TONY WILSON was a maverick. When I was growing up in Manchester, my mother didn't approve of him which made his charismatic and flamboyant appearances on Granada Reports (the Manchester equivalent of Scotland Today) even more appealing to an impressionable teen. He was a cool suit and the coolest TV presenter ever - I'm sure even Jonathan Ross would agree. He brought about great opportunities for new bands to get exposure on television, but his pivotal role in the formation of Factory Records must surely be one of the most significant acts in the history of contemporary music.

Of course he was not alone in this regard; Alan McGee's Creation, Daniel Miller's Mute, Geoff Travis's Rough Trade, Alan Horne's Postcard, Ivo Watts-Russell's 4AD were all ground-breaking UK labels, but it was Factory who signed Joy Division. Joy Division changed my life. Joy Division/New Order are arguably the most important band ever. For example, there would have been no massive conversion of UK youth into house music were it not for the catalyst provided by Blue Monday and Fine Time.

Tony Wilson signed a rich array of often never fully appreciated but almost always unique musical talents: Happy Mondays, A Certain Ratio, Kalima, Quando Quango.

The label never made Tony a rich man. There were some who left the stable after early singles to find fame and fortune elsewhere - James, Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark - while others such as The Durutti Column produced beautiful, complex music but never really sold many records. And of course there was the infamous Happy Mondays recording session in the Caribbean, which even a major would have struggled to support.

I first met Tony Wilson at the Hacienda where I spent at least three nights a week from the age of 17. I remember one New Year's Eve where he was dressed as a jester, pissed as a fart and handing out party streamers, Hacienda matchbooks and the like - I thought that was so cool. It certainly showed he didn't take himself too seriously.

Then he staged The Festival of the 10th Summer at Manchester's G-Mex in 1986 to celebrate 10 years from the birth of punk. It was the best indoor festival ever staged, with a line-up including The Smiths, New Order, The Buzzcocks, Pete Wylie and OMD.

With Yvette Lindsey, he created the In The City music conference, which I spoke at and chaired a couple of panels at, but the only time I really worked with him was when he brought In The City to Glasgow. It was an exciting time for Glasgow and I put together some fringe gigs around the conference, but I always felt that we didn't quite create the "Urban Glastonbury" Tony often spoke of. In his inimitable style he, of course, wanted to achieve this with no money while wanting conference delegates to get into all of the shows gratis.

The most memorable occasion from Glasgow's In The City was a meeting in a private room at the Hilton hotel a few months before the conference. I was there with a couple of other Glasgow-based music industry people and several suits from the council, most of whom loosened their stiff ties to try to feel a little more rock'n'roll. A few minutes later they must have felt that they were in the Hanging Gardens of Babylon as Tony rolled up a huge spliff and passed it around the meeting. Everyone acted cool as though this was common practice in the City Chambers, but the joint was passed around quicker than the proverbial hot potato, with lots of mumbled "bit too early for me" excuses.

Tony Wilson will always be fondly remembered and sorely missed, but the impression he made on me and many, many others will never be forgotten.

He was a complete inspiration'

Alan McGee, the Glaswegian label boss who launched the careers of Oasis and Primal Scream, said he was indebted to Wilson's groundbreaking work.

"He was a complete inspiration. He was one of the great spotters of music talent and it's a complete shame for him to go so very young.

"Factory Records was the template for every indie label with its 50-50 deals. I can honestly say without Factory there would have been no Creation. In fact, if it wasn't for his talk to us in 1985 I might have quit music altogether."

Stephen Morris, of Joy Division and New Order, who were signed to the Factory Records label, also said he owed his career to Wilson.

"New Order wouldn't have come to be what they are without Tony and the Factory Records label because he was very passionate about music and he believed the band should have total freedom," he said.

"He was, I think, the only person in the music industry who didn't believe in contracts. You'd see him do deals with record companies and the whole thing was done on the back of his hand."

TV host Richard Madeley, who worked with Wilson at Granada in the early 1980s, said he had a "northern chippiness". "He really did not care what his colleagues or viewers thought about him because he had total belief in himself. He would get the abuse and it would amuse him," he said.

Manchester artist Peter Saville, who designed record sleeves for Factory, said Wilson had a knack for spotting trends that become important.

He said: "Tony to me was an intellectual in popular culture. So whether it was television or music Tony brought a kind of gravitas to it and a sense of importance to it."

TV and radio presenter Terry Christian spoke warmly of his fellow Mancunian. "I loved Tony," he said. "To me he is irreplaceable. It is a massive loss to Manchester. Tony was so full of life. He was fantastic and I never got tired of his company."

The BBC, also an employer of Wilson during his long broadcasting career, paid its own tribute. A spokesman said: "There will never be anyone quite like Tony."

Adam Forrest