Bobby Vee retires after Alzheimer's diagnosis
Bobby Vee, the Fargo-born pop music legend, announced on his blog Monday that he has Alzheimer’s disease and will be retiring from public life.
Bobby Vee, the Fargo-born pop music legend, announced on his blog on Monday that he has Alzheimer’s disease and will be retiring from public life.
Vee, 69, said in the blog post that he was diagnosed with mild stages of the disease a little more than a year ago. Since that time, he wrote, he’s chosen to remain private and focus on family and music.
Up until recently, Vee had maintained a consistent touring schedule, playing about 50 international shows in 2010. He's lived in the St. Cloud, Minn., area for decades.
Vee’s career got its start as the result of a tragic twist of fate, when on Feb. 3, 1959, a light plane carrying Buddy Holly, Richie Valens and The Big Bopper from Clear Lake, Iowa, to their next show in Moorhead crashed in a snow-covered field, killing everyone aboard.
Then 15, Bobby Velline and the band formed by his older brother, Bill, and several other schoolboys called themselves "The Shadows," as they filled in for Holly and Valens. It gave him the chance to play on the same stage as Waylon Jennings and Dion and the Belmonts, who all rode the bus to Moorhead from Clear Lake.
Their performance that night was successful, and Bobby Vee and The Shadows had their first hit, “Susie Baby,” later that year.
Vee’s hits include: "Take Good Care of My Baby," "The Night Has a Thousand Eyes," "Rubber Ball," "Devil or Angel," and "Come Back When You Grow Up, Girl."
Vee, 69, said in the blog post that he was diagnosed with mild stages of the disease a little more than a year ago. Since that time, he wrote, he’s chosen to remain private and focus on family and music.
Up until recently, Vee had maintained a consistent touring schedule, playing about 50 international shows in 2010. He's lived in the St. Cloud, Minn., area for decades.
Vee’s career got its start as the result of a tragic twist of fate, when on Feb. 3, 1959, a light plane carrying Buddy Holly, Richie Valens and The Big Bopper from Clear Lake, Iowa, to their next show in Moorhead crashed in a snow-covered field, killing everyone aboard.
Then 15, Bobby Velline and the band formed by his older brother, Bill, and several other schoolboys called themselves "The Shadows," as they filled in for Holly and Valens. It gave him the chance to play on the same stage as Waylon Jennings and Dion and the Belmonts, who all rode the bus to Moorhead from Clear Lake.
Their performance that night was successful, and Bobby Vee and The Shadows had their first hit, “Susie Baby,” later that year.
Vee’s hits include: "Take Good Care of My Baby," "The Night Has a Thousand Eyes," "Rubber Ball," "Devil or Angel," and "Come Back When You Grow Up, Girl."
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