The unbelievable life of an investment wiz Deadhead who likes to rock.

Bill Gates and Mark Zuckerberg both value Roger McNamee’s opinion. So does U2’s Bono and the core members of the Grateful Dead. As a Bay Area tech investment advisor, McNamee secured a reputation for his ability to foresee technological changes way before anyone else – he’s guided many top-performing funds, including T. Rowe Price. The self-described “longtime Deadhead” consulted for the Grateful Dead, which led to working for U2. Bono dug McNamee so much, he partnered up with him and they started the equity firm Elevation Partners together. But nine months out of the year, McNamee can’t be found in the office. He’s on the road with Moonalice, rocking original psych-roots jams in the spirit of the Dead.

The Weekly caught up with the perpetual hippie as Moonalice traveled from Salt Lake City to Victor, Idaho in advance of the group’s two shows at Good Old Days in Pacific Grove.

Thoughts on the Grateful Dead “Fare Thee Well” shows?

I think it’s really exciting. I went to 200 Dead shows – I was a serious Deadhead, as was bassist Barry Sless. He was Jerry’s friend. I have good memories and I bet the music’s going to be great. I went to all three Phil and Friends shows with Phish, and I’m not a big Phish guy, but I thought [Trey] Anastasio was magnificent playing [Grateful Dead] material.

It’s been a struggle socially since Jerry died for [Bob Weir, Bill Kreutzmann, Mickey Hart and Phil Lesh] to get along. His absence forced a reshuffling of the hierarchy. But that Bill Graham line is true: “There’s nothing like a Grateful Dead concert.” [The Chicago shows] won’t be exactly that, but they won’t be far off.

Were you the Dead’s financial advisor at one time?

I was a technology business advisor from 1998-2001.

In a Moonalice context, how have music and technology converged?

We were going to show people how to use technology to build a band in a world where labels have lost the ability to break bands.

People couldn’t have cared less about Moonalice, so we had to use technology just to get off the ground. We figured out Twitter, Facebook, live streaming. It’s not that nobody had ever done it, but nobody had ever been dependent on it the way we were. Instead of a manager or publicist, we spent money on technology. Technology was a lot cheaper and a whole community was built around this. As a Deadhead from 1971 till the end, I’ve always loved Deadheads’ sense of community. We sought that. We were more like a tribute to a style of show. That communal, artistic, very hippie-driven model we grew up with. Technology allowed us to do it. Before buying a ticket or an album, fans could listen to our music online and decide if they liked it. I don’t understand why younger bands aren’t aggressive around this. If your audience was 18-25, this would work 100 times better than it does for us.

In what ways is technology transforming culture?

[Technology] has democratized distribution. Anyone can reach an audience. Think about what YouTube has done. Think about the people who have become stars overnight.

Is it a good time to be a musician?

Compared to 30 years ago it’s infinitely harder to be a musician. The economics are terrible unless you’re 10 years older than I am and the band you were in when you were 20 is still playing. It’s a good time to be a musician if you have another source of income. From 1960 till 2000, musicians could earn a good living, but that era is over. We’re going back to what it was before that: Musicians had fulfilling lives, but not economically exciting ones. I’m not saying that’s bad, I’m just saying it is.

Word is you’ve had two strokes.

I had those two strokes coming back from Dublin after working with U2. I was in good condition when it happened, which is how I survived without impairment. I had a birth defect in my heart. I had elective open heart surgery to fix the defect.

MOONALICE 1-4pm Saturday, April 11 and Sunday, April 12. Good Old Days’ Moonalice Stage, 481 Lighthouse Ave., Pacific Grove. Free. www.pacificgrove.org