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If A Band Loses Its Founding Members, Can It Survive?
A guide for young bands and finding success through personnel change
When Dead and Company conducted their historic residency at The Sphere in Las Vegas last year, I was profoundly impressed, but even more surprised. I couldn’t understand how the reformation of a lauded band could sustain the same core fans and grow across generations. Recruiting star members like the bass guitar savant Oteil Burbridge and pop-blues heavyweight John Mayor helped with concert turnout in the beginning. Still, it didn’t attest to how they were relating to traditional Grateful Dead fans.
When I asked my friend about this conundrum I was having, she told me that her husband, a self-proclaimed Dead Head, enjoyed Dead and Company because they maintained the spirit of the band.
“They’re missing Jerry (Garcia), but they’ve kept the spirit of the Grateful Dead alive, and that’s all we can ask for at this point,” he chimed.
Of course, this comment got my wheels turning about other bands who have sustained their fandom and commercial success throughout decades with significant alternating member changes. I wanted to understand precisely how they navigated the identity crisis this change caused, maintained a positive relationship with their fans, and adapted…
