When I listen to performers I admire go to rough times, it’s tough to bear. I sometimes forget that they are just people, too. Some of the ones I admire the most were born in the 1970’s and 1980’s. Some of them are starting to face health issues, and I am not talking about an occasional migraine, either. One of the singers/songwriters that I admire the most is Eric Clapton.
His songs have captivated the hearts of millions, and his career has spanned over many decades. Since the very beginning, people around Eric Clapton knew that he had something special. After many years, he became a consolidated artist and won several awards. One of his greatest hits, “Tears in Heaven,” was written as a result of a personal tragedy.
Even though he was going through very tough times, he had continued working. He added more concert dates and destinations to his tour and worked even harder. All this work helped him have his mind busy and cope with tragedy a lot better. He was recently interviewed for a documentary that a producer, who was also a fan, decided to do about his life. The documentary was called, “Eric Clapton: Life in 12 Bars.” In this documentary, he revealed to everyone that he has been losing his hearing.
Clapton, at 72 years of age, sat down with the BBC 2 reporter where he talked about performing live. He said that he wanted to continue performing for audiences at live shows, but he needed to first see how this went. When asked what his opinion was on aging and what role it might be playing, he said: “I mean, I’m going deaf, I’ve got tinnitus, my hands just about work, I mean, I’m hoping that people will come along and see me just because, or maybe more than because I’m a curiosity. It amazes me that I’m still here.”
A person with just one of these diagnoses might get depressed and not even want to leave his home, but not Eric. Now, according to the Mayo clinic, tinnitus, “is the perception of noise or ringing in the ears.” According to the most recent statistics, one out of every five people gets it. Some of the symptoms include ringing, buzzing, hissing, roaring and clicking in the ears.
It’s been five years since Clapton released his last album. He did an interview with Rolling Stone in December of 2016. There, he talked extensively about his problems and how they made it very difficult for him to record his album. Watch the video to see everything he had to say.
https://youtu.be/r7vi_gje4K8