A day after her former The Swell Season bandmate Glen Hansard was laid to rest in a moving funeral in his native Dublin, singer Markéta Irglová paid tribute in a loving Facebook post on Wednesday (Aug. 5).
In a post cued to the duo’s 2023 song “The Answer is Yes” featuring a framed picture of the pair propped up on a piano’s keys, she wrote, “Glen was a big spirit on a big mission. I always believed he had a gift from God and was imbued with power from the earth. It is never easy to carry as much as he did. Helping him carry some of it along the way has been the honor of my life. I thank him and God for the trust and know we shall meet again. So long, my friend.”
Oscar-winner Hansard, 56, died in an early morning motorcycle crash in Dublin last week.
Family, friends and fellow musicians honored his life and work during the funeral at St. Patrick’s Cathedral, with U2‘s Bono and The Edge, Pearl Jam frontman Eddie Vedder, Hozier, Imelda May, Jake Clemons of the E Street Band and Liam Ó Maonlaí of Hothouse Flowers joining mourners in honoring Hansard’s legacy.
In addition to marveling at Hansard’s ability to befriend just about anyone — “people on the green outside, best friends. People tuning in, best friends. Even people who haven’t met him, best friends. Everyone who met him, they just remember the day they met him” — Bono did a spoken word version of U2’s “Beautiful Day,” accompanied by The Edge.
The singer reworked the lyrics in honor of Hansard and on Wednesday, the band shared the those new lines alongside a painting of Hansard by Irish artist Colin Davidson. “See those eyes flashing landing light blue/ Seven towers holding up the sky for you/ Arrivals and departures, this is what we do,” they read.
“You write your life ‘til the story becomes true/ Ginger cake smile, a movie star too,” they continued. “If the street be your stage how come there’s thousands in the queue/ McDaid’s feels like a stadium but there’s only me and you/ You left a hangover from hell, of this there is no doubt/ But as you wake up in heaven, all the angels will shout.”
The post also featured video of the tone poem lullaby voicemail sent by punk godmother Patti Smith and of Bono reading the “Beautiful Day” rewrite.
In addition to Bono, Pearl Jam singer and Hansard’s good friend Eddie Vedder performed Hansard’s “The Song of Good Hope” with Irglová, with Hansard’s brother, Richie Hansard, delivering an emotional eulogy. The service ended with a cover of Bob Dylan‘s “Forever Young,” featuring Bono, Vedder, The Edge, Liam Ó Maonlaí and a choir of musicians assembled around the altar.
