I’ve never got the whole tribute band thing.
Maybe it’s because I’ve seen pretty much every band and solo artist I’ve wanted to see, except, of course, for those, like The Beatles, Jimi Hendrix and Janis Joplin, who were gone before I was old enough to have experienced them live.
Maybe it’s because I don’t have two or three absolute favorites that I'd jump at a chance to see a band paying homage to them by reproducing their music and reimagining their show.
Or, maybe, it’s because, well, they’re glorified cover bands — and, while they may have a great version of a song or two, no cover band can ever match the original.

Surreal Neil leads Super Diamond, the Neil Diamond tribute band that will play the Lied Center for Performing Arts on Saturday.
That said, I’m really looking forward to seeing Super Diamond at the Lied Center for Performing Arts on Saturday.
The reason: Neil Diamond, who’s now 80, retired from performing a couple years ago, and Saturday presents a rare opportunity to hear Diamond’s catalog — that I’ve loved since the ‘70s — played by a group good enough to get Diamond’s seal of approval, even joining them on stage a couple times.
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In 2008, when Diamond played Nebraska — at Omaha’s Qwest (now CHI Health) Center — he had no intention of leaving the road.
“To go for a long time and to try and remain productive, that's, I think, in the hands of the gods,” Diamond said in a news conference a few days before the show.
“Luck has a lot to do with it. I've seen more talented people than I fall by the side of the road — road kill in a business and a world that can be very cynical and very difficult and has lots of traps and potholes. So I do believe that good luck and maybe a little karma plays a part in this whole scenario."
But there's far more to it than talent, Diamond said.
“I also think that you have to absolutely be in love with what you're doing if you want to be around for a while, because you're around for as long as you want to be around," he said. "Nobody will stop you from making music. It's not like if you're a movie actor. You're around as long as they want you in a movie. But a musician or a writer can always, till their dying day, make music.”
A decade later, Diamond was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease and retired.
So “Cherry, Cherry,” “Brother Love’s Traveling Salvation Show,” “Solitary Man,” “Cracklin’ Rosie," “Song Sung Blue,” “You Don’t Bring Me Flowers,” “I'm a Believer,” (he wrote the Monkees' hit) and, of course, “Sweet Caroline” in one sense retired as well.
Sure, they might turn up from time to time in a cover band's set at the local bar. But only Super Diamond — or some other Neil tribute — can provide non-stop Neil.
And while imitation might be the purest form of flattery, it's still hard to top the original — hard to mistake the real Diamond in a pile of cubic zirconias.
For the tour that brought him to Omaha, Diamond had a four-piece horn section, three backup singers, a pair of guitarists, a keyboardist, bass player, a drummer and a percussionist — a huge, versatile band that allowed Diamond to incorporate all his influences and his stylings into the show.
So the terrific concert let us hear the influence of Dion and doo-wop in Diamond’s early-to-mid ‘60s rock ‘n’ roll numbers, which evolved into his ‘70s mainstream pop.
Saturday’s show isn’t likely to have that kind of breadth and depth. But as long as Super Diamond brings a set of well-done Diamond songs that includes enough of my favorites, I’m likely to be very happy Saturday night.
On second thought, maybe I do get the tribute band thing, after all.
10 most memorable concerts at Pinnacle Bank Arena
Nov. 9, 2013: Pink

Nov. 9, 2013: Pink
What I said then: "She’s also a brilliant performer, who has assembled a fine five-piece band, two backing singers, eight dancers, striking staging that makes great use of the video screens and lights to deliver a show that makes those of Katy Perry, Taylor Swift and the rest of the pop crowd look like high school musicals. And no other performer that I know of does the aerials and acrobatics at anywhere Pink’s level."
Nov. 23, 2013: Elton John

Nov. 23, 2013: Elton John
What I said then: “Elton John loves playing new buildings. On Saturday night, he made it to the Pinnacle Bank Arena, noting how happy he was to be playing there and delivering an incredible, exhilarating show that forged a connection between the legendary artist and the thousands who came to see him.”
July 14, 2014: Paul McCartney

July 14, 2014: Paul McCartney
What I said then: “There was a great rock 'n' roll show in Lincoln Monday night. It came from a legend, 50 years after he and his old band took over the world. That legend, of course, is Paul McCartney. The show was at a packed Pinnacle Bank Arena. None of the more than 12,000 people who were there are likely to ever forget it."
Jan. 17, 2015: Fleetwood Mac

Jan. 17, 2015: Fleetwood Mac
What I said then: “Midway through Fleetwood Mac’s Pinnacle Bank Arena concert Saturday night, drummer Mick Fleetwood suddenly became ill. The truncated set ran just over 90 minutes. Prior to the abrupt ending, Fleetwood Mac had pumped out 14 songs, all familiar to the 14,000-plus that packed the arena Saturday — and sounded and looked good doing it.”
July 11, 2015: Neil Young

July 11, 2015: Neil Young
What I said then: “Unlike nearly all his contemporaries who are content to vacuum up the cash with greatest-hits shows, the 69-year-old Young continues to plow forward, playing new songs and deep catalog material. That had him on point — in fine, strong voice throughout, fully committed and locked in with the band in a sharply constructed set.”
March 26, 2016: Carrie Underwood

March 26, 2016: Carrie Underwood
What I said then: “The 2005 'American Idol' winner is a great vocalist, with good range and striking control and the ability to sing the hell out of almost any song. … Underwood’s show ran nearly two hours long, included 22 songs from throughout her career, five dress changes and just enough talk to let her fully connect with the crowd."
Aug. 18, 2017: Kendrick Lamar

Aug. 18, 2017: Kendrick Lamar
What I said then: "Lamar’s widely regarded as today’s greatest rapper. As Friday’s show, songs and performance demonstrated, there’s an argument to be made that he’s already the greatest of all time."
Oct. 20, 2017: Garth Brooks

Oct. 20, 2017: Garth Brooks
What I said then: “Country music associations should either retire their entertainer of the year awards or name them after Garth Brooks. For no country performer, new or old, can hold a guitar, microphone or cowboy hat to the engaging, energetic Oklahoma superstar who kicked off a five-concert Pinnacle Bank Arena run with a joyous 2½-hour show Friday.”
March 24, 2018: Lorde

March 24, 2018: Lorde
What I said then: "Lorde delivered for nearly 90 minutes — as an artist, something she confessed midway through, saying, 'I’m not a real pop star.' … Nor was hers a standard pop show. That put the focus on Lorde, her emotive vocals and her distinctive electro-pop — all of which captivated the crowd, which appeared to be in the 6,000-to-7,000 range."
Oct. 2, 2018: Odesza

Oct. 2, 2018: Odesza
What I said then: “The electronic music production duo’s show is a beautiful spectacle carried by always-moving music. … With its use of lights, a video-projection screen at the back of the stage and the choreographed movements and imagery of the performers, Odesza put on a show in the truest sense of the word.”
Five great opening acts

* 2014: Cyndi Lauper opening for Cher (May 30)
* 2015: Chris Stapleton opening for Eric Church (May 20); Alice Cooper opening for Motley Crue (Dec. 4)
* 2016: The Pretenders opening for Stevie Nicks (Dec. 5)
* 2018: Jamey Johnson opening for Lynyrd Skynyrd (Oct. 6)
Reach the writer at 402-473-7244 or kwolgamott@journalstar.com. On Twitter @KentWolgamott