Neil Diamond gives rare Sweet Caroline performance years after retiring due to Parkinson’s | Celebrity News | Showbiz & TV
Neil Diamond, 81, surprised the audience on the opening night of the Broadway show, A Beautiful Noise, The Neil Diamond Musical, with a rendition of his iconic hit Sweet Caroline. The unexpected singalong was Neil’s first time performing in New York since his 2017 Parkinson’s diagnosis.
In 2018, Neil announced he was retiring from concert touring because the disease had made it “difficult to travel and perform on a large scale basis”.
Twitter user Ben Phillips shared a clip of Neil performing his hit at New York’s Broadhurst Theatre.
After walking the red carpet at the opening night alongside his wife Katie McNeil, 52, Neil entered the theatre to a standing ovation, People reports.
The user wrote in the caption: “I don’t know who needs to hear this but Neil Diamond, who retired from performing five years ago because of Parkinson’s, just had a Broadway show of him open and it at the opening night he did this.”
Thousands of fans and famous faces have since taken to the comments to commend the legendary singer.
Gary Lineker simply said: “Amazing.”
Presenter Richard Bacon echoed: “Absolutely wonderful.”
He said at the time: “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.”
Due to his retirement, Neil had to cancel the third leg of his 50th Anniversary Tour in Australia and New Zealand.
That same year, he was honoured with a Lifetime Achievement Award at the Grammys, along with Queen, Tina Turner and Emmylou Harris.
According to the NHS, Parkinson’s disease is a condition in which parts of the brain become progressively damaged over many years.
There’s currently no cure, but treatments are available to help relieve the symptoms and maintain your quality of life.
Symptoms include tremors, stiffness and difficulty balancing.
