NEIL DIAMOND RETIRES
HIS FANS UNITE TO HELP A CAUSE CLOSE TO HIS HEART
His bittersweet farewell
He’s nearing 80, but you’d be forgiven for thinking Neil Diamond is invincible as he continues to rock stages and lead huge singalongs across the globe – at least, until now.
Neil shocked fans last week as he announced with “great reluctance and disappointment” his immediate retirement from concert touring, while on his 50 Year Anniversary World Tour bound for Australia and New Zealand. Making the statement one day before his 77th birthday, the crooner revealed doctors advised him to stop touring after diagnosing him with Parkinson’s disease.
“I have been so honoured to bring my shows to the public for the past 50 years,” he said. “I plan to remain active for a long time to come. My thanks goes out to my loyal and devoted audiences around the world. This ride has been ‘so good, so good, so good’ thanks to you,” he concluded, quoting his most famous hit, Sweet Caroline.
Hailing from humble beginnings in Brooklyn, Neil once told how he could never have forseen what was in store for him while at high school with fellow icon Barbra Streisand (75). “We were two poor kids. We hung out in the front of Erasmus High and smoked cigarettes,” he recalled.
Decades on, the Cherry Cherry singer has become one of the world’s biggest entertainers with more than 130 million albums sold. On embraking on what was to become his final tour, he said, “It’s probably, at this point, as important as songwriting to me. You’re stepping a little bit into the unknown, even though you’ve done this before. You never know what’s gonna happen.”
Neil’s musical peers have come out in force supporting the star, including the Beach Boys’ Brian Wilson (75) and Barry Manilow (74), who tweeted in support, “I’m rooting for you Neil! Fight on from another Brooklyn boy!”
And revealing the pain behind his decision, Neil has responded to his fans Down Under who have been donating their ticket refunds to charities in support of Parkinson’s research, saying, “This makes me smile. Thank you. Thank you to everyone for your outpouring of love and support. It makes a difference.”
There are fears the nature of Neil’s Parkinson’s diagnosis – the disease causes tremours and slurred speech – may make him reclusive. But for now, given his scheduled performance at this year’s Grammy Awards, talk is only of his exceptional talent.