As Mark Sheehan, the guitarist with the Dublin group the Script, saw it, “the untouchable rock star has gone out of fashion … Now people want to connect to normal, humble people. And the one thing about being Irish is that it keeps you grounded. You’re not allowed to get a big head.”
The shocked reactions to Sheehan’s death at the age of 46, after a brief illness, attest to his generous and unpretentious nature. The singer-songwriter Imelda May, who grew up in the same Liberties district of Dublin as Sheehan, said: “Mark was such a gorgeous soul. Always a pleasure to chat to. Often bonding over stories about times in the Liberties.” Ryan Tedder from the American band One Republic described Sheehan as “one of the nicest, most genuine people I’ve ever had the pleasure of touring with and getting to know”.
