David Bowie's pianist fears he's to blame for the late singer quitting touring.

The 'Starman' legend - who died in 2016 aged 69 after a private cancer battle - never toured again after 2004, and Mike Garson thinks his words might have had an impact on Bowie's decision.

He told Music Week: "So he called me in 2006 and he said, 'Well, Mike, do you think we should go out again?'

"Now, I think the band and my wife want to kill me because I said something absurd, but actually deep and correct and honest.

"I said, 'David, only if you're feeling it', because he wasn't feeling it. I knew it but he wanted to give work to the band - our tour was cut short in 2004, so he was feeling guilty."

Garson - who played on the likes of 'Aladdin Sane' and 'Outside' - spent three decades as part of Bowie's live band, right up to the final tour 19 years ago, which was cut short due to health issues.

He added: "Of course, my first thought was, 'Yeah, let's go'. But my second thought was, 'I don't want to be on the road with someone who is miserable and doesn't want to be there.' "

The pair stayed in touch until Bowie's death seven years ago, and they were planning more projects in the months before his passing.

Garson said: "He wrote to be saying he was hoping to maybe do another version of 'Outside' with Brian Eno and tour that.

"I had some hopes, but it was cut short unfortunately."

Garson previously claimed he had a premonition shortly before the icon's passing that he was going to die when they spoke via email for the last time.

He said: "Right before he died, I was working on my biography and was asked to listen 60 songs we'd recorded together.

"I was overwhelmed, because I never usually listened to our old songs - like David, I'll be on to the next thing. I emailed him, saying I was in shock at how good we'd been.

"Within minutes, David wrote back saying, 'Mike, we did a great body of work together.' I suddenly felt tears, knowing something was wrong.

"I said to my wife Susan, 'That's the last time I'm going to speak to David.' I couldn't explain why, but I was right."