Grateful Dead co-founder Bob Weir passes away at 78 due to lung issues

American musician and songwriter, Bob Weir has passed away following a health battle, on Saturday, January 10, 2026.

The guitarist was aged 78 at the time of death. Bob was one of the co-founders of the popular psychedelic rock band, Grateful Dead.

Bob Weir passes away due to health issues following battle with cancer

Musician and popular guitarist, Bob Weir had battled cancer and eventually passed away due to lung-related issues. A post from his official Instagram page announced the news of his death as fans expressed their condolences.

"It is with profound sadness that we share the passing of Bobby Weir. He transitioned peacefully, surrounded by loved ones, after courageously beating cancer as only Bobby could. Unfortunately, he succumbed to underlying lung issues", the post read, citing the reason of the guitarist's passing.

Bob co-founded Grateful Dead in 1965 and immediately burst into the scene and went on to become one of the most talented guitarists who broke away from the traditional forms of music to introduce something new. He had a spectacular career spanning more than six decades.

The post further read, "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".

Grateful Dead was an example of America's growing counterculture, and it introduced psychedelia to American fusion folk. The band, owing to their unique style, were inducted in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1994. In 2007, they went on to win a Lifetime Achievement Award by the Recording Academy or Grammys.

"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", the obituary continued.

According to the Instagram post, Bob Weir was diagnosed with cancer in July, 2025 and started treatment. However, that did not stop him from getting on the stage. "Those performances, emotional, soulful, and full of light, were not farewells, but gifts. Another act of resilience. An artist choosing, even then, to keep going by his own design", the post read.

It went on to say, "There is no final curtain here, not really. Only the sense of someone setting off again. He often spoke of a three-hundred-year legacy, determined to ensure the songbook would endure long after him".

Bob Weir leaves behind a "loving family", including wife Natascha Münter and children Chloe Kaelia Weir, Shala Monet Weir.

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