# Glen Campbell's last song, I'm not gonna miss you **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [October 8, 2014, 4:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/glen-campbells-last-song-im-not-gonna-miss-you/700769 "2014-10-08T16:31:45Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2014, 4:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/glen-campbells-last-song-im-not-gonna-miss-you/700769/1 "2014-10-08T16:31:45Z")
. . .has got to rank as one of the saddest songs I’ve ever heard. Lyrics [here](http://www.metrolyrics.com/im-not-gonna-miss-you-lyrics-glen-campbell.html). For anyone living in a cave and not familiar with the artist, Campbell is in the last stages of Alzheimer’s. When he was diagnosed three years ago, he asked that a documentary be made of what he was going to go through, and promptly booked a [farewell tour](http://www.nextavenue.org/blog/glen-campbells-farewell-tour-alzheimers) to help educate the public before the disease could fully claim his memory. It’s a sad ending for such a talented musician. ---
**Author:** ![Art\_Rock](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/art_rock/32/525_2.png) [@Art\_Rock](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Art_Rock)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2014, 5:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/glen-campbells-last-song-im-not-gonna-miss-you/700769/2 "2014-10-08T17:05:54Z")
Having seen my dad go through accelerated dementia until he died last year, this song hit me hard. Even though it was not Alzheimer’s but advanced Parkinson’s. Thanks for posting. ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2014, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/glen-campbells-last-song-im-not-gonna-miss-you/700769/3 "2014-10-08T17:11:58Z")
For anyone who didn’t see it, there was a piece about Campbell the other night on the NBC evening news. He’s now at a stage where he usually doesn’t recognize friends or family members, and almost never speaks. But… for some reason, occasionally, he can still pick up his guitar and play it. ---
**Author:** ![Typo\_Negative](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/typo_negative/32/484_2.png) [@Typo\_Negative](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Typo_Negative)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2014, 5:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/glen-campbells-last-song-im-not-gonna-miss-you/700769/4 "2014-10-08T17:28:33Z")
> [@astorian](#): > > But… for some reason, occasionally, he can still pick up his guitar and play it. Different kind of memory (procedural vs retrospective). > [@](#): > > Alzheimer’s does not affect all memory capacities equally. Episodic memory (memory of autobiographical events) is the first to go; next comes short-term memory (the ability of hold information in mind in an active, readily-available state for a short period of time); then semantic memory (memory of the meanings of words and facts about the world), and finally procedural memory (how to perform tasks and skills). However, as the disease advances, parts of memory which were previously intact also become impaired, and eventually all reasoning, attention, and language abilities are disrupted. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2014, 5:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/glen-campbells-last-song-im-not-gonna-miss-you/700769/5 "2014-10-08T17:36:45Z")
In a very poignant scene in the documentary, Campbell falters on the words for “Galveston”, and the audience fills it in for him. I’m eager to see it when it’s released this year. Apparently some production company is suing him for breach of contract. :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2014, 7:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/glen-campbells-last-song-im-not-gonna-miss-you/700769/6 "2014-10-08T19:06:02Z")
> [@astorian](#): > > For anyone who didn’t see it, there was a piece about Campbell the other night on the NBC evening news. He’s now at a stage where he usually doesn’t recognize friends or family members, and almost never speaks. > > But… for some reason, occasionally, he can still pick up his guitar and play it. Apparently not unknown among musicians with the condition. My family has known both a flutist and a bagpiper who were able to continue playing their instruments past the point they could no longer speak intelligibly. As noted, there are different types of memory.