David Bowie, the icon of glam rock who sustained a chart-topping career for five decades with hits including "Fame", "Heroes" and "Let's Dance", has died at the age of 69, his family and representative confirmed Monday.

Spokesman Steve Martin said early Monday that the "Ashes to Ashes" singer had died peacefully surrounded by his family after an 18-month battle against cancer.

"While many of you will share in this loss, we ask that you respect the family's privacy during their time of grief," Martin's statement concluded. No further details were provided.

The singer's son, Duncan Jones, issued a confirming statement of his own on Twitter.

Tributes poured in on social media from, among others, British Prime Minister David Cameron and comedian Ricky Gervais, who had hosted Sunday night's Golden Globe Awards show in Los Angeles.

Bowie died three days after the release of "Blackstar", his 29th album, which had been timed to coincide with his birthday. The singer had kept a low profile in recent years after reportedly suffering a heart attack in the 2000s, and it had not been widely known that he was struggling with cancer.

Bowie, who was born David Jones in the Brixton area of South London, came of age in the glam rock era of the early 1970s. He had a striking androgynous look in his early days and was known for changing his looks and sounds. The stuttering rock sound of "Changes" gave way to the disco soul of "Young Americans," co-written with John Lennon, to a droning collaboration with Brian Eno in Berlin that produced "Heroes."

He had some of his biggest successes in the early 1980s with the stylist "Let's Dance," and a massive American tour.

"My entire career, I've only really worked with the same subject matter," Bowie said in a 2002 interview with The Associated Press. "The trousers may change, but the actual words and subjects I've always chosen to write with are things to do with isolation, abandonment, fear and anxiety -- all of the high points of one's life."

His performance of "Heroes" was a highlight of a concert for rescue workers after the 2001 World Trade Center attacks.

"What I'm most proud of is that I can't help but notice that I've affected the vocabulary of pop music. For me, frankly, as an artist, that's the most satisfying thing for the ego."

Bowie was awarded a Grammy lifetime achievement award in February 2006 and his final performance on stage was later that year when he sang alongside Alicia Keys at the Black Ball in New York. He made a surprise comeback in 2013 when he suddenly released a new single on his 66th birthday, with his first new album in 10 years, "The Next Day," following just weeks later. The album had been recorded in secret in New York City and represented another stylistic shift for Bowie, who gathered jazz players to join him.

http://www.foxnews.com/entertainment/2016/01/11/rock-star-david-bowie-dead-cancer-at-age-6/?intcmp=hpbt1

This is so sad....
I met him when I was 18....
We had a drink a smoke and a chat....
Amazing I can remember that...haha
*bowing*...to a great artist...

I didn't even know he had cancer.........

Singer David Bowie, has died: just after his 69th birthday.
http://youtu.be/2-KuuOr0lu8/ 00:01

David Bowie Dead at 69: http://youtu.be/xBEKLTLpm_Y/ 01:43


David Bowie, who shot to fame in the early 1970s with his ‘glam rock’ alter ego Ziggy Stardust, and sustained a chart-topping career over four decades, has died after an 18-month battle against cancer, his family confirmed Monday.

http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/david-bowie-dead-at-69-20160111/

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David Bowie - Blackstar: http://youtu.be/kszLwBaC4Sw/ 10:00

From his latest album ^^^^^
I heard this is weird, creepy / weird.
I did NOT watch it

Shine on

Wow.. another one of the greats..
Slips away..

RIP DB

Thanks for the years of great music!

Wasn't he in some big hit movie in the 1980's?

It seems like death of Musicians and celebrities comes in threes. I think it was last week the lead singer of Motorhead died, now David Bowie. I am scared to think who the third will be!

That is too awesome. I LOVE the Austin Powers Movies. I actually read someplace that they are going to make a fourth one, I don't know how accurate that is though..........

These are the last pics taken of David Bowie....
Jan 8th....

mickey5360 ,

Wow..thanks for posting those.!
Great pics of his smiling face

He was always a thin man...but my goodness he looks frail to me...

I was thinking the same thing.
He always was a little guy, but I think the sickness shows.
It was a long battle.

8 Things You Probably Never Knew About About David Bowie

http://www.theklay.com/8-things-you-probably-never-knew-about-david-bowie/147/2197/?utm_source=&utm_medium=&utm_campaign=&utm_term=&utm_source=Outbrain&utm_medium=KarH1&utm_campaign=1/