Any true guitar enthusiast would be honored to perform with Bob Weir, frontman for the legendary Grateful Dead. Being able to play lead guitar alongside Weir means filling in a role that was once held by iconic axeman Jerry Garcia, and John Mayer was all for it last week during his guest host stint on The Late Late Show. The pair collaborated on Dead tunes like "Truckin'" and "Althea."
For those who did not know or forgot, Mayer is a student of bluesy riffs and licks, so he fit in nicely with Weir. The pair work well together on "Truckin'," with Mayer adding some high harmonies and Weir plucking away at that driving riff. Weir looks to be in good health ever since he canceled some tour dates with RatDog in August.
The two then performed the groovy "Althea" to close out the show. Both performances were tastefully understated. It is always a pleasure to see someone like Weir still performing after all these years, and on national television no less. Check out "Truckin'" below.
Weir's appearance comes on the heels of a recent announcement that the Grateful Dead will be reuniting for three shows in Chicago this summer. Trey Anastasio and Bruce Hornsby will join Weir, Phil Lesh and the rest of the crew July 3 to 5 at Soldier Field. Needless to say, fans are ecstatic.
"It is with respect and gratitude that we reconvene the Dead one last time to celebrate -- not merely the band's legacy, but also the community that we've been playing to, and with, for 50 years," Lesh said about the reunion.
Mayer was filling in for James Corden, who will take over for longtime host Craig Ferguson March 23. Judd Apatow also helped out previously, with Drew Carey to take over after Mayer. All-in-all it has been a fun interim period -- Mayer brought in the two sharks who danced alongside Katy Perry for the Super Bowl halftime show.
