On Monday, Neil Diamond announced on his website that he had been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease. As such, he has cancelled the third leg of his 50th Anniversary Tour (which launched April 2017 and carried on for over 50 dates across the U.S. and Europe) and will be retiring immediately:
“It is with great reluctance and disappointment that I announce my retirement from concert touring. I have been so honored to bring my shows to the public for the past 50 years. My sincerest apologies to everyone who purchased tickets and were planning to come to the upcoming shows.
I plan to remain active in writing, recording and other projects for a long time to come.
My thanks goes out to my loyal and devoted audiences around the world. You will always have my appreciation for your support and encouragement. This ride has been ‘so good, so good, so good’ thanks to you.”1
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His tour was slated to extend to Australia and New Zealand this coming March but the musician stated that the disease has made it too difficult to travel and perform on a large scale basis. Anyone who has purchased tickets for a show that has been cancelled will be refunded.
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Diamond, who turns 77 on Wednesday, does, however, plan to attend the Grammys on Sunday where the Recording Academy will honor him with its Lifetime Achievement Award.
Parkinsons Disease is part autoimmune disorder and “neurogenerative disorder that affects predominately dopamine-producing neurons in a specific area of the brain called substantia nigra.”2
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