. ♪ too long since somebody whispered ♪ most notably with mary chapin carpenter.says jennings and chapman carpenter wrote their first songs together decades ago. >> that became chapman's first album and the relationship. >> reporter: but now jennings has been diagnosed with cancer. taken a toll on his abity t earn a living. >> i would be touring with mary chapin when she's recording and doing recording projects but i couldn't have a choice in that. being sick has put me on the dl for a while. >> reporter: jennings considers himself lucky and knows he's not alone as a musician facing a debilitating disease. his good friend and nationally renowned celtic singer grace griffith who lives in our area is battling parkinson's. >> it's getting to the point where she can't sing a lot anymore. >> reporter: it took her two years to record her cd. because of her illness she had to record it one phrase at a time. >> every record is a labor of love. i would think in grace's case particularly so. >> reporter: while insurance covers some medical experiences health issues like can