Neil Diamond ’s 1969 tune “Sweet Caroline” has become far more than just a hit: Over the decades, it’s evolved into a rousing sing-along across the world. With it’s “so good, so good, so good” echoed ...

Diamond said he wrote the song about his second wife, Marcia Murphey; the couple married in 1969 and later divorced in 1995. Apparently, Diamond needed a three-syllable name to fit the melody, and ...