(LOOTPRESS) – Grateful Dead members Bob Weir, Micky Hart, and Bill Kreutzmann were in attendance for Sunday’s Kennedy Center Honors ceremony at which the Grateful Dead were among the artistic contributors recognized.
Each year since 1978, the Kennedy Center Honors has recognized individuals and collectives in the performing arts who have contributed significantly to American culture over the course of their respective lifetimes.
The Grateful Dead were among multiple individuals to be recognized during Sunday’s ceremony, receiving recognition alongside the likes of esteemed film director Francis Ford Coppola, singer-songwriter Bonnie Raitt, and jazz musician Arturo Sandoval, along with Harlem theater, The Apollo.
In attendance for the event along with guitarist Bob Weir in representation of the Grateful Dead were drummers Mickey Hart and Bill Kreutzmann. Founding member and Grateful Dead bassist Phil Lesh unfortunately passed away in October prior to the event, joining fallen bandmates Jerry Garcia, Ron “Pigpen” McKernan, Keith Godchaux, Brent Mydland, and Vince Welnick.
Speaking with the Associated Press during the event, Weir commented on the significance of his late bandmates in not only the continued appreciation of the Grateful Dead, but also in the continuation of the band’s legacy through offshoot acts such as Dead & Company.
“You know, I hear Jerry’s guitar crackling… all the time when I’m playing; I feel Pigpen; I feel Phil,” said Weir. “I carry all that stuff with me when I hit the stage. I step back and just play with it.”
In recent years, Weir has continued the tradition of performing Grateful Dead material with the band Dead &Company, which features drummers Mickey Hart and Jay Lane, bassist Oteil Burbridge, keyboardist Jeff Chimenti, and guitarist John Mayer. Founding Grateful Dead drummer Bill Kreutzmann was also an active member of the ensemble up to the year 2023.
Mayer – a highly successful singer-songwriter in his own right – took to social media to congratulate Grateful Dead members in attendance for the significant accomplishment.
“I am particularly proud of these gentlemen – and my association with them – in ways I didn’t quite see coming,” wrote Mayer. “Congratulations Bob Weir, Mickey Hart, and Bill Kreutzmann on this esteemed, distinguished, and well-deserved honor.”
