Bob Weir, Grateful Dead founding member, dies at 78
- - Bob Weir, Grateful Dead founding member, dies at 78
Jonathan Limehouse and Melissa Ruggieri, USA TODAY January 10, 2026 at 6:02 PM
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Bob Weir, one of the founding members of the legendary rock band Grateful Dead, has died from "underlying lung issues" at 78.
Weir, who, after "courageously beating cancer," died "peacefully" on Saturday, Jan. 10, according to a post shared on his Instagram. A representative for Weir confirmed the post's accuracy to USA TODAY, but had no further information at this time.
"For over sixty years, Bobby took to the road. A guitarist, vocalist, storyteller, and founding member of the Grateful Dead. Bobby will forever be a guiding force whose unique artistry reshaped American music," the post reads. "His work did more than fill rooms with music; it was warm sunlight that filled the soul, building a community, a language, and a feeling of family that generations of fans carry with them."
Bob Weir, a founding member of the Grateful Dead, has died at 78. A look back at his career in music, starting with a 2021 performance of Dead and Company at Wrigley Field in Chicago.
" data-src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/yMTs_kwEmYz0_GyN6bh80w--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTEyNDI7aD05NDc-/https://media.zenfs.com/en/usa_today_slideshows_242/50bfa793b769937ced45a7be5bb14dec class=caas-img data-headline="Look back at big moments in Bob Weir's Grateful Dead career" data-caption="
Bob Weir, a founding member of the Grateful Dead, has died at 78. A look back at his career in music, starting with a 2021 performance of Dead and Company at Wrigley Field in Chicago.
">Bob Weir, a founding member of the Grateful Dead, has died at 78. A look back at his career in music, starting with a 2021 performance of Dead and Company at Wrigley Field in Chicago.
" src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/yMTs_kwEmYz0_GyN6bh80w--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTEyNDI7aD05NDc-/https://media.zenfs.com/en/usa_today_slideshows_242/50bfa793b769937ced45a7be5bb14dec class=caas-img>Bob Weir on the red carpet for the 67th Grammy Awards on Feb. 2, 2025.
" data-src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/K9W76Ye9E3FjxbxhT9nthA--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTEyNDI7aD0xODYz/https://media.zenfs.com/en/usa_today_slideshows_242/11dcaaca02c09adcd975b5cbba39e07d class=caas-img data-headline="Look back at big moments in Bob Weir's Grateful Dead career" data-caption="
Bob Weir on the red carpet for the 67th Grammy Awards on Feb. 2, 2025.
">Bob Weir on the red carpet for the 67th Grammy Awards on Feb. 2, 2025.
" src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/K9W76Ye9E3FjxbxhT9nthA--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTEyNDI7aD0xODYz/https://media.zenfs.com/en/usa_today_slideshows_242/11dcaaca02c09adcd975b5cbba39e07d class=caas-img>Bob Weir of the Dead performs at the Gramercy Theatre in 2009.
" data-src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/BwqjdwPJxH3Kzz.RtuE9Ow--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTEyNDI7aD04Mjc-/https://media.zenfs.com/en/usa_today_slideshows_242/d71043c36951a38b0f1454f3cfd46dc8 class=caas-img data-headline="Look back at big moments in Bob Weir's Grateful Dead career" data-caption="
Bob Weir of the Dead performs at the Gramercy Theatre in 2009.
">Bob Weir of the Dead performs at the Gramercy Theatre in 2009.
" src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/BwqjdwPJxH3Kzz.RtuE9Ow--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTEyNDI7aD04Mjc-/https://media.zenfs.com/en/usa_today_slideshows_242/d71043c36951a38b0f1454f3cfd46dc8 class=caas-img>Bob Weir performs at the Gramercy Theatre on March 30, 2009, in New York City.
" data-src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/3K8HINErZGLCDi8M9NeQBw--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTEyNDI7aD04Mjc-/https://media.zenfs.com/en/usa_today_slideshows_242/d6d93d9be71a3f674ad7f6a8dabd508d class=caas-img data-headline="Look back at big moments in Bob Weir's Grateful Dead career" data-caption="
Bob Weir performs at the Gramercy Theatre on March 30, 2009, in New York City.
">Bob Weir performs at the Gramercy Theatre on March 30, 2009, in New York City.
" src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/3K8HINErZGLCDi8M9NeQBw--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTEyNDI7aD04Mjc-/https://media.zenfs.com/en/usa_today_slideshows_242/d6d93d9be71a3f674ad7f6a8dabd508d class=caas-img>Honoree Bob Weir attends the 2025 MusiCares Persons of the Year honoring the Grateful Dead on Jan. 31, 2025.
" data-src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/iFD9dW1N_4sy_QJudNwD0g--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTEyNDI7aD0xODYz/https://media.zenfs.com/en/usa_today_slideshows_242/16dfd4d9808fa64b2208486d6e279f6e class=caas-img data-headline="Look back at big moments in Bob Weir's Grateful Dead career" data-caption="
Honoree Bob Weir attends the 2025 MusiCares Persons of the Year honoring the Grateful Dead on Jan. 31, 2025.
">Honoree Bob Weir attends the 2025 MusiCares Persons of the Year honoring the Grateful Dead on Jan. 31, 2025.
" src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/iFD9dW1N_4sy_QJudNwD0g--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTEyNDI7aD0xODYz/https://media.zenfs.com/en/usa_today_slideshows_242/16dfd4d9808fa64b2208486d6e279f6e class=caas-img>From left, Jay Lane and John Mayer of Dead and Company, and honoree Bob Weir of Dead and Company and of the Grateful Dead perform at the MusiCares tribute.
" data-src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/CQ4GyHJYn5k8dq_ublO_ww--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTEyNDI7aD04Mjg-/https://media.zenfs.com/en/usa_today_slideshows_242/c775078b686cc388781fd67413b575c7 class=caas-img data-headline="Look back at big moments in Bob Weir's Grateful Dead career" data-caption="
From left, Jay Lane and John Mayer of Dead and Company, and honoree Bob Weir of Dead and Company and of the Grateful Dead perform at the MusiCares tribute.
">From left, Jay Lane and John Mayer of Dead and Company, and honoree Bob Weir of Dead and Company and of the Grateful Dead perform at the MusiCares tribute.
" src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/CQ4GyHJYn5k8dq_ublO_ww--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTEyNDI7aD04Mjg-/https://media.zenfs.com/en/usa_today_slideshows_242/c775078b686cc388781fd67413b575c7 class=caas-img>Bob Weir (second from right) with his wife and daughters, from left: Monet Weir, Natascha Weir and Chloe Weir at MusiCares.
" data-src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/J9VnNQvjA1gUq_C4CyyjRg--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTEyNDI7aD04Mjg-/https://media.zenfs.com/en/usa_today_slideshows_242/3087c69e954ebf07dc066509027286cf class=caas-img data-headline="Look back at big moments in Bob Weir's Grateful Dead career" data-caption="
Bob Weir (second from right) with his wife and daughters, from left: Monet Weir, Natascha Weir and Chloe Weir at MusiCares.
">Bob Weir (second from right) with his wife and daughters, from left: Monet Weir, Natascha Weir and Chloe Weir at MusiCares.
" src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/J9VnNQvjA1gUq_C4CyyjRg--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTEyNDI7aD04Mjg-/https://media.zenfs.com/en/usa_today_slideshows_242/3087c69e954ebf07dc066509027286cf class=caas-img>Bob Weir (right) and wife Natascha Weir
" data-src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/FfY0z4dVc0oapsQKcWxRMQ--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTEyNDI7aD0xODYz/https://media.zenfs.com/en/usa_today_slideshows_242/96bd745d8812e628539fda1034f7c415 class=caas-img data-headline="Look back at big moments in Bob Weir's Grateful Dead career" data-caption="
Bob Weir (right) and wife Natascha Weir
">Bob Weir (right) and wife Natascha Weir
" src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/FfY0z4dVc0oapsQKcWxRMQ--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTEyNDI7aD0xODYz/https://media.zenfs.com/en/usa_today_slideshows_242/96bd745d8812e628539fda1034f7c415 class=caas-img>Bob Weir accepts an award for Dead and Company during the Pollstar Awards at the Beverly Hilton on April 16, 2025.
" data-src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/QI94cH16loFI8HRhM0DF0Q--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTEyNDI7aD0xODYz/https://media.zenfs.com/en/usa_today_slideshows_242/d83b3a9c082da85cd5790faa46c0155f class=caas-img data-headline="Look back at big moments in Bob Weir's Grateful Dead career" data-caption="
Bob Weir accepts an award for Dead and Company during the Pollstar Awards at the Beverly Hilton on April 16, 2025.
">Bob Weir accepts an award for Dead and Company during the Pollstar Awards at the Beverly Hilton on April 16, 2025.
" src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/QI94cH16loFI8HRhM0DF0Q--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTEyNDI7aD0xODYz/https://media.zenfs.com/en/usa_today_slideshows_242/d83b3a9c082da85cd5790faa46c0155f class=caas-img>John Mayer (left), winner of residency of the year, and Bob Weir at the Pollstar Awards.
" data-src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/nAV0FORChpHGBI0bxR2p_Q--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTEyNDI7aD0xODkz/https://media.zenfs.com/en/usa_today_slideshows_242/e5dca32d88686a67b474e0000516cf97 class=caas-img data-headline="Look back at big moments in Bob Weir's Grateful Dead career" data-caption="
John Mayer (left), winner of residency of the year, and Bob Weir at the Pollstar Awards.
">John Mayer (left), winner of residency of the year, and Bob Weir at the Pollstar Awards.
" src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/nAV0FORChpHGBI0bxR2p_Q--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTEyNDI7aD0xODkz/https://media.zenfs.com/en/usa_today_slideshows_242/e5dca32d88686a67b474e0000516cf97 class=caas-img>Bob Weir performs at Farm Aid in 2023 at Ruoff Music Center in Noblesville, Indiana.
" data-src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/itmhyfwLw6_qa12ahgTDNw--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTEyNDI7aD0xNDMy/https://media.zenfs.com/en/usa_today_slideshows_242/18f21c93ec7769993b7325e3382e38df class=caas-img data-headline="Look back at big moments in Bob Weir's Grateful Dead career" data-caption="
Bob Weir performs at Farm Aid in 2023 at Ruoff Music Center in Noblesville, Indiana.
">Bob Weir performs at Farm Aid in 2023 at Ruoff Music Center in Noblesville, Indiana.
" src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/itmhyfwLw6_qa12ahgTDNw--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTEyNDI7aD0xNDMy/https://media.zenfs.com/en/usa_today_slideshows_242/18f21c93ec7769993b7325e3382e38df class=caas-img>Kennedy Center honorees Bill Kreutzmann (from left), Bob Weir and Bonnie Raitt attend a reception at the White House on Dec. 8, 2024.
" data-src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/avV8K0XX7HQzcJpD1sGI3w--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTEyNDI7aD04Mjg-/https://media.zenfs.com/en/usa_today_slideshows_242/1a8727ebc546bcbd678ac08a3a5b872d class=caas-img data-headline="Look back at big moments in Bob Weir's Grateful Dead career" data-caption="
Kennedy Center honorees Bill Kreutzmann (from left), Bob Weir and Bonnie Raitt attend a reception at the White House on Dec. 8, 2024.
">Kennedy Center honorees Bill Kreutzmann (from left), Bob Weir and Bonnie Raitt attend a reception at the White House on Dec. 8, 2024.
" src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/avV8K0XX7HQzcJpD1sGI3w--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTEyNDI7aD04Mjg-/https://media.zenfs.com/en/usa_today_slideshows_242/1a8727ebc546bcbd678ac08a3a5b872d class=caas-img>Kennedy Center honoree Bob Weir.
" data-src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/55cnFifqDmppJhEtzsrw.w--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTEyNDI7aD04Mjg-/https://media.zenfs.com/en/usa_today_slideshows_242/726189dbdfc924d010e8d4347295de29 class=caas-img data-headline="Look back at big moments in Bob Weir's Grateful Dead career" data-caption="
Kennedy Center honoree Bob Weir.
">Kennedy Center honoree Bob Weir.
" src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/55cnFifqDmppJhEtzsrw.w--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTEyNDI7aD04Mjg-/https://media.zenfs.com/en/usa_today_slideshows_242/726189dbdfc924d010e8d4347295de29 class=caas-img>Bob Weir (left) and Phil Lesh of the Grateful Dead.
" data-src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/INvOFbrooEmN1mVe6LpUzw--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTEyNDI7aD04Mjg-/https://media.zenfs.com/en/usa_today_slideshows_242/8824b61d1fcb30a679d6ce48a62e71b7 class=caas-img data-headline="Look back at big moments in Bob Weir's Grateful Dead career" data-caption="
Bob Weir (left) and Phil Lesh of the Grateful Dead.
">Bob Weir (left) and Phil Lesh of the Grateful Dead.
" src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/INvOFbrooEmN1mVe6LpUzw--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTEyNDI7aD04Mjg-/https://media.zenfs.com/en/usa_today_slideshows_242/8824b61d1fcb30a679d6ce48a62e71b7 class=caas-img>Bob Weir attends “Long Story Short: Willie Nelson 90," a star-studded two-day birthday concert for Nelson at the Hollywood Bowl on April 29, 2023.
" data-src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/ca7Ryo5FvDIDx.yhs60HeA--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTEyNDI7aD04Mjg-/https://media.zenfs.com/en/usa_today_slideshows_242/b2a5046b91c514b5eb033c675e3f7f2f class=caas-img data-headline="Look back at big moments in Bob Weir's Grateful Dead career" data-caption="
Bob Weir attends “Long Story Short: Willie Nelson 90," a star-studded two-day birthday concert for Nelson at the Hollywood Bowl on April 29, 2023.
">Bob Weir attends “Long Story Short: Willie Nelson 90," a star-studded two-day birthday concert for Nelson at the Hollywood Bowl on April 29, 2023.
" src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/ca7Ryo5FvDIDx.yhs60HeA--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTEyNDI7aD04Mjg-/https://media.zenfs.com/en/usa_today_slideshows_242/b2a5046b91c514b5eb033c675e3f7f2f class=caas-img>
1 / 15Look back at big moments in Bob Weir's Grateful Dead career
Bob Weir, a founding member of the Grateful Dead, has died at 78. A look back at his career in music, starting with a 2021 performance of Dead and Company at Wrigley Field in Chicago.
Weir is survived by hi family, including wife Natascha Münter and daughters, Monet and Chloe, who are requesting privacy "during this difficult time" while offering their "gratitude for the outpouring of love, support, and remembrance."
"May we honor him not only in sorrow, but in how bravely we continue with open hearts, steady steps, and the music leading us home," the post concludes. "Hang it up and see what tomorrow brings."
In October 2024, fellow Grateful Dead cofounder and bassist Phil Lesh died at 84. Drummer Bill Kreutzmann, 79, is the only founding member of the band still alive, following the deaths of Weir, Lesh, Jerry Garcia (who died in 1995 at age 53) and Ron "Pigpen" McKernan (who died in 1973 at 27).
Grateful Dead co-founder Bob Weir, seen here in 2023, has died at 78.Bob Weir's final months revealed amid cancer diagnosis
According to the Instagram post, Weir lived his final months reflecting "the same spirit that defined his life." The rocker was diagnosed with cancer in July, beginning treatments weeks before returning to his hometown stage in San Francisco for a "three-night celebration of 60 years of music at Golden Gate Park."
"Those performances, emotional, soulful, and full of light, were not farewells, but gifts," the post reads. "Another act of resilience. An artist choosing, even then, to keep going by his own design. As we remember Bobby, it’s hard not to feel the echo of the way he lived. A man driftin' and dreamin', never worrying if the road would lead him home. A child of countless trees. A child of boundless seas."
Grateful Dead: One Dead & Company fan's nearly 50-year journey to Golden Gate Park
Weir's legacy, which includes forming the Grateful Dead in 1965 in Palo Alto, California, continues: "There is no final curtain here, not really. Only the sense of someone setting off again," the social media post reads.
"(Weir) often spoke of a three-hundred-year legacy, determined to ensure the songbook would endure long after him. May that dream live on through future generations of Dead Heads," the post continues. "And so we send him off the way he sent so many of us on our way: with a farewell that isn't an ending, but a blessing. A reward for a life worth livin'."
Honoree Bob Weir of Dead & Company and of the Grateful Dead performs onstage during the 2025 MusiCares Persons of the Year Honoring The Grateful Dead at the Los Angeles Convention Center on January 31, 2025, in Los Angeles, California.Bob Weir's legacy with the Grateful Dead and beyond
For more than six decades, Weir maintained his reputation as "one of rock’s most distinctive rhythm guitarists," according to the bio on his artist website, which calls him "one of the most influential figures in rock history."
Weir and the Grateful Dead's list of achievements is long, with one of the band's highest successes coming in 2024 when they were recipients of the Kennedy Center Honors, joining the institution’s 47th class.
As part of the Grateful Dead, the legendary rocker also received a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 2007 and was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1994.
The Grateful Dead also holds the record for the most Billboard Top 40 albums of all time by any artist, and by 1995, the band had drawn more concertgoers than "any other act in the history of the music business," according to Weir's bio. In 2020, the band celebrated its 66th Top 40 album.
Bob Weir's joy with Dead & Company
Weir continued the legacy of the Grateful Dead when he started the offshoot Dead & Company in 2015. Along with fellow originals Hart and Kreutzmann, Weir recruited musicians Oteil Burbridge, Jeff Chimenti and the man who would become his steady stage partner the past decade, fellow singer-guitarist John Mayer.
"John is endlessly inventive and he loves the songs. He throws himself at them and he's a fabulous technician and can play pretty much anything you throw at him," Weir told USA TODAY in a 2022 interview. "It's a lot of fun playing with him. Sometimes fun isn't the most apt word I'd use to describe what we're doing. Maybe it's something else. It's deep and it's living, and that's what we do, those moments of living."
In the spring of 2024, Weir and his cohorts began their "Dead Forever - Live at the Sphere" residency at Las Vegas' wonderous venue, the Sphere.
The popularity of the sold-out concerts, which highlighted the Dead's history with trippy graphics and always-morphing set lists, led to extensions that resulted in 48 shows played through 2025.
Weir was enthralled with the ability to highlight the Grateful Dead's rich catalog by "(taking) storytelling in live performance to the level of opera – maybe even beyond," he told USA TODAY in 2024.
Weir also served as band spokesperson when the Grateful Dead was honored in January 2025 as the MusiCares Persons of the Year. The annual event honors artists for their musical and philanthropic contributions and provides financial aid to musicians in need.
Weir, who attended with Hart, called the organization "a beacon of hope" to fellow musicians as a lineup of entertainment luminaries including Weir friend Sammy Hagar, Maren Morris, Wynonna Judd, Andy Cohen and Woody Harrelson paid homage in song and speeches.
As Weir and Hart looked on with quiet humility, they heard loving renditions of Dead songs including "Ramble on Rose," "They Love Each Other," "Loose Lucy" and "Samson and Delilah" – tributes to an everlasting, pioneering catalog.
(This story was to add a video and more information.)
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Bob Weir dies – Grateful Dead founding member was 78
Source: “AOL Entertainment”
