Joe Cocker dies at 70

According to the BBC Singer Joe Cocker, best known for his cover of the Beatles’ With A Little Help From My Friends, has died aged 70.

The singer song-writer from Sheffield had a career lasting more than 40 years with hits including You Are So Beautiful and Up Where We Belong.

His agent Barrie Marshall confirmed that he had died and Cocker’s label, Sony Music made the following official statement:

John Robert Cocker, known to family, friends, his community and fans around the world as Joe Cocker, passed away on December 22, 2014 after a hard fought battle with small cell lung cancer. Mr. Cocker was 70 years old.

He said he was “simply unique” and “it will be impossible to fill the space he leaves in our hearts.”

Cocker was an English rock and blues singer, who came to popularity in the 1960s, and is known for his gritty voice, his spasmodic body movement in performance and his cover versions of popular songs, particularly those of the Beatles.