Mani’s death came almost two years to the day after he lost his beloved wife Imelda, who passed away aged 50 on November 18, 2023. She had been diagnosed with stage four bowel cancer in November 2020.
The couple have twin sons, Gene and George, both 13.
Brown paid tribute to his late bandmate as a “beautiful soul and spirit” during the funeral service.
Speaking at the cathedral, he said: “Mani wouldn’t want us to be broken-hearted. But we all are. And we’ll never fill the Mani-sized hole that we’re left with.
“It’s such a big loss, it’s hard to find words. Thanks to God we shared our lives with Mani.”
Brown called for a solid gold, 50ft-high statue of Mani to be erected in Manchester.
Bobby Gillespie, the frontman of Primal Scream, which Mani joined in 1996, added: “He made me feel a million dollars. His enthusiasm and positivity was contagious.”
Andy Burnham, the mayor of Greater Manchester, and Bez of the Happy Mondays were also in attendance at the funeral.
A woman was arrested outside the cathedral by Greater Manchester Police.
A spokesman for the force said she was arrested “on suspicion of assault” but declined to give further information.
Mani was one of the founding members of the Stone Roses, the rock band that shot to fame in the 1980s.
The other members were frontman Brown, guitarist John Squire and drummer Alan “Reni” Wren.
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