Glen Campbell is telling his many fans goodbye.
Last week, the legendary singer-songwriter Glen Campbell bid a final farewell to his fans by releasing his last-ever album. Titled Adiós, it was recorded in 2012, when the “Rhinestone Cowboy” formally ended his music career after being diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease the year before.
Produced by his friend and longtime banjo player Carl Jackson, Adiós also involved Campbell’s daughter Ashley Campbell, a country musician in her own right. She and Jackson both spoke with NPR’s Michel Martin the day the album was released, and she says knowing that Adiós is her father’s last album is “definitely bittersweet.”
The 12-song collection includes songs that Glen Campbell loved but never had the opportunity to record. Some of the album’s poignancy stems from the fact that Campbell sounds nearly as robust and fluid as ever. Jackson says that’s partly because these are songs that were “ingrained” in him.
Jackson said he couldn’t remember lyrics — “that was one of the first things to go… But he didn’t lose his melodies, and that beautiful perfect pitch and tone.”
Glen Campbell has been open about his experience with Alzheimer’s. In 2012, he embarked on a yearlong farewell tour, which was captured in the documentary Glen Campbell: I’ll Be Me. The film also documented some of the singer’s offstage struggles as the disease progressed. Jackson says his friend’s attitude towards his ailment was extraordinary.