In Memoriam ~ Christopher Weber ’65

CHRISTOPHER JOHN WEBER 

July 5, 1947 – January 27, 2021

Chris Weber was born in Pasadena, CA but spent most of his life in Minneapolis, MN. He passed away in Concord, Ca, on January 27, 2021 from heart and lung complications. Though he was born the 7th of nine children, Chris was often in the “center” of his family, sharing his charismatic charms and musical talents. He led many family “hootenannies” playing on his     12-string Martin guitar. He was our “glue,” and the family’s very own “Leader of the Band.” His love of folk music stayed with him throughout his life, teaching himself guitar at age 10. He attended school at St John’s Prep (1961-1965) and 1 ½ years at St John’s U, Collegeville, MN, following in the footsteps of his father, Joe Weber and all six brothers, both sisters (CSB) and aunt, Sr. Aloysius OSB.  His musical gifts with voice and guitar were well known at St. John’s campus. He transferred to the U of MN to pursue his innate artistic gifts majoring in Theater Arts. It was there that Chris met his life-long soulmate, Vanessa (Eileen) Bjornson in 1970.  During college he worked at the Podium Guitar Shop in Dinkytown near the University, which he later owned with his wife Vanessa. He developed a keen knack for selling and repairing guitars and other like string instruments.

As luck would have it, Chris answered a call a few days after Christmas, 1974. Bob Dylan was in his home state of Minnesota and wanted to hire a few local musicians to re-work a few songs on his Platinum album “Blood on the Tracks.” Chris and five other local musicians were instrumental in helping Dylan re-do five songs and recorded them at a studio before the final release of the album. In the book, “A Simple Twist of Fate,” the musicians were given due credit for their musical talents on Dylan’s album and were inducted into the MN Musicians Hall of Fame in 2006. Years later, Chris and the other musicians received official notoriety for their contribution to Dylan’s best-selling album, when it was re-released as “More Blood, More Tracks” in 2018.

Chris and Vanessa were married in 1973.  They were seldom apart in the last 52+ years, raising a family and working side by side. They have a daughter, Amanda and two sons, Luke, and Bryan.  All live in California.  Chris and Vanessa enjoyed a life full of love, companionship, family, and music. They were blessed with six grandchildren.

Chris will be greatly missed, but the many songs and poetry he wrote for family, friends and fans will be cherished and will fill our memories for a lifetime… and if we listen quietly, he will continue to shower us with sweet harmonies from heaven, our eternal troubadour.