REMEMBERING BOB WEIR
A Guitar in the Family BOB WEIR
with John Schroeter
It is with profound sadness that we mark the passing of Bob Weir, the iconic rhythm guitarist and founding member of the Grateful Dead, who died January 10, 2026, at the age of 78. In tribute to this legendary musician, Collectible Guitar is republishing a story that first appeared in John Schroeter’ s 2004 book Between the Strings— a deeply personal account of how Bob discovered his birth father and half-brothers in the 1990s, and how a battered 1956 Fender Telecaster( pictured at right) became the instrument that truly brought them together.
Written in collaboration with Bobby and members of his family,“ A Guitar in the Family” reveals how his late half-brother James’ old Telecaster didn’ t just change Bob’ s sound with the Dead but helped forge the familial bonds he had been seeking his entire life. The story is one of fate, loss, and redemption, showing that sometimes the most meaningful guitars aren’ t the most valuable ones, but those that carry the deepest connections.
Today, we remember Bob Weir not just as one of rock’ s most innovative rhythm guitarists, but as a man who understood that guitars can be bridges between people, across time, and even between brothers who never met.“ I hope I’ m remembered for bringing our culture and other cultures together,” Weir said in 2025.“ I’ m hoping that people of varying persuasions will find something they can agree on in the music that I’ ve offered and find each other through it.”
104 | SPRING 2026