Legendary singer Tony Bennett has revealed he has Alzheimer’s, after being diagnosed with the disease in 2016.
The iconic musician opened up about his battle with the disease in a new interview, tweeting a link with the words: ‘Life is a gift – even with Alzheimer’s.’
He continued: ‘Thank you to [my wife] Susan and my family for their support, and AARP The Magazine for telling my story.’
According to AARP, the 94-year-old has been ‘spared the disorientation that can prompt patients to wander from home, as well as the episodes of terror, rage or depression that can accompany Alzheimer’s frightening detachment from reality.’
However, the article also revealed the effects he has been facing with the disease as it stated: ‘His expression had a masklike impassivity that changed only slightly to dim awareness when Susan placed a hand on his shoulder, leaned over and said: “This is John, Tone. He’s come to talk to us about the new album.”
‘She spoke into his ear, a little loudly perhaps, in a prompting, emphatic register, as if trying to reach her husband through a barrier that had fallen between him and the rest of the world.’
Alzheimer’s is an irreversible, progressive brain disorder that slowly destroys memory and thinking skills and, over time, the ability to carry out the simplest tasks.
In most, the symptoms first appear in their mid-60s and eventually leaves them dependent on caregivers.
Bennett continues to live at home with his wife Susan in their New York apartment, while he is managed by his son Danny.
The jazz legend has enjoyed some of his greatest success in recent years, including the release of his chart-topping duets album with Lady Gaga, Cheek to Cheek.
The article confirmed that a follow-up to Cheek to Cheek, recorded between 2018 and early 2020, will be released in the Spring.
A documentary about the album is also in the works, with the article commenting on raw footage which highlights the toll of Bennett’s diagnosis on Lady Gaga.
Regarding footage of the pair recording, the article states: ‘The pain and sadness in Gaga’s face is clear at such moments — but never more so than in an extraordinarily moving sequence in which Tony (a man she calls ‘an incredible mentor, and friend, and father figure’) sings a solo passage of a love song.
‘Gaga looks on, from behind her mic, her smile breaking into a quiver, her eyes brimming, before she puts her hands over her face and sobs.’
A release date for the new album and documentary has not yet been confirmed.
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