From the very earliest days of her career, Mary Coughlan was able to call on the support of Vince Power, the legendary Irish promoter who sadly passed away this weekend.

In a moving tribute, Mary recalls Vince's many acts of kindness and genius for filling venues...

He was fucking incredible.

When I was in flitters on the floor and nobody would talk to me, when I had no money, he paid for me to go to the Rutland Centre. When I was at my lowest point, he was the one to help me get through it and get back on the road afterwards.

He asked me if I wanted help, and I said I did, but I couldn't afford it, I was on a waiting-list. He said he'd send me privately. I've been 30 years sober, and I think about him every day. I can't forget that, and I never will.

He’s incredibly popular. I can't imagine anyone who ever had a row with him - apart from myself.

We had rows if I played other venues, but whenever I was called to do Ronnie Scott’s in London, he'd be sitting at the side of the stage on his own or with his friend James, nursing a drink, and he'd sit there the whole night.

Vince Power and Paul Mc Guinness

He always rang me if he wanted me to do a festival. One time he said, ‘I'm doing a new festival at a place called the Hop Farm. Morrisey won't go on unless you're on the bill. I'm asking you officially to be on it.’

When he was fond of you, he was fond of you, and that was it. I could ask him for anything. I mentioned my grandson wanted to see Arsenal and couldn’t get tickets, obviously. Vince said ‘don’t worry about it’. They flew over, he met them, brought them to lunch, and gave them these amazing tickets.

Another time, my son and all his friends wanted to come to Glastonbury the year I was playing. Vince got them into crew camping with showers and everything.

I’ve stayed at his home, he gave me a car to drive around London, he was like a big brother or a father. He looked out for me, he supported me through thick and thin. When I came out of the Rutland, he gave me gigs. He put a little tour together with some people that he knew who owned venues. When nobody else wanted to talk to me, I made my way back.

We did five nights at the Mean Fiddler and recorded live. Elvis Costello had a record label called Demon. They brought in a big rig and recorded a Love For Sale. I had no label at the time, I’d been dropped by everybody, they came and I did all new songs, it was incredible.

I did eleven Fleadhs, I did the Feis in Liverpool twice, and Hop Farm. He’d have everybody there. One year we did the Fleadh and he had Ray Charles, Bob Dylan, Van Morrison.

Shane MacGowan and Vince Power.

He was in it for the love of it, and for the love of us and for the love of the people that were in the industry. At the Fiddler everybody got a go, he would keep an ear out for bands that were starting out and put them on. He was very generous with Irish artists.

It was really important to have that big festival in Finsbury Park each year with all the Irish people on the list. One year he said ‘I'm thinking of bringing it to New York. What do you think?’ Will you come? I said, ‘Of course’. He brought the same line-up to New York, Chicago and San Francisco and we had a ball. It was unbelievable with all the huge venues.

He took so many chances and sometimes, I don't think they worked out for him financially, but it never fucking stopped him. I know he lost a lot, but he didn't care. He just did it.

He asked me and me always, that was the one thing about Vince. He never asked another person.  I had agents, but he'd always ask me himself. He ruffled a few feathers and he didn't mind doing that.

One evening, he brought Shane MacGowan, Nick Cave, Van Morrison and Elvis Costello into my dressing room at the Fiddler and we all went back to the Columbia Hotel afterwards for a drink until five or six o'clock in the morning. That was a good night.

I had just come from Galway the year previously, and there I was. He wanted other people to know that I was around. Lifelong friendships came from a lot of those meetings.

I’ll never forget him.