Plot

The son of a Jewish Cantor must defy the traditions of his religious father in order to pursue his dream of being a popular singer.

Neil Diamond stars in this motion picture as Yussel Rabinovitch, a young Jewish cantor who strives to make a career outside the synagogue in popular music as Jess Robin. Against the wishes of his rigid father and his loving wife, Yussel travels from New York City to Los Angeles to play his music. Swept up by the excitement, he meets a spunky manager who believes in his talent and shares his dream. He grows apart from his family, and becomes confused about what he should ultimately do with his life.��Ted Kula <tkula@cs.wvu.edu>

Neil Diamond makes his motion picture debut as Yussel Rabinovitch, a talented New York City cantor who defies the traditions of his religious father to write and sing outside the synagogue as Jess Robin. But when Jess gets an offer to record one of his songs in Los Angeles, he meets a spunky manager who believes in his talent and shares his dream. Even if Jess can survive the struggle for stardom, he will have to risk everything - including the love of his family - to be true to the music that lives inside him.—Artisan Entertainment

A Jewish young man, Yussel Rabinovitch, seems destined for a life in the synagogue. Every generation of Rabinovitches for five generations has served in the synagogue and his father can't imagine any other path for him. However, Rabinovitch would prefer to be a singer and finds success writing and playing secular music. After arriving from New York City to Los Angeles, he meets a spunky manager who believes in his talent and his dream. When this leads to a recording contract, he has to choose between his passion and tradition, a choice that will alienate him from his father.—grantss

Yussel Rabinovitch (Neil Diamond) is a young, fifth-generation Jewish cantor performing at the synagogue of his imperious father Cantor Rabinovitch (Laurence Olivier). Yussel is married to his childhood friend, Rivka (Caitlin Adams), and has settled down to a life of religious devotion to the teaching of his faith.

But on the side, he writes songs for a black singing group, and when a member of the quartet is arrested, Yussel covers for him at one of their gigs by wearing blackface. The nightclub engagement is a success, but one of the patrons at the nightclub notices that Yussel's hands are white and becomes outspoken. A fight ensues, and the band is arrested. Yussel's father comes to the jail to bail them out and finds out that there is not a Yussel Rabinovitch there but a Jess Robin. His father questions him about this later and Yussel tells him it is a professional stage name he uses when performing. His father tells him that his singing voice was to be used for God's purposes, not his own.

Bubba (Franklyn Ajay), a member of the Four Brothers singing group, is Yussel's best friend, although he knows him only as Jess. Bubba informs him that the band has got a gig in Los Angeles, performing back-up vocals for a successful singer, Keith Lennox (Paul Nichols). Shortly after Bubba leaves, Yussel begins composing a song that will eventually become "Love on the Rocks". His wife Rivka notices him writing the song in his free time and senses that Yussel yearns for a bigger stage for his voice, but her values keep her grounded to the home life they have built together.

Bubba calls Jess from Los Angeles and informs him that Lennox really loved "Love on the Rocks" and wants to record it, but they need Jess to come out for two weeks to oversee the recording session. Jess finally sees this as the opportunity he has been waiting for, but his wife and his father are opposed to him going. But later at his father's 25th anniversary as a shul cantor, his father relents and tearfully releases him.

When Jess arrives in Los Angeles, he is picked from the airport up by music agent Molly Bell (Lucie Arnaz). She takes him to the studio where Lennox is recording, and Jess is shocked to find that his ballad is now being recorded as a hard rock song. During a break in recording, Jess asks the producer and Lennox if he can perform the song as a ballad, as he intended, so Lennox can get an idea of the song's framing. They allow him to do so, and while recording the song, Molly decides that Jess' performance is the way the song should be done. However, Lennox is not convinced and fires the group.

Later, Molly gets a tip from a friend as to where a booking agent, Eddie Gibbs (Sully Boyer), is having lunch. She gets into his car, uninvited, and has him listen to Jess' recording of "Love on the Rocks". When Eddie asks her who it is, Molly tells him that it is the new opening act for Zane Gray's television special. Gibbs is impressed, but says he can't book anyone from just a tape recording sight unseen. However, she manages to get Eddie to visit a club where Jess has managed to get a gig playing, thanks to Bubba, who is working there as a waiter. Eddie comes in and watches him performing "Amazed and Confused" and then leaves. Jess thinks he has blown his chance, but Molly tells him "..he hates loud music... you he loved... you open for Zane Gray."

Meanwhile, back in New York, Cantor Rabinovich confronts Rivka about Jess going to California, and reminds her that her place is by her husband's side, and if she goes to California, maybe she can bring him home. She relents and goes. On Jess' opening night, as he performs the songs "Summer Love" and "Hey Louise", Rivka shows up and meets Molly, and tries to tell her that their Jewish values are such that Jess cannot possibly stay. The audience gives Jess a standing ovation, and he heads backstage and is reunited with Rivka. At the after party, Jess is met by an enthusiastic crowd and is given a recording contract. Despite Jess asking her to stay, Rivka says she wants something different. Realizing she has lost him, she leaves before Jess can catch her.

Days later, Jess meets up with Molly by the Santa Monica pier and confesses his love for her, telling her that he and Rivka have separated. As time passes, the two grow closer to each other while Jess's career success continues steadily. His father shows up to visit him and attempts to persuade him to go back home, but Jess refuses, insisting that he's making a name for himself with his music career. Jess reveals that he and Rivka are divorcing, which devastates his father. To make matters worse, Molly suddenly arrives home. Jess tries to explain the matter to his father, but to no avail, as he angrily disowns his son and leaves weeping.

Emotionally broken by the incident, Jess struggles at his recording sessions, taking out his anger on his bandmates, until he finally storms out and drives away aimlessly. When his car runs out of gas on the highway, he hitchhikes far away for a few weeks, taking up singing at a country bar somewhere in Texas for the next few months. Eventually, he returns home to Molly when Bubba tracks him down and tells him that she has given birth to a son. Molly once again meets Eddie Gibbs in his car and persuades him to allow Jess to perform on Zane Gray's television special.

At rehearsal, the day before Yom Kippur, Jess learns that his father is in the hospital with high blood pressure and won't be able to sing Kol Nidre at the synagogue. Jess is initially reluctant to go to his father, vowing that he is dead to him, but Molly insists that he go back to him or else she will feel guilty about this. Jess ultimately agrees and returns to sing at the synagogue. He attempts to make amends with his father, but he refuses to speak to Jess, until Jess tells him that he now has a grandson, at which point they finally reconcile. The film ends with Jess performing "America", with his father and Molly in attendance.