Robert Hall Weir (/wɪər/ WEER;[1] né Parber, born October 16, 1947) is an American musician and songwriter best known as a founding member of the Grateful Dead.

[4] During his career with the Grateful Dead, Weir played mostly rhythm guitar and sang many of the band's rock & roll and country & western songs.

[8] On New Year's Eve 1963, 16-year-old Weir and an underage friend were wandering the back alleys of Palo Alto, looking for a club that would admit them, when they heard banjo music.

"[9] Originally called Mother McCree's Uptown Jug Champions, the band was later renamed The Warlocks and eventually the Grateful Dead.

Phil Lesh said that when drummer Mickey Hart left the band temporarily in early 1971, he was able to hear Weir's playing more clearly than ever and "I found myself astonished, delighted and excited beyond measure at what Bobby was doing."

His unique guitar style is strongly influenced by the hard bop pianist McCoy Tyner and he has cited artists as diverse as John Coltrane, the Rev.

While continuing to perform as a member of the Grateful Dead, in 1975 and 1976, Weir played in the Bay Area band Kingfish with friends Matt Kelly and Dave Torbert.

In 2009 Bob Weir and Phil Lesh formed a new band called Furthur—so-named in honor of Ken Kesey's famous psychedelically painted bus.

The RatDog Quartet, featuring Weir, Jay Lane, Robin Sylvester, and Jonathan Wilson debuted on March 3, at the Sweetwater Music Hall.

On April 23, 2014, The Other One: The Long Strange Trip of Bob Weir premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival directed by Mike Fleiss husband of Miss America 2012, Laura Kaeppeler.

"[19] In early July 2015, Weir joined the other original living members of the Grateful Dead —Mickey Hart, Bill Kreutzmann, and Phil Lesh — for three shows at Soldier Field in Chicago.

These four surviving members (known as the "Core Four") were joined by Jeff Chimenti on keys and Phish's Trey Anastasio on lead guitar and shared vocals, and Bruce Hornsby on piano.

Based on demand, two additional Fare Thee Well concerts were added to the series, performed in late June 2015 at Levi Stadium in California.

Weir's 2012 collaboration with members of The National as part of The Bridge Session helped pave the way for the Grateful Dead tribute.

[35][36] In late 2020 and early 2021 the band played several concerts at TRI Studios with Jeff Chimenti on keyboards and Greg Leisz on pedal steel guitar.

After the first of these shows the band also added a horn and string section called the Wolfpack, comprising Brian Switzer on trumpet, Adam Theis on trombone, Sheldon Brown on saxophone, clarinet, and flute, Mads Tolling on violin, and Alex Kelly on cello.

[37] In the summer of 2021 this larger ensemble, now billed as Bobby Weir & Wolf Bros, played several concerts in Colorado and California.

[42] The fall 2022 "Bobby Weir & Wolf Bros featuring The Wolfpack" tour included four shows at the Kennedy Center in October.

[45] In April 2023, Bobby Weir & Wolf Bros Trio played four shows at the Guild Theatre in Menlo Park.

[46] As part of the band's fall 2023 run,[47] Bobby Weir & Wolf Bros featuring The Wolfpack joined Willie Nelson's Outlaw Music Festival for seven shows in September.

[53] In January 2025 Weir returned to curate the second Dead Ahead Festival at Riviera Cancún, Mexico, where he also performed along with a lineup that included Sturgill Simpson, Rick Mitarotonda, Oteil Burbridge, Brandi Carlile and others.

[55] In the meantime, on January 31 Weir, Mickey Hart and Grateful Dead family members accepted MusiCares Persons of the Year awards for their philanthropic work.

[68] He is an honorary member of the board of directors of the environmental organization Rainforest Action Network, along with Woody Harrelson, Bonnie Raitt, and John Densmore.

He is also on the honorary board of directors of Little Kids Rock, a non-profit organization that provides free musical instruments and instruction to children in under-served public schools throughout the U.S.

With his post-Grateful Dead bands, Weir has played a Modulus G3FH custom, a Gibson ES-335, and a 1956 Fender Telecaster previously owned by James Louis Parber, his late half-brother.

[77] Grateful Dead and related bands Solo albums Kingfish Bobby and the Midnites Bob Weir and Rob Wasserman RatDog Wolf Bros With other artists Videos