Tommy Tee... Goodbye My Friend

I got a phone call yesterday... the kind of call no one ever wants to receive...

Tommy Tee, a father, a friend, and manager of New Model Army, left us suddenly, succumbing to a heart attack...

Upon learning the tragic news, the first thing out of my mouth was (after about 30 seconds of stunned silence), "Tommy doesn't die."

If only that were true...

Tommy had the energy of 100 men... He was the epitome of what a rock and roll manager should be... part salty sea captain, part cunning businessman, part travel agent, part disciplined headmaster, part long haul trucker... he could do it all... and did it with a fervor and love few can match...

For those of you who don't know, the business of rock and roll is very hard work... On a typical day Tommy would drive to the venue, help unload and set up, sit through sound check, handle meet and greet, handle press and photogs, handle business with the club promoter, set up and man the merch table, run the lights and/or put out any fires during the show, settle up with club and/or promoter, help break down and load up after the show... and then, after all that, sometimes he would drive late into the night towards the next venue... and yet, with that insane amount of work and responsibility, he'd still somehow find the time to enjoy a pint or two with you...

Up before everyone, to bed after everyone... and handling everything in between... booking, promo, merch, sales, licensing... the BUSINESS of music...

Tommy was legendary in music circles... Last year while touring Europe, everywhere I went I'd hear tales of Tommy... he was respected and loved... It seemed as if he had worked with just about every roadie on the continent... no one ever had anything but great things to say about him...

Another thing that impressed me about Tommy was his incredible memory... year after year, he would travel the world, meeting thousands of people and yet, at every gig, I would watch people would come up to him and he'd know them by name... New Model Army is not like other bands... their fans are a family, they share access and kinship with the band that is rare in this day and age... time and time again Tommy saw to it that friends and fans and travellers (some trekking in from thousands of miles away) were welcomed and made to feel special... he was the ringmaster...

Tommy could occasionally be prickly, he did not suffer fools... more than once he'd put me in my place when we'd have a slight disagreement on how things should be run... And when we differed he never did so with any disrespect... (the music industry is notorious for being populated by insufferable jerks... Tommy was miles above that sort of behavior...)

Tommy was my mentor in the music industry... He was a man with a giant warm heart... he made you want to walk through brick walls for him... I am going to miss his dry humor... his wide, beaming grin... his cheerful eyes... his strong handshake... his warm hugs...

Tommy leaves behind a wife and three children (whom he talked about all the time and loved very very much), along with a band of friends that depended upon him for just about everything...

Tommy, I lift a pint to you on this Christmas, in tribute to you...

You will be missed greatly, and never forgotten...

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