Eggy & Alex Bleeker Recall Turning Shock Into Tribute On The Night Bob Weir Died

On January 10, when Eggy learned Grateful Dead guitarist Bob Weir had died, the quartet still had a show to play at the State Theatre in Portland, Maine. So did tourmates Real Estate, whose bassist Alex Bleeker found his way to Eggy’s green room before the show.

Together, they worked out how to give themselves and the fans gathering in the venue a chance to process the news through the music Bobby left behind.

Weir would have turned 79 today, October 16, his first birthday since his death was revealed. In separate conversations with JamBase aboard Jam Cruise 22 in February, Eggy and Bleeker reflected on that Saturday night, when their four-show Hell Froze Over co-headlining run ended with a pair of Grateful Dead favorites.

Eggy drummer Alex Bailey remembered photographer Vic Brazen entering the green room with his eyes on his phone. Before Brazen said whose death had been announced, Bailey’s mind had already gone to Weir.

“And he’s like, ‘Guys, it’s Bobby.’ And we’re all just like, ‘Oh my God.’ And it took a while to sink in,” Bailey recalled. “You definitely have some amount of shock after hearing news like that, that feels so big that you don’t really know how to process it in the moment.”

Bleeker had been onstage as Real Estate’s soundcheck wound down, when a close friend sent him a heartbreak emoji.

“I knew exactly what she meant, like psychically,” Bleeker said.

Eggy guitarist Jake Brownstein remembered the musicians and fans learning the news with little time to absorb it before the concert.

“Nobody had the car ride on the way to the venue to listen to some of this music and have this catharsis or reflection,” Brownstein explained. “We were all kind of just staring at each other around the room.”

For Bleeker, who also plays bass in Taper’s Choice, being on the road with Eggy gave him somewhere to turn.

“It was great to be on the road with those guys in that moment because I just kinda went into their green room, and it was just kinda hugs,” Bleeker recalled.

Eggy discussed whether to add a tribute to the evening’s set. As Bailey explained, they wanted the decision to come from their own connection to Weir.

“We know that sometimes you just feel like you should, for optics or something, but I think we quickly realized we need to do it for us,” Bailey said. “We need to do it for the people in the room, and it created a moment for everybody to collectively come together.”

Bleeker encouraged them to play something to mark the moment. The songs were already there: Eggy’s repertoire included several tunes associated with the Grateful Dead, with a particular leaning toward Weir’s material.

“For some reason our Dead repertoire sways Bobby,” keyboardist Dani Battat pointed out.

“Fortunately, a lot of that music has been a part of our lives for so long, and we had it in the bag to be able to do that, and we felt prepared to do it,” Brownstein added.

Eggy ended their main set with “Cassidy,” then returned for a collaborative “One More Saturday Night” encore. Brownstein sang lead on “Cassidy,” the Weir/John Perry Barlow co-write. Bleeker joined on acoustic guitar and Real Estate’s James Richardson added electric guitar for the finale, with Battat handling lead vocals.

Bleeker brushed up on the lyrics before joining Eggy. To him, playing the music that night was a must:

“I was pretty adamant, like, ‘No, we’re playing. It’s Saturday. We’re doing what we’re doing tonight.’ We’re musicians. This is what you do. It’s tradition. You pay tribute, you know? And it’s not weird. It’s fucking cool.

“[It] was fun. [It] felt fun and cathartic, and people went crazy. I was like, ‘This is the way we should be doing it,’ you know?”

The loss brought Eggy back to the shows they had seen together growing up in Connecticut, including Weir’s appearances at Gathering Of The Vibes.

“So many formative memories for each of us, but also all together seeing Bob over the years,” bassist Mike Goodman said. “He’s a huge part of our lives, for sure.”

Brownstein cited a sentiment he had seen someone share after Weir’s death: “He was our Jerry.” For the members of Eggy, who never saw Grateful Dead guitarist Jerry Garcia perform, Bobby was their connection to the music in person.

“We never got the opportunity to see Jerry, and Bobby brought so much amazing music to us,” Brownstein explained. “I’ve been fortunate enough to see him in so many different contexts with so many different groups and special sit-ins that he’s done over the years.”

Bailey also pointed to the way Weir and his longtime bandmate Phil Lesh kept opening that world to younger musicians.

“They made a point to bring in so many of the younger people from basically every corner of our scene, the scene that they created,” Bailey said. “And they just made it a point to play with as many people as possible until the very end.”

Bleeker described the loss as a turning point after the death of Lesh, another musician whose work had meant a great deal to him.

“It was like, whoa, this is a demarcation line of something shifting, rather than, ‘This is the most tragic thing ever,’” Bleeker said.

For Brownstein, Weir’s constant presence on the road had made it difficult to imagine a time when he would no longer be there.

“He was just a pillar,” Brownstein said. “I continue to think that, and I’ve said to these guys, it’s kind of like you hope that you never take anything for granted, but I was like, ‘This guy feels like a statue. He feels eternal, like he’s always going to be on the road and he’s always going to play.’”

Watch the Portland concert replay below, with “Cassidy” beginning at 3:04:08 and “One More Saturday Night” at 3:29:20: