The Pogues mourn manager Frank Murray

Celtic rockers The Pogues are mourning the loss of their former manager Frank Murray, who has died at the age of 66.
The Irishman started out in music management by running tours for star acts including Thin Lizzy, Elton John and The Specials, before watching the unruly Shane MacGowan-fronted band perform in London pub the Hope & Anchor in the mid-1980s.
Before parting ways with the rockers in 1990, he managed the band to cult and then mainstream success towards the end of the decade, and had a key role in the creation of The Pogues’ most famous hit, their 1987 Christmas classic Fairytale of New York.
After their manager’s passing from a suspected heart attack on Thursday (22Dec16), Spider Stacy, a vocalist and tin whistle player in the group, told Billboard.com of his sadness at Murray’s death.
“It does really feel like the end of something,” Stacy said. “I’m very sorry to see him go. He was brilliant really. I loved him deeply.”
Despite being formed in London, The Pogues fused traditional Irish folk music with punk, with MacGowan the son of Irish immigrants to the U.K., and it was Murray’s understanding of Irish culture which really helped him manage the group to success, according to Stacy.
“Being Irish, he totally understood what the band was about and what it was really Shane was doing,” he said. “I think he really got the importance of the band in regard to Ireland and what Shane was doing with Irish music.”
Murray helped inspire and create the Fairytale of New York, after asking The Pogues to cover The Band’s 1977 track Christmas Must Be Tonight.
When the group refused, he challenged MacGowan to write a better festive song, resulting in the Fairytale of New York. Murray also helped bring in singer Kirsty MacColl to join The Pogues frontman to sing on the track, which initially reached number two in the U.K. singles chart.
The song has since been hailed as one of the greatest Christmas songs of all time, regularly topping polls of the best festive hits and regularly re-entering the charts during the holiday season.