"IT'S IMPORTANT to celebrate his music. It's the only way we knew Michael Jackson: through his music". Lorcan Woods (43) could have spoken on behalf of all those who crowded into the Button Factory nightclub in Temple Bar, Dublin, yesterday.
Five-year-old children ran through the venue doors as they opened and were joined by almost 600 people of all ages who had waited to celebrate the life of a performer who they feel is simply irreplaceable. Button Factory owner Paddy Dunning worked with Jackson while the star recorded material in Ireland in 2006 and decided to host the event in an effort to commemorate his life and contribution to music.
Proud of his time spent working for Jackson, Mr Dunning felt he "should do something to celebrate his achievements". He spoke sadly of a "shy, well-read" Jackson who was a "great lyricist, singer, dancer and mover who touched people's hearts".
These sentiments were echoed by all those who stood in solemn admiration watching the two screens that played Jackson's popular music videos and flanked a larger television which beamed live pictures of the singer's hearse on its final journey to the stage of the Staples Center in Los Angeles.
While fans acknowledged the many negative reports that surrounded the star in the latter years of his life, there is no doubt that all felt a certain respect for his unquestioned abilities as a performer.
Ray O'Hara, Jackson's former chauffeur, still remembers the first time he came face to face with the star. "I was in shock when I met him. The memory of shaking his hand will always stay with me".
Mr O'Hara recalls a "pure gentleman" who led his children on horseback across the land of their temporary Irish home. He recalls a soft-spoken, sensitive father who was content to "go about his business" with his family but without the colourful, feathered masks that TV viewers were so familiar with.
