Thousands of individuals gathered at San Francisco’s Civic Center on Saturday to honor the memory of Bob Weir, the renowned guitarist and co-founder of the Grateful Dead, who passed away last week at the age of 78. Musicians Joan Baez and John Mayer addressed the crowd on a makeshift stage in front of the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium, following a Tibetan prayer by four Buddhist monks to commence the event. Fans brought long-stemmed red roses and placed them at an altar adorned with photos and candles, expressing their love and gratitude to Weir through colorful notes.
During the celebration, many attendees sent messages to Weir, asking him to convey greetings to fellow bandmates Jerry Garcia and Phil Lesh, who had passed away before him. Jerry Garcia died in 1995, while Phil Lesh passed away in 2024. Ruthie Garcia, a fan since 1989, shared her sentiments, stating, “I’m here to honor Bob Weir, celebrating his life and supporting his journey back home.”
The gathering attracted a diverse group of fans, including those with distinctive dreadlocks and tie-dye attire, some of whom used walkers. Alongside them were young couples, men in their twenties, and a father who brought his six-year-old son to instill a love for live music and the close-knit Deadhead community in the younger generation. Weir, a native of the Bay Area, joined the Grateful Dead, originally known as the Warlocks, in 1965 at the age of 17. He contributed to the band by writing, co-writing, and singing lead vocals on iconic Dead tracks such as “Sugar Magnolia,” “One More Saturday Night,” and “Mexicali Blues.”
Known for their eclectic blend of blues, jazz, country, folk, and psychedelia in extended improvisational performances, the Grateful Dead garnered a devoted following of Deadheads who traveled to attend their concerts. The band continued to perform after Jerry Garcia’s passing, evolving into Dead & Company with John Mayer. Darla Sagos, who flew in from Seattle early on Saturday to participate in the public tribute, mentioned noticing a lack of upcoming shows following Dead & Company’s performances in San Francisco last summer, prompting her suspicions about Weir’s condition.
Weir’s passing was announced on his Instagram account on January 10, revealing that although he had conquered cancer, he ultimately succumbed to underlying lung complications. Survived by his wife and two daughters, who were present at the event, Weir’s daughter, Monet Weir, described his demise as sudden but emphasized his desire for the music and the Grateful Dead’s legacy to endure beyond his lifetime. Monet Weir expressed her father’s belief that American music had the power to unite people, affirming, “The show must go on.”
