Australia by Joe Biden’s government in July.

She previously served as the United States ambassador to Japan under President Barack Obama.