DUBLIN – Crowds lined the streets of Dublin on Friday to their pay respects to the Irish songwriter Shane MacGowan, who died last month at the age of 65.
MacGowan, lead singer of the Celtic folk-punk band The Pogues, died on Nov 30, prompting a flood of tributes.
The thousands who gathered applauded as his coffin was carried the through the city in a horse-drawn carriage, led by the marching Artane Band, which played some of MacGowan’s hits including Fairytale of New York and A Rainy Night in Soho.
MacGowan, who had been in and out of hospital in Dublin since July, penned the Christmas classic Fairytale of New York, which he sang in a duet with Kirsty MacColl in 1987.
When the song, about a couple who have fallen on hard times, was played during the procession, the crowd could be heard applauding and singing along to the chorus.
Co-formed by MacGowan, The Pogues fused…
