Watch Paul Simon break the news of Muhammad Ali's death to fans before playing 'The Boxer'

'I'm sorry to tell you this way, but Muhammad Ali has passed away'

Paul Simon was on stage in Berkeley, California when the news broke of Muhammad Ali's death; taking on the heartbreaking duty of informing the attendant crowd, and choosing to play a particularly fitting track in tribute.

Performing at the Greek Theatre, Simon paused midway through Simon & Garfunkel's classic 1969 tune, "The Boxer", to inform audience members, "I'm sorry to tell you this way, but Muhammad Ali has passed away."

After a ripple of grief passed across the auditorium, the musician slipped back into the heartfelt track, delivering its final verse which ends with the poignant words; "I am leaving. I am leaving, but the fighter still remains."

"The Boxer" is taken from Simon & Garfunkel's fifth studio album, Bridge over Troubled Water; largely taking the form a first-person lament discussing poverty and loneliness, largely autobiographical in nature, but also including a third-person sketch of a boxer.

The musician was on tour to support his new LP Stanger to Stranger, closing the show by also dedicating his iconic song, "The Sound of Silence", to the sports legend.

Tributes for the legendary boxer have poured in after his death on 3 June, at the age of 74, following a 32-year battle with Parkinson's disease.