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UK Veteran Artist Manager Raymond Coffer Dies
May6
Veteran UK artist manager Raymond Coffer has died following a short illness, according to tributes shared by colleagues and industry organisations including the Music Managers Forum.
Coffer was widely known for managing artists including Love and Rockets, The Smashing Pumpkins, Cocteau Twins, The Sundays, Curve and Echo & The Bunnymen vocalist Ian McCulloch during the 1980s and 1990s.
Coffer also served on the board of the Music Managers Forum between 1993 and 1996 and was among the organisation’s founding board members alongside managers Ed Bicknell and Elliott Rashman.
In a statement, Beggars Group chairman Martin Mills described Coffer as having played “an extremely important role in the Beggars story”.
“I am saddened to hear of Raymond`s passing,” Mills said. “Not only did he manage two of the most important bands in our early years in Love And Rockets and Cocteau Twins, he also managed two lesser known acts that we loved – Xymox and Swell. I shall miss his charismatic personality and passion for the artists he represented.”
Throughout his management career, Coffer worked closely with Andy Gershon and Darren Michaelson, whom he mentored early in their careers. He was also recognised for helping establish Love and Rockets in the US market and for managing The Smashing Pumpkins during a key period of the band’s international growth.
Tributes were also shared by former Music Managers Forum chairs and custodians. Dianne Wagg described Coffer as “a legendary manager, discerning and insightful”, adding that he “had the best taste in music and always knew exactly what needed to be done – and then made it happen”.
Former MMF chair Stephen Budd said Coffer was “deeply in love with music” and remembered him as “a decent and kind Music Man”.
Before entering artist management, Coffer worked in his family’s football souvenir business and later qualified as a chartered accountant. After stepping away from the music industry, he earned a PhD in Germanic and Romance Studies from the University of London in 2011 and later founded the Bushey Performing Arts Festival.
According to the Music Managers Forum, Coffer passed away on April 30. He is survived by his wife Roberta, his son Nick and three grandchildren.
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