4 Iconic Photographers Bear in mind Grateful Dead’s Bob Weir

Bob Weir was probably the most photogenic and photographed member of the Grateful Dead, typically cited for his vogue selections and signature seems by means of the years. As a part of our tribute protection following Weir’s loss of life on Jan. 10, Rolling Stone spoke with legendary photographers Jay Blakesberg, Danny Clinch, Bob Minkin, and Rosie McGee about what it was prefer to seize pictures of Weir over the previous six many years.

Jay Blakesberg started taking footage of the Grateful Dead when he was 16. The first present he shot was on Sept. 2, 1978, at Giants Stadium in New Jersey. “It was a couple of days before I started my senior year of high school,” Blakesberg recollects. “I borrowed my dad’s camera.” A yr later, he would have his first paid gig taking pictures the band for the Aquarian Weekly, a neighborhood different newspaper. He would proceed photographing dozens of various iterations of the band by means of almost 50 years, together with Bob Weir’s final efficiency at GD 60.  Blakesberg has additionally served as a mentor to Bob’s daughter, photographer Chloe Weir.

Rosie McGee has been taking footage since she was 12. She moved with Phil Lesh to San Francisco in 1966 and have become part of the band’s internal circle. Not solely did she take images of the band, however McGee additionally labored carefully with them, serving to with journey and different odd jobs. Rosie documented her life with the Grateful Dead in two self-published books stuffed together with her personal images. 

Danny Clinch was launched to the Grateful Dead by a highschool buddy, “It took me a minute to get into it, and I did end up going to several shows when Jerry was around,” he recollects. He would all the time sneak his digicam in. He went on to shoot official press images for Dead and Company. One of his favourite recollections wasn’t taking footage, however performing with Bob at a Grammy social gathering. “Freakin’ Bob Weir shows up. We were like, ‘Are you kidding me? This is amazing,’” Clinch recollects. “And we’re like, ‘You want to sit in?’ He was like, ‘Yeah.’ It was really magical.” 

Bob Minkin has been a Bobby fan since he was 13. He began going to exhibits in 1972, and simply 5 years later, he started taking skilled images of the band for Relix journal. Minkin lived in Marin County, near Weir’s house. Over the years, he took many images of Bob and his household, together with vacation images and pictures from his daughter Monet Weir’s Sweet 16 celebration. “It was surreal,” Minkin recollects. “This room is full of 16-year-old girls and boys, as well as Bobby and his wife.” Minkin would additionally incessantly cease by Sweetwater Music Hall in Mill Valley, which is inside strolling distance from Weir’s home. At the well-known membership, he photographed Bobby alongside artists resembling Ramblin’ Jack Elliott, Lukas Nelson, and Herbie Hancock. 

Here are these 4 photographers’ recollections of working with Bob Weir, in their very own phrases.

Jay Blakesberg

This photograph was taken the Capitol Theatre in Passaic, New Jersey. That was a particular Deadheads-only live performance the place you needed to mail a letter to an deal with and should you bought chosen — as a result of it holds 3,000 folks. They performed a stadium three months earlier than, and now they’re enjoying a 3,000-seat theater proper down the road, primarily. Got a ticket for that. I wrote to [the band], principally mendacity, saying that I misplaced my serial quantity to get my tickets. It was like “the dog ate my homework.” I used to be 16 years outdated. It’s basic. Luckily, a buddy of mine from highschool’s mom was associates with the mom of the man who ran the field workplace, and we ended up getting tickets.

At Fare Thee Well in 2015, I used to be all the time on the lookout for that killer shot of Bob, Phil, and Trey [Anastasio] in shut proximity to one another. During “Not Fade Away,” simply earlier than the second set ended, Bob and Trey got here in from the wings in the direction of one another with weapons blazing, heads whipping, and legs rising, and at that second the celebs all aligned for me to get that high-energy {photograph} of the three of them. Not unfold out on a big stadium-size stage, however connecting intimately on the peak second!

But I like so many reside pictures that I took of him onstage with Dead & Co. There’s a number of which are actually my favorites. My images that seize Bob in an intense second, in a cheerful smiling second, in a ecstatic leg-up-in-the-air, arm-up-in-the-air second, these are all my favourite images. And when he’s connecting together with his bandmates onstage, when he’s connecting together with his bandmates offstage. I simply really feel like Bob was all concerning the music and I would like that to indicate by means of in my pictures as a result of on the finish of the day, it was his music and people songs and the best way that he practiced them and reinvented them and reinterpreted them and performed them in another way each time as a result of no threat, no reward. And they went for it, and there was numerous reward on the market.

In Golden Gate Park, on the very finish of the final evening when the band did their bow, all of them bowed after which everyone left the stage and simply Bobby and Mickey stayed out onstage. It was a very, actually touching second. I don’t know if anyone knew it on the time that it was the final time they have been going to be onstage collectively. And in order that’s a very particular {photograph} for me: Bob and Mickey up there, simply  being within the second on Aug. 3, 2025. It’s the ultimate {photograph}. And I all the time would say that regardless that Jerry died in 1995, my Grateful Dead images archive just isn’t full till all of the band members cease enjoying music. So the Jerry half is finished, the Phil half is finished, the Bobby half is finished. There’s nonetheless extra music to come back from Mickey and Billy [Kreutzmann], and the archive continues to develop with them for now. But that’s my final photograph of Bob. That’s, to me, a significant photograph.

Rosie McGee

I don’t assume I ever “worked with Bobby” as a photographer — I simply photographed him spontaneously, largely candid images behind the scenes throughout the band’s wild and fantastic first decade after which a number of occasions within the mid-Eighties. Mostly he by no means seen, however occasionally, he stopped simply lengthy sufficient to interact with me immediately. I treasure the ensuing images as items.

Danny Clinch

They had one PR session, and I shot it. They gave me a ton of time and we had a blast. It was a lot enjoyable being across the band and Bob. He was kind of a religious guru and a man who was going with the movement and was simply actually open-minded. It was simply so cool to be round.

I beloved his transformation into shaggy-haired, cowboy-hat-wearing, big-mustache, poncho-wearing Bob. I beloved that a part of him and I used to be glad that I used to be in a position to seize him in that second as properly. It was visually so cool.

I bought to look at him recognize the youthful musicians. This is a good Bob Weir second for me, the place it’s myself, Bob, Billy Strings, Nathaniel Rateliff, Margo Price, all standing in an enormous circle, smoking an enormous joint. Everybody within the circle. I simply regarded round and naturally I used to be photographing very casually, simply because I used to be part of the group. Everybody there was identical to, “Is this really happening? Because this is pretty wild.” Just residing in that second was unimaginable.

Bob Minkin

Here’s a cool backstage second. The Dead performed 1000’s of exhibits, however right here they’re going on stage at Laguna Seca in California [in the late 1980s]. There’s Bill Graham main the best way. Look at Jerry and Bob. They’re smiling and keen. It’s like they’re going to work. They bought their instruments, their toolbox. And take a look at Bill Graham clapping his fingers as he’s strolling up the steps. Jerry, you could possibly see him smiling and nodding.

I used to be at out at [Bob’s] home taking pictures a canopy story for Relix. I used to be simply alone there with [his wife] Natascha, as a result of Bobby was out driving his bike. So Bobby got here house, and he was like, “All right, let’s do the photos.” And I checked out Natascha, “Tell him to take a shower.” So he took a bathe. And I didn’t thoughts ready in his home. I used to be wanting round. He lived there for a very long time. That’s the place he moved [after] the Haight-Ashbury days, it’s the identical home. Anyway, so lastly he was prepared. We did some pictures at his home, in his backyard, however then he mentioned, “Let’s go down the street. I’ll show you where Natascha and I got married.” The road ends in a cul-de-sac by redwood bushes. And on the finish of the cul-de-sac, by means of the bushes, you could possibly see the highest of Mount Tamalpais. We went down there. He took his guitar. [His daughter] Monet, she was on his shoulders fully bare. I imply, she was just a little woman. And he goes, “You hold my guitar.” And we walked down the road and we stopped. He was telling me how he bought this guitar. It was a George Benson mannequin guitar, and he mentioned he was on the manufacturing facility the place they made them. They have been displaying him this new one which they made for George Benson. And he took it, and he goes, “I like this guitar. You can make him another one.” He simply took the guitar.

This is Bobby and Natascha. They’re all dolled up. They have been on their manner house from Neal Schon’s marriage ceremony. This guitar he’s holding is Jerry Garcia‘s actual Wolf guitar. It rarely makes it out in public. The owner brought it. Bobby and Natascha only stopped by for five minutes. I’m simply glad I used to be there to get that. Even the shot of them with out the guitar would’ve been cool. But he occurs to be holding the Wolf guitar, the primary guitar I noticed Jerry play. It was like, “Oh, my God, there it is.”

That’s at Sweetwater Music Hall in Mill Valley, which is basically strolling distance from his home. He performed there lots. And numerous occasions these bands that performed there with him have been the primary time they’re enjoying collectively. I beloved being there when he was there with any person like Ramblin’ Jack Elliott, as a result of he beloved Ramblin’ Jack Elliott. He tells the well-known story when he was a young person, how he snuck right into a Ramblin’ Jack Elliott present. He climbed by means of a window, and fell by means of an open-door ground, and it was an entire story. He’s sitting right here with Jack and any person mentioned, “So how’d you guys meet?” That’s all you want. And they’re speaking, and so they’re very animated, and I’m up shut, like click on, click on, click on.