Two Grateful Dead Members Open San Francisco Clubs
Grateful Dead's Phil Lesh, Bob Weir Open Clubs
Deadheads, take note.
Two members of the Grateful Dead are opening clubs in San Francisco -- just miles from each other.
Guitarist Bob Weir and bassist Phil Lesh live in Marin County and both have set their sites on the area to open music clubs.
Weir's Sweetwater Music Hall and Lesh's Terrapin Crossroads will both offer up organic food and state-of-the-art technology.
Weir, 64, explains, "When the old Sweetwater closed down (in 2007), a number of us thought we should bring it back." A solid plan, considering the small bar that had been around since 1972 had legends like Elvis Costello and John Lee Hooker among the musicians who played there.
Weir added, "A club is a playpen, a place to try music and hear music."
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The new Sweetwater is located at Mill Valley's Masonic Hall, but it's more than just a small club, with Sweetwater investor Michael Klein noting their plan "to get the music out there, so we will live stream 100 shows our first year."
Sweetwater Music Hall opens today with Florida Southern rockers The Outlaws kicking off the opening.
Lesh's Terrapin Crossroads gets its name from the Grateful Dead's Terrapin Station album. The club will be located in an old seafood restaurant in San Rafael, and plans to begin live shows in March.
The location, which the Dead used as their headquarters until Jerry Garcia's death in 1995, brings back memories for Lesh.
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He explains, "This place being available was almost like it was meant to be."
Will Lesh and Weir be fierce competitors? Weir shared, "The more music gets out there, the better," adding, "I'll be at Bobby's club and he can come to mine. Our new places are just two sides of the same coin."


