Grateful Dead co-founder Bob Weir dies at 78

Bob Weir, co-founding guitarist of the Grateful Dead, has died at the age of 78.

Weir, a cornerstone of the California psychedelic rock group and several of its offshoots, died after a battle with cancer and lung problems, according to a post on his Instagram.

“There is no final curtain here, not really. Only the feeling that someone is leaving again,” the message reads, emphasizing his hopes that his legacy and extensive catalog lives on.

The message said he “made the transition peacefully, surrounded by his loved ones.”

“He often spoke of a three-hundred-year legacy, determined to ensure that the songbook would endure long after him,” the post continued. “May this dream live on through future generations of Dead Heads.”

With a career spanning more than 60 years, Weir’s big turning point came in 1965 with the founding of the Grateful Dead. Within a few years, they became a force within San Francisco’s signature counterculture.

Soon, their style began to shape rock music, blending psychedelia and 1960s drug culture with musical tones blending folk and Americana. They are considered one of the pioneers of jam bands.

The group was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1994 and received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Grammy’s in 2007.

The group officially ended in 1995 with the death of its co-founder Jerry Garcia.

But Weir has been involved in various spin-offs, including Dead & Company, which had a residency at the Las Vegas Sphere in 2024 and 2025.

Weir was diagnosed with cancer in July and even during his treatment, it continued to occur, according to the post on his page.

“These performances, moving, moving and full of light, were not farewells, but gifts,” the message said. “Another act of resilience. An artist choosing, even then, to continue according to his own design.”

He beat cancer before his death, the post added. It is not clear what type of cancer he was diagnosed with.

His family, including his wife Natascha and children Shala and Chloe, asked for privacy but said they appreciated the “outpouring of love, support and remembrance.”

Tributes began pouring in Saturday evening from other musicians. Even the Empire State Building in New York honored the rock legend by glowing with tie-dye colors to memorialize him.

Guns N’ Roses guitarist Slash posted a photo of Weir performing on stage. He wrote “RIP” with a broken heart emoji.

Former Eagles guitarist Don Felder has posted a lengthy tribute.

“I first saw Bob at Woodstock with the Grateful Dead and was blown away by this whole band and the musicianship,” Felder posted on Instagram along with a photo of himself with Weir.

“I feel so lucky to have had him sing on American Rock and Roll’s ‘Rock You.’ Until we meet again, amigo.”

Her former publicist, Dennis McNally, spoke with BBC News about her music and the fun memories they shared.

“He had a very quirky and unusual sense of humor, dry and funny,” he said. “The road was his life and music was his life.”

He said that performing and serving music was what “he was put on Earth for and he did it all the way.”