Los Angeles-based Wild has hundreds of anecdotes, but he says he achieved the "ultimate Jewish dream" when he met legendary singer Diamond.

In fact, he examines his hero's singular place in the pantheon of popular music in his new book, How I Learned To Stop Worrying and Love Neil Diamond.

David grew up on the music of Diamond thanks to parents Carol and Stanley.

David, who grew up in Tenafly, New Jersey, told the Jewish Telegraph: "Neil's team asked me to write liner notes for some of his reissued albums during the writers' strike earlier in the year.

"One Sunday morning, I woke up thinking about Neil and I just started writing. It is my job, but this time it was for pure pleasure.

"The book is very personal - but I feel like I am telling Neil's story from my own point of view.

"A lot of the previous books on Neil have been really dry. Neil has read my book and been positive and supportive about it."

David first encountered Diamond 20 years ago.

David was invited backstage by Diamond with his mother, brother Jeff and sister-in-law Susan because of an interview he had done with the legend for Rolling Stone magazine.

The 46-year-old recalled: "The memories of that night make me happy.

"He told my mother that she had raised a mensch - to be told that by Neil Diamond was akin to the Pope calling you a good Catholic.

"Because of Rolling Stone I had already met some superstars, people like Ringo Starr and Elvis Costello, but meeting Neil had a special significance."

Born in New York City and brought up in New Jersey, David, who has Romanian, Polish and British ancestry, said: "It was a really Jewish upbringing - but much more culturally than religiously, although I did have my barmitzvah, attended Hebrew school and went to Israel with a Jewish youth group.

"But our family was Reform, actually Reform on the way to Protestantism - pork chops were a regular feature in our home."

But he says he is rectifying that situation in the Hollywood Hills home he shares with wife Fran, a financial manager to celebrities, and children, Andrew Dylan, 11, and Alec Scott, nine.

David said: "My wife is slightly more religious than me - although we are in no way Orthodox - and my kids have a real love of Judaism, and I love that.

Andrew Dylan was named in honour of one of David's other heroes - Bob.

David continued: "I remember interviewing him once and told him about Andrew Dylan.

"He wrapped some cookies up for both my boys and told me to give them to the kids.

"I remember thinking not only is he THE musical poet laureate, but he is also a nice, Jewish guy."

OUR HERO: Neil Diamond with David Wild, right, and his family, from left, brother Jeff, sister-in-law Susan and mother Carol

David was a music critic for his middle school and high school papers, as well at arts editor at Cornell University's Daily Sun.

Through a friendship with one of his teachers, Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist William Kennedy, David landed a job at Esquire magazine.

He recalled: "I went right from my last class with Kennedy to working for Esquire and I was there for two years.

"Graduates regularly ask me how do they get into the media and I tell them it is all about luck and contacts - and I also tell them to look for a guy who has won a Pulitzer."

From Esquire, where he started a music column, he proceeded to Rolling Stone, where he is now contributing editor.

He recalled: "I was raised on Rolling Stone, it was my absolute ultimate dream job.

"But I did get to 30 and think to myself 'shouldn't I have a new dream by now?'"

Thanks to his job at Rolling Stone, David became well-acquainted with all The Beatles, bar John Lennon.

And he thinks the criticism levelled at Ringo Starr over his refusal to sign any more autographs is uncalled for.

Davis said: "Ringo is the best adjusted icon I know. I remember walking around Beverley Hills with him and no matter where he is, people lose their mind that there is Beatle around. He handles the attention with grace.

"I took my kids to see him in concert and Alec had seen spoof documentary The Rutles a few weeks before.

"Alec asked him if he was a Rutle and Ringo replied: 'No, I was never that cool'."

David has also become friends with The Rolling Stones' Mick Jagger and Keith Richards and wrote the liner notes for their album, 40 Licks.

He has interviewed Frank Sinatra and Van Morrison, as well as Jack Nicholson, who was "great to deal with".

David's mantra is the bigger the start, they nicer they are.

But, he was not complimentary about pop group The Backstreet Boys.

"They kept me waiting in the cold at a video shoot for hours when they did not have to," he said.

While hanging out with Paul McCartney in Buenos Aires on a South American tour, David was chatting to Paul's Jewish wife, Linda, who died in 1998.

He explained: "Fran was my girlfriend at the time, and I told Linda about her and she said I should marry her - and she is now my wife.

"Paul and Linda had the most amazing marriage in the middle of chaos. She was a warm, lovely, great lady."

While at Rolling Stone he appeared regularly on the VH-1 documentary Behind the Music and produced one of them on Diamond.

He discovered an ability to write television specials, including A Tribute To Heroes, about brave people involved in 9/11.

David said: "The Heroes programme landed me an Emmy nomination, so I guess programme-makers sat up and took notice."

David now has more than 60 TV writing credits to his name, including The Grammys, The Teen Choice Music Awards and The Country Music Awards - this year's show took place last week.

He added: "I was in Nashville for those awards and actually went to do a reading of my book to a crowd there.

"You need to know that Nashville is in the Deep South, which equals VERY religious Christians.

"So, I am reading the first chapter and there is a lot of Jewish stuff in it, and I suddenly realised that maybe I should replace the word Jewish with Presbyterian.

"I was surprised how much Judaism purveys my work."

As well as his TV work, he has written a number of television tie-in books including Friends: The Official Companion and Seinfeld: The Totally Unauthorised Tribute.

David said: "The Friends cast were more like a pop group. In fact, they were once featured in Rolling Stone and they were all great."

He describes himself politically as an "average LA Jew".

David explained: "That means I am a Barack Obama-supporting, Israel-loving Jew.

"Jerusalem is one of my favourite places in the world and I would love to go back - we may even have my older son's barmitzvah there."

David is currently working on a TV tribute to actor Samuel L Jackson, as well as writing the script for the Peoples' Choice Awards.

"I like the jobs that pay best, but I'll do whatever keeps me busy - I write for other peoples' voices," David added.

How I Learned To Stop Worrying and Love Neil Diamond is released on Monday by Old Street Publishing, priced £14.99.