David Bowie 'Lazarus' video leads artist's songs to easily break through records

Producer and collaborator Tony Visconti described Mr Bowie’s last album as a ‘parting gift’

David Bowie’s videos have easily broken through records for the most watched ever, following the announcement of his death this week.

Mr Bowie’s videos were watched 51 million times on January 11, when Mr Bowie’s family announced that he had died at 69. That means that it easily broke through the previous record — which was achieved by Adele on 23 October, when her single ‘Hello’ was released, when 36 million people.

In all, views of Mr Bowie’s videos were up 5,198 per cent on January 11, compared with the seven days before — which had already included the release of a new single.

The total was helped in large part by Mr Bowie’s final single, Lazarus, and its accompanying video.

That clip shows the singer in a hospital bed before he disappears into a cupboard. The song has the opening line “Look up here, I'm in heaven / I've got scars, that can't be seen”.

The track and the album it was taken from, Blackstar, have been described by producer and collaborator Tony Visconti as a “parting gift”.