Jeffrey R. Staab/CBS (LOS ANGELES) — Dennis Sheehan, U2’s longtime tour manager, died early Wednesday morning at a hotel in West Hollywood, California.
KABC confirms the news of Sheehan’s passing, and reports the Los Angeles County Fire Department responded to a cardiac arrest call at the Marquis Hotel at 5:40 a.m. local time.
Sheehan had been accompanying U2 on their recently launched iNNOCENCE + eXPERIENCE tour. The band had just played the first of five scheduled concerts at the L.A. area venue, The Forum.
In a statement posted on the band’s official website, U2 frontman Bono says of Sheehan, “We’ve lost a family member, we’re still taking it in. He wasn’t just a legend in the music business, he was a legend in our band. He is irreplaceable.”
Arthur Fogel, a rep for tour promoter Live Nation, also released a message that declares, “With profound sadness we confirm that Dennis Sheehan, U2’s longstanding tour manager and dear friend to us all, has passed away overnight. Our heartfelt sympathy is with his wonderful family.”
Sheehan was born in 1946, making him either 68 or 69 at the time of his death. According to Billboard, he grew up in Ireland and played in a rock band throughout his teens, then began working for various artists, including Lou Reed and Led Zeppelin, in a behind-the-scenes capacity. Sheehan’s long tenure with U2 began prior to the release of the group’s 1983 album, War.
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