The Pogues are a celtic punk band from London, England and were formed in 1982. The singer, songwriter and guitarist of the band, Philip Chevron, died on Tuesday at the age of 56. He died after being treated for throat cancer that had recently come back. He had first announced that he had cancer back in 2007, but had been in remission until last year. His real name was Philip Ryan and he was born in Dublin on June 17, 1957. His life came full circle as he died in his birth place of Dublin.

Chevron joined the group in 1985 and played with them until 1994 when the group parted ways. He later reunited with the group in 2001, and continued to play with them until his recent death. Although he has had cancer for years, he seemed to to have been in good condition, and the news comes as a big shock to fans. The news was initially released from the band’s website where they called him a remarkable and fantastically talented colleague, but most of all, a friend. They told fans that he will be terribly missed and even give fans the opportunity to leave memories and tributes to the beloved musician.

Philip Chevron, guitarist for The #Pogues. Here's a pic I took 4 years ago @StubbsAustin Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam. pic.twitter.com/K1bfbVKfwC

— J. Dennis Thomas (@JDennisThomas) October 9, 2013

Here Chevron is shown thanking people for coming to a concert that was done in his honor. He was very sick at the time, just over a month ago, but wanted to show fans how appreciative he was to them for coming to the show.

He initially joined the group in the mid-80’s as simply a fill-in basis and was not meant to be permanent, while filling in on the banjo. He had never played the banjo before, and his addition soon became permanent taking over at the position of guitar because their front-man Shane MacGowan apparently didn’t want to play guitar for the group anymore, according to NBC News. He credits much of the success that The Pogues have had to the group’s originality, and the way they set themselves apart from other groups.

RIP Philip Chevron! #ThePogues

— Chris Sandbach (@sandbach1023) October 10, 2013

Before he joined The Pogues, he had already gained success in the Irish punk scene, with the band Radiators in Space, which he started in 1976. His writing credits with the band include “Thousands Are Sailing” and “Lorelei,” among others, says Entertainment Weekly. Their debut album was Red Roses For Me and while they have released several compilation albums in recent years, their last studio album Pogue Mahone, was released in 1996.

Philip Chevron R.I.P. A great man, a great poet, a great loss. His genius lives on – Thousands are Sailing http://t.co/ba6lAo1JgC

— Bobby (@bobbysands81) October 8, 2013

Image via Youtube