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Gord Downie, lead singer of The Tragically Hip, has died

FILE - In this May 5, 2017 file photo, lead singer of The Tragically Hip Gord Downie salutes fans during the first half of Game 3 of an NBA basketball second-round playoff series between the Toronto Raptors and the Cleveland Cavaliers in Toronto. The widely revered lead singer died Tuesday night, Oct. 17, 2017. He was 53. (Frank Gunn/The Canadian Press via AP File)

By Rob Gillies and Charmaine Noronha | The Associated Press
  | Oct. 18, 2017, 2:43 p.m.
| Updated: 5:04 p.m.

Toronto • The widely revered lead singer and songwriter of iconic Canadian rock band The Tragically Hip has died. Gord Downie was 53.

Downie became a part of Canada's national identity with about hockey, small towns and the country's literature.

A statement on the band's website says he died Tuesday night "with his beloved children and family close by." The statement did not give a cause of death, though he had been diagnosed earlier with brain cancer.

Since The Tragically Hip's first album in 1987, the band has provided a soundtrack for the lives of many Canadians. "Ahead by a Century" and "Bobcaygeon" are among the best known.

By Rob Gillies and Charmaine Noronha | The Associated Press