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Neil Diamond will donate royalties from “Sweet Caroline,” a top-5 hit that has been played at every Boston Red Sox home game for more than a decade, to the charity supporting victims of the Boston Marathon bombing.
The veteran crooner on Thursday retweeted a message from Nielsen that explained “Sweet Caroline” sales were up 597 percent after the April 15 Boston bombings, selling 19,000 copies. With the retweet, he added his own line, “Donating these royalties to #OneFund!”
VIDEO: Neil Diamond Surprises Red Sox Fans With ‘Sweet Caroline’
“Sweet Caroline” has become intrinsic to the healing process following the bombings, which killed three and injured approximately 180.
The song, which has been adopted as the Red Sox’s anthem and played during the 8th inning of every home game since 2002, has rung out at sporting events across the country after the lethal attack.
Diamond made an impromptu visit to Boston’s Fenway Park on April 20 to sing his 1969 No. 4 Billboard Hot 100 hit during what was the Red Sox’ first home game following the incident.
Diamond’s rousing appearance at the stadium, where he sang along to the recording, spurred the song’s No. 33 debut on Pop Digital Songs.
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The bulk of “Sweet Caroline” sales last week came from the Boston designated marketing area (DMA), where 8.7 percent of its sales for the week were registered. It was the No. 28-selling song in the city last week.
The One Fund Boston has raised more than $23 million, at the time of publication. The fund was formed to “help the people most affected by the tragic events that occurred in Boston on April 15, 2013,” its website says.
Diamond isn’t the only musician doing their bit for Boston. The Celtic punk band Dropkick Murphys recently tweeted that they’d raised nearly $100,000 to benefit victims of the bombings. The groups from the Boston suburb of Quincy.
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