We’re lucky to have dad’s music but it’s a blessing and a curse. Maybe one day I’ll find comfort in his songs but it’s tough just now
Heartbroken daughter’s tribute to music legend dad
To his fans across the world, singing legend Jim Diamond’s lasting legacy is the songs he left behind.
But one year on from her father’s sudden death, heartbroken Sara Diamond admits she hasn’t found the strength to sit down and listen to his music.
Singer-songwriter Jim died in his sleep last October aged 64.
Famous for a string of hits in the 80s including I Should Have Known Better, I Won’t Let You Down and Hi Ho Silver, the Glasgow star’s tunes are still regularly played on the radio, and have even been remixed into modern-day club classics.
But Sara, 38, says she can’t bring herself to listen to the music he was so proud of.
Speaking for the first time about her father’s death, Sara, who will next week attend the SSE Scottish Music Awards to pick up an award in memory of Jim, said: “Dad’s death was a real shock.
“We didn’t realise he had been unwell, he just went to bed and died in his sleep.
“He died as a result of a pulmonary edema – a build-up of fluid in his lungs.
“A year on, it is hard for my mum, my brother and I to get our heads around losing him so suddenly.
“I miss him every day, and while I know I’m privileged to have his music, to have his voice out there – I’m not ready to sit down and listen to it.
“It’s a blessing and a curse, and I know one day, I’ll probably take comfort from playing his songs.”
Nicknamed Scotland’s Ray Charles, Jim joined his first band aged 14 and moved to London after signing his first record deal.
His haunting voice saw him sel l millions of records worldwide, both as a solo artist and with the band Ph. D, which he formed with Tony Hymas and Simon Phillips.
Sara says in the weeks following her dad’s death last year, her whole family, including her mum Chrissy and brother Lawrence, 32, were deeply moved by the tributes paid to the man they loved.
She said: “Dad was quite a private man, he didn’t court celebrity, and the only reason he did what he did was because he loved making music.
“People always used to say that it must be very cool to have a famous father, but to Lawrence and I he was just our dad – the man who would tickle us, play games with us and chase us round the garden.
“One of my earliest memories of realising his job was different to most, was when I was about six years old and I Should Have Known Better went to No1. The record company would always phone the house and let you know the chart position in advance.
“I was at an age where I loved answering the phone, and usually the person from the record company would give me the message to pass on to my dad.
“But that day they insisted on speaking to either of my parents.
“I remember my mum taking the phone and being very calm as she was told he was No1, then running up the stairs to get my dad.”
Sara says her dad’s public reaction to his first and only No1 perfectly summed up his character.
She said: “Dad’s song went to No1 at the same time as Band Aid’s Do They Know It’s Christmas was released.
“He was over the moon, but told everyone to go and buy the charity single.”
Sara added that the one thing her dad enjoyed using his fame for was to help others. She said: “Dad was always very aware of how lucky we had been as a family, in terms of health and wealth.
“He was very passionate about helping charities. He saw it as his duty to do what he could to give something back.”
Sara revealed her dad was always quietly pleased when his songs hit the Top 10, or in the case of Hi Ho Silver was chosen as the theme tune to TV series Boon.
But she said commercial success was never his biggest goal.
Sara added: “Dad was not driven by chart success. What he wanted was just for people to be touched by his music.
“What drove him was wr it ing something that would make people feel like they had never felt before, make them happy or help them express themselves.
“He loved nothing better than sitting in the front room with his guitar, and he’d
Dad would always make us laugh. That’s what I miss the most