Neil Diamond to Donate 'Sweet Caroline' Royalties to Bombing Victims Fund

CNN reports that singer Neil Diamond plans to donate royalties from his hit song "Sweet Caroline' to One Fund Boston, a charity which will aid victims of the recent Boston bombings. He annnounced the news on Twitter yesterday.

The song has become an eighth inning staple at Boston Red Sox games for the last ten years. Although it was not written with any affiliation to the team, Diamond feels a kinship to the city which has suffered in recent days. According to Nielsen SoundScan, the tune was downloaded upward of 19,000 times this week, with sales up 597%.

Earlier in the week Diamond revealed to Rolling Stone magazine that he is now penning a new song specifically to pay homage to Boston as well as other recent victims of tragic events. "I'm writing now and obviously affected by this situation in Boston, so I'm writing about it just to express myself," he said.

On Saturday, Diamond treated the crowd at Fenway Park to a live version of the single, commenting, "What an honor it is for me to be here today. I bring love from the whole country," he told the Sox faithful.

The fund, which according to its website was started to "help the people most affected by the tragic events that occurred in Boston on April 15, 2013," has currently raised more than $23 million as of Wednesday.

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