Musician Del Palmer dies age 71 as former partner and collaborator Kate Bush pays tribute: 'He was a big part of my life'

Del Palmer, musician Kate Bush's former partner and collaborator, has died at the age of 71.

Bush, 65, confirmed the sad news in a post on her official website, where she paid tribute to Palmer, whom she dated from the late '70s to the early '90s.

"It's going to take a long time to come to terms with him not being here with us," she wrote in her post.

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"It's hard to know what to say… He was a big part of my life and my work for many years."

She went on to call Palmer "incredibly creative" and "talented" and recalled their time working together on music.

"He was a brilliant musician, bass player, a great artist – he was always drawing. Once he covered a whole recording consul in cartoons. It took him days and it looked absolutely stunning,' she wrote.

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"He taught himself to be a recording engineer, engineering several of my albums and later releasing his own."

She added: "I'm going to miss him terribly."

According to Kate Bush News, Palmer died at home on January 5 and his niece confirmed the news on social media.

He reportedly "dealt with health issues over the last few years".

Palmer, who hailed from Greenwich in the U.K, was born Derek Peter Palmer.

The sound engineer and musician worked with Bush on her albums including 1985's Hounds of Love and appeared in some of her music videos.