San Francisco to celebrate Grateful Dead’s Bob Weir with homecoming event
A public memorial has been confirmed for the late Grateful Dead guitarist Bob Weir in San Francisco this weekend.
Weir, who co-founded the legendary counterculture band in 1965, died on January 10th, aged 78. The Weir family announced his death, writing, “He transitioned peacefully, surrounded by loved ones, after courageously beating cancer as only Bobby could. Unfortunately, he succumbed to underlying lung issues.”
San Francisco is a city that will always be intertwined with the history of the Grateful Dead. Additionally, the final performance of Weir’s career took place at Golden Gate Park in San Francisco with Dead and Company, celebrating 60 years of the Grateful Dead.
Now, his hometown has unveiled plans to celebrate his legacy. On January 17th, people are being urged to gather at 12:45pm local time at the Civic Center Plaza and come together to remember Weir.
The event describes itself as “a free public gathering honoring Bobby, whose music, spirit, and humanity shaped generations”. It also says of its aim, “Together, we will pay tribute in the community and collective heartbeat that he created.”
The description for the event continues, “A short sacred stop on his homecoming journey, the gathering will center on gratitude, remembrance, and togetherness, along with special tributes to honor Bobby.”
Organisers also stressed that it is not a concert and no live music performances will take place at the event. RSVP details are here.
Following his sad passing, there has been an outpouring of grief in the Grateful Dead community. The band’s Mickey Hart described him as “a little brother to me for almost sixty years”, and admitted that he “still cannot believe he’s gone”.
Drummer Kreutzmann also wrote a lengthy statement reflecting on his 60 years of friendship with Weir, as well as reminiscing about the wild ride they went on with the band.
Kreutzmann wrote, “There are so many people who can rightfully say that their life would not have been the same without Bob Weir. That’s been true for me since I was 17. And through it all, the high times and the low tides, my love for him will not, indeed can not, fade away.”
Meanwhile, John Mayer, who performed alongside Weir in Dead and Company, wrote on social media in honour iof his late friend, “Thanks for letting me ride alongside you. It sure was a pleasure. If you say it’s not the end, then I’ll believe you. I’ll meet you in the music. Come find me anytime.”
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