Fans are mourning the loss of Glen Hansard after the Irish singer-songwriter passed away at age 56 after a fatal motorcycle accident in his native Dublin.
Some of those fans are music icons, including Bruce Springsteen, U2 frontman Bono and others.
‘Voice of the Streets’
Bono paid tribute to his fellow Irishman in a lengthy statement he shared via Instagram, lauding Hansard as “the voice of the streets” and “an angelic presence.”
“He really was who you thought he was. He could never walk by a person living rough without checking they were OK… and more than that, he worked very hard so that less people had to live on the streets in the first place,” Bono wrote.
“When the crowds got bigger [at the Christmas Eve Busk] and for safety’s sake, Glen had to agree to move the Busk to a stage kindly provided outside the Gaiety Theatre, he would say, ‘We’ll give it our best but it’s not a busk if we’re not on the street!’ …because that’s who he was — a performer at eye level in any situation. The stage was a separation he wouldn’t recognize. Of all the grand and gigantic venues he and the Frames played, you sensed the street was his most favoured place to perform. And street people, his favourite audience,” the singer continued.
“For me, he will always be everywhere I see a coin spinning into an open guitar case,” Bono added.
‘Heartbroken’ on E Street
Springsteen likewise took to Instagram to pay tribute.
“Here on E Street, we are heartbroken over the death of Glen Hansard,” Springsteen wrote. “We met in Ireland many years ago and he was always nothing but a great musician, a good friend and a generous and gracious man. Always positive, smiling and ready to sing. God bless him and his loved ones.”
Glen Hansard Was an Inspiration
Finneas O’Connell, brother and musical partner of Billie Eilish, shared a photo on Instagram of himself posing with Hansard.
“Glen Hansard. North Star songwriter, most wonderful person,” O’Connell wrote in the caption.
“The first song I ever got on a stage to perform was ‘Falling Slowly’ when I was 11,” he continued.
“His songs made me want to write songs and they also made me cry. When our family met him in Dublin in 2019, he greeted us like old friends even though we were just his fans. Today I am a heartbroken fan. Hope he knew how much he meant to so many, this is how much he meant to me,” O’Connell concluded.
Other Tributes
As the sad reality settles in, well-known figures in the world of entertainment are also paying tribute.
“Glen was wonderful. The universe lacks mercy or justice that such a sweet, thoughtful, burstingly talented man should be so wantonly and violently killed on an early Irish morning backroad,” wrote Bob Geldof, via Louder. “Tragedy does not do justice to this terrible calamity for his family, the world of music and Ireland itself. For we have lost one of the great ones. A person and a songwriter and singer and musician and performer of great depth, understanding, compassion, daring and bravado.”
“I ache for your beautiful family, Ed, Mike, & Oli. All my love Glen,” wrote singer Cat Power.
Elvis Costello also honored Hansard. “We only sang together a couple of times but I was always glad to see his face and hear his voice,” Costello wrote in a statement, via Louder. “I’ll never forget an incredible evening at the Royal Albert Hall on the occasion of the first State Visit by an Irish President with Glen and the great Donal Lunny leading the assembled chorus.”
“Can’t believe Glen has left the world so terribly early,” wrote Irish actor and comedian Chris O’Dowd via Instagram. “I recently encountered a Basquiat quote… ‘Art is how we decorate Space & Music is how we decorate time’. Glen was an incredible decorator of our time. His energising Melodies and soulful, searching voice made the tough times more manageable, the stagnant times more beautiful, and the joyful times even more memorable.”
