"David Bowie bid me farewell before death"
David Bowie's longtime friend says the singer said his own goodbyes before his tragic death on Sunday.
The legendary singer died on Sunday aged 69, after an 18-month battle against cancer. While his passing came as a shock to everyone, Brian says that in retrospect, he can see that David was bidding him farewell in his own way before he lost his life.
In a statement, Brian said: "David's death came as a complete surprise, as did nearly everything else about him. I feel a huge gap now. We knew each other for over 40 years ... Over the last few years - with him living in New York and me in London - our connection was by email. We signed off with invented names: some of his were mr showbiz, milton keynes, rhoda borrocks and the duke of ear.
"I received an email from him seven days ago. It was as funny as always, and as surreal, looping through word games and allusions and all the usual stuff we did.
"It ended with this sentence: 'Thank you for our good times, brian. they will never rot'. And it was signed 'Dawn'. I realise now he was saying goodbye."
David has left a lasting effect on the music industry, having influenced many of today's brightest young stars.
Former Oasis star Noel Gallagher said he always been blown away by David's talent - not only as a singer but also as a songwriter.
He said in an interview with Absolute Radio: "The lyrics to 'Ashes to Ashes' are ludicrous. He's right up there. He's easily in the top five songwriters of all time. There are countless tales of people from the 80s - the Romantic era, guys wearing make-up and all that - they all say it wouldn't have been anything, it all came from David Bowie. Funnily enough the Sex Pistols even cite him as well. It's staggering the things he's done in music."
