Engelbert Humperdinck On New Album, Granddaughter, Tribute To Wife, “Release Me” [VIDEO EXCLUSIVE]

Music legend Engelbert Humperdinck‘s new album The Man I Want To Be is dedicated to his wife Patricia Healey, who suffers from Alzheimer’s disease. “She can’t follow me to concerts anymore like she used to, but we have hope in our hearts that she will one day very soon, because we’re working on a cure for her. And music is one thing that really really helps people in those conditions, so therefore I decided to dedicate this album to her,” Humperdinck told uInterview in an exclusive video interview at our New York City offices.

The singer is also proud of the new record because its range. “Well when we started it was gonna be all brand new songs, everything was completely new, which I’ve never ever done before,” he explained. “But this one has a great deal, it has a 9-12 songs that are brand new. But the covers I’ve got are kind of unusual. I’ve got covers like a Bruno Mars song, ‘Just the Way You Are.'”

Another person important to the new album is Humperdinck’s granddaughter, who is becoming a great singer in her own right. “My granddaughter’s 9. I know people talk about their grandchildren being great singers and this and that, but for me to say it, say that this little girl can sing, I’m telling you, she can sing,” he asserts. “I mean she lives in Nashville and she’s one hell of a singer. She loves Ariana Grande, she loves the Whitney Houston type of singer. And her phrasing is phenomenal for a nine-year-old, she does all these tricks with her voice, and she does it on the album.”

Humperdinck recalls how his 1966 hit “Release Me” changed his career forever. “It created the most impact than any song has created in my life. When I first heard it… I said to Gordon Mills, I said, ‘Gordon, that’s a hit. I think that could be the hit for me,’ with this new name and everything,” he explains. “So we found the lyrics, by this R&B singer Etta James, and that wasn’t it. I couldn’t hear it from that. Then I heard Ray Price, who was a country singer, but I gave it my own twist in a country pop, and it went to number one around the world. And it stopped the Beatles from having their 13th number one,” he mused.

Humperdinck is known for his covers, but loves occassional collaborative work. “I only did one collaboration, which was a couple years ago, and I’ve worked with some fabulous people like Elton John, Gene Simmons from Kiss, Willie Nelson, and quite a few others,” he said. “I think in the near future, having the album that’s coming out right now, I’d certainly like to do something with Bruno [Mars].”