ABC/Image Group LAIt was a sad weekend for Dierks Bentley, as he said goodbye to his beloved dog Jake. Sunday morning, Dierks tweeted “rest in peace pal,” along with a photo of his constant sidekick in the back of his truck.
An hour earlier he shared, “hard to express how much i needed our fans, my band, my crew and the show this weekend,” as if perhaps Jake’s passing wasn’t a surprise. Before heading out on the Somewhere on a Beach Tour earlier this year with Randy Houser and Cam, Dierks revealed that Jake rarely accompanied him on the road anymore, as he was simply more comfortable at home as he’d gotten older.
In March, Dierks made sure to bring him to the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum, however, for the opening of his Every Mile a Memory Exhibit, remarking on what an integral part of his career Jake had been.
“Jake’s been with me through every phase of my career, before I had a publishing deal, before I even had a gig really,” he recalled. “And then he was there when I got my first gigs downtown, he’d be waiting in the windowsill. He actually wore out a little spot in the couch where he’d wait for me. I’d go to work at TNN and then sometimes I’d go right from work to playing a gig, and come home real late and he’d be there sitting in the window, putting in his time. That was his years of grinding, was waiting in the window for me. He’s been around through it all.”
Even though Jake’s road dog days may be behind him, Dierks’ close friends are carrying on the tradition he started. Randy Houser’s Goldendoodle Hawk is a fixture on tour now.
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