1980s rock singer Jack Russell, a founding member of hard rock/glam metal band Great White, is retiring from touring after being diagnosed with Lewy body dementia.
“It is with the heaviest of hearts that I must announce my retirement from the road,” Russell said in a statement Wednesday. “After a recent diagnosis of Lewy body dementia and multiple system atrophy in May 2024, I am unable to perform at the level I desire and at the level you deserve. Words cannot express my gratitude for the many years of memories, love and support. Thank you for letting me live my dreams.”
Lewy body dementia (LBD) is the second most common type of neurodegenerative dementia after Alzheimer’s disease, according to the Mayo clinic. It affects brain regions involved in thinking, memory and movement, causing a decline in mental abilities and sometimes visual hallucinations. Actor-comedian Robin Williams was diagnosed with LBD in an autopsy after his death in 2014.
Russell is best known as the lead singer of Great White, reaching the charts in the mid-to-late ‘80s with songs like “Once Bitten, Twice Shy,” “The Angel Song,” “Rock Me,” “Lady Red Light,” “House of Broken Love,” and “Save Your Love.” Russell has also performed as a solo artist and under the name Jack Russell’s Great White.
Russell was performing with Great White when a pyrotechnics display sparked a nightclub fire that killed 100 people at a 2003 concert in Rhode Island. Great White guitarist Ty Longley died in the blaze and the band’s then tour manager spent two years in prison.
“Why did I get to live and so many other people didn’t? I feel guilty for people coming to see me play and losing their lives. It’s really hard to deal with it,” Russell said in 2015.
Russell revisits his career, the Station Nightclub tragedy, the MTV heydays and his struggles with substance abuse in a new autobiography, “The True Tale of Mista Bone: A Rock & Roll Narrative,” released last week. The book, written with K.L. Doty, also features a foreword by Lita Ford.
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