It's been 10 years since John Mayer teamed up with Grateful Dead's Bob Weir and drummers Mickey Hart and Bill Kreutzmann – a curious pairing that many would perhaps have thought unlikely.
However, what transpired was a decade during which the Dead's repertoire was introduced to a whole new generation of fans – while also serving as an opportunity for the band to keep up with its experimental and exploratory ethos through their younger collaborator.
With the journey culminating in last year's spectacular residency at The Sphere, Las Vegas' cutting-edge venue, we wondered – what did the two guitarists who spearheaded this ambitious project learn from each other?
“It’s just that there's so much,” Mayer says in the latest issue of Guitar World. “But the thing I've learned from Bob is to let it breathe. And that's changed my playing a lot.
“I feel like the two of us now have a very deep relationship, almost like a telepathic relationship. I know where I stand with him in the best of ways. He knows where he stands with me in the best of ways. And we don't have to talk about it.”
As for Weir? “‘Don't sweat the small stuff,’” he says matter-of-factly. “I don't know if there's more to it than that. I'm constantly evolving, and so is he. And I can't tell if it's on account of what I'm getting from him, or if it's something he's getting from me, but we sort of make room, make allowances, for those kinds of developments.”
And whether we can expect an actual studio album from Dead & Company, the two tease that it's definitely not off the table.
“It's something I would still love to do. We've got our best guys on it…” hints Weir.
“It hasn't been discussed in a while,” Mayer clarifies. “But I have a boilerplate response to ideas like that. Which is, ‘If Bobby and Mickey want to do it, I want to do it.’ I want to follow them where they want to go. So if that's something that naturally comes up and it starts to materialize, you won't see me being the one to say no.”
In other Dead & Company news, Mayer has recently opened up about his much-discussed amp setup at The Sphere – and how he still managed to crank his Dumble and Fender combos in the notoriously amp-hostile venue.
For more from John Mayer and Bob Weir, pick up issue 590 of Guitar World at Magazines Direct.
