Wow... how many pages you want... which is why I've haven't joined this thread. I'll toss a few out off the top of my head:

6/30/85 -- Fav show ever attended -- get ANY show from 85 particularly summer- BEST Shakedown ever. Bar non. Spectacular Sugar Mag to close. Rare Phil & Brent doin "Keep on Growin" ..smokin looks like rain... a ragged but still mind blowing Crpytical.. it had been brought back in June on the west coast but Pre internet we never knew it. Any self respecting deadhead should own this show.

4/29/71 (Thu) Fillmore East - New York City, NY

Alot of "fresh heads" like myself cut our teeth on this fairly well circulated TAPE in the late 70's -early 80's- Blew out ALOT of brain cells on this one in my formative days. Whole show Greeeeeeeeeeattttttttt--- love& a super rare GD Second That Emotion.


Set 1: Truckin', Bertha, It Hurts Me Too, Cumberland Blues > Me & My Uncle, Bird Song, Playing In The Band, Loser, Dark Hollow, Hard To Handle, Ripple, Me And Bobby McGee, Casey Jones

Set 2: Morning Dew, Minglewood Blues, Sugar Magnolia, Black Peter, Beat It On Down The Line, Second That Emotion, Alligator > Drums > Alligator > Goin' Down the Road Feeling Bad > Cold Rain & Snow, China Cat Sunflower > I Know You Rider, Greatest Story Ever Told > Johnny B. Goode, E: Uncle John's Band, Midnight Hour (1) > We Bid You Goodnight (1)

This show has an average rating of 4.90 out of 31 votes.

oh & 4.9 0utta 5 is pretty good

I'll add more later...

It's all so subjective. Some I loved for the music, others for the vibe, others for the people I was hanging with...

I remember a couple of awesome Jerry show at the Rainbow in Denver in the early 80's, and one night a year or so later that was the worst ever (Jerry was green, wheezing, and I thought he'd drop dead on stage).

Favorite GD has to be NYE 80 or 81 (with Morning Dew, Dark Star Bertha). That one was a life changer for me. Telluride was epic, not because they played that great, but because it was kind of an end of an era for me, and I had a great gaggle of sweet friends. Long deep breathing group hugs in a venue that couldn't be more astonishing.

Also loved Ventura...uh...the year I went swimming during U.S. Blues and suddenly realized the show had gotten out and what was an empty beach was crawling with people and I didn't know where my clothes were. Yes, I was that guy wandering naked through the crowd, and lucky to find my stuff, undisturbed, wallet with cash and car keys intact. It took what felt like an hour, and I started wondering if I was going to end up in jail, but all was good and I pranced away and ate watermelon and cried my eyes out with a beautiful stranger. She started it...you know...with the watermelon and crying and all. We had been dancing and connecting eyeballs and souls - never speaking - all through summer tour. But, the tears and the melon said it all. I searched for her in my dreams for months after that.

Furthur at Red Rocks this summer was incredible, and that Broomfield show a couple of years ago when they played Time.

Love Phil and Friends with Warren and Jimmy at Red Rocks and the Fillmore.

Sorry to say never had a favorite Rat Dog show.

The DEAD was always fun but never really did it for me.

And then there are other bands entirely worth noting, but not at the moment...

coliseum...vancouver '73..best overall grateful dead i was ever at..many others rocked harder,or were more spacey
or whatever,but lookin back at my dead time,that was IT.i love that show still.

[quote="Walk in the Sunshine" post=77349]Wow... how many pages you want... which is why I've haven't joined this thread. I'll toss a few out off the top of my head:

6/30/85 -- Fav show ever attended -- get ANY show from 85 particularly summer- BEST Shakedown ever. Bar non. Spectacular Sugar Mag to close. Rare Phil & Brent doin "Keep on Growin" ..smokin looks like rain... a ragged but still mind blowing Crpytical.. it had been brought back in June on the west coast but Pre internet we never knew it. Any self respecting deadhead should own this show.

4/29/71 (Thu) Fillmore East - New York City, NY

Alot of "fresh heads" like myself cut our teeth on this fairly well circulated TAPE in the late 70's -early 80's- Blew out ALOT of brain cells on this one in my formative days. Whole show Greeeeeeeeeeattttttttt--- love& a super rare GD Second That Emotion.

This show has an average rating of 4.90 out of 31 votes.

oh & 4.9 0utta 5 is pretty good

Couldn't agree more on both shows. I was there also, love the Shakedown from 6/30/85. Hunter/Jubal Seamons put together a fantastic SBD/Aud Matrix of this show. Great show from beginning to end.
April '71 is one my very favorite months for the GD, and 4/29 is my favorite of them all. I love the "acid cowboy" sound of the band during the "Quintissential Quintet" period of the band.
4/20/01 Charlotte is my favorite PL&F show. They played an instrumental version of Rainy Day Women and the crowd sang the "Everybody Must Get Stoned" part. I Am the Walrus was pretty cool too.
8/2/01 including Derek Trucks sitting in on "Sunshine of Your Love" was real good too.
My favorite Furthur show is usually the last one I listened to, which right now is 10/7/11.

IT all depends on which era I am listening to. Right now I am indulging in the early 80's. I find some of these shows great. I just listened to labor Day in Maine. Outrageous.

www.archive.org/details/gd80-09-06.wise.unknown.322.sbeok.shnf


Alabama Getaway
Greatest Story Ever Told
Sugaree
Me and My Uncle
Mexicali Blues
Tennessee Jed
Feel Like a Stranger
Friend of the Devil
Far From Me
Little Red Rooster
China Cat Sunflower
I Know You Rider
Promised Land

Shakedown Street
Lost Sailor
Saint of Circumstance
Althea
Playin' in the Band
Uncle John's Band
drums
Not Fade Away
The Wheel
Uncle John's Band
Playin' in the Band
Sugar Magnolia

One More Saturday Night
Brokedown Palace

sorry I didn't read the whole thread but 6/23/74 for GD ---- reason = just listen to it!

I'm not saying that's definite but it's a classic but almost any show from that period is really

So many shows to ease my soul:

04-12-89 Rosemont Horizon, Rosemont, Il.
1: Jack Straw, Row Jimmy, Minglewood, Tennessee Jed, Masterpiece, Cumberland, Let It Grow

03-22-90 Copps Coliseum, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada
1: Stranger, West L. A., Easy To Love You, BIODTL, Roses, Last Time, Picasso Moon, Don't Ease
2: Scarlet> Fire, Samson, Believe It, Truckin> Drumz> Other One> Hey Jude> Mr. Fantasy> Hey Jude Finale> Sugar Magnolia E: Baby Blue

07-06-90 Cardinal Stadium, Louisville, Ky.
2: China Cat> I Know You Rider> Woman Smarter> SOTM> He's Gone> Jam>

06-22-91 Soldier Field, Chicago, Il.
2: Drumz> Dark Star Jam> Playin> Black Peter

03-23-92 The Palace, Auburn Hills, Mi.
2: Morning Dew

06-25-92 Soldier Field, Chicago, Il.
2: Iko Iko*, Schoolgirl**, He's Gone> Drumz> Wheel> So Many Roads

03-10-93 Rosemont Horizon, Rosemont, Il.
2: Eyes, Mind Left Body Jam

03-16-94 Rosemont Horizon, Rosemont, Il.
2: Dark Star

Jerry Garcia Band
Sep 15, 1989
Alpine Valley Music Theatre, East Troy, WI

Apr 19 -21, 1991
May 22-23, 1991
The Warfield, San Francisco, CA
JGB
Nov. 22-24, 1991 Fall Tour

THE DEAD
8/5/2003 Verizon Wireless Music Center, Noblesville, IN
I: Jam > Playin in the Band > U.S. Blues, Stagger Lee, Good Morning Little Schoolgirl*, Ballad of a Thin Man*, Oh Boy*, Baba Jingo, He's Gone > Unbroken Chain
II: Weather Report Suite Prelude/Part 1@ > Let It Grow > The Eleven > All That We Are > Drums > Space > Lady with a Fan > Morning Dew > Terrapin > Sugar Magnolia
E: Attics of My Life

FURTHUR
3/3/2010 Auditorium Theatre of Roosevelt University, Chicago, IL.
I: Playin in the Band > Born Cross-Eyed > Eyes of the World > Jack Straw > Wharf Rat > Uncle John's Band > China Cat Sunflower > I Know You Rider
II: Scarlet Begonias > Fire on the Mountain, New Potato Caboose > St. Stephen > The Eleven > The Other One > So Many Roads, Help on the Way > Slipknot! > Franklin's Tower
E: Box of Rain > Johnny B. Goode


11/12/2010 UIC Pavilion, Chicago, IL
I: Jack Straw, Mississippi Half-Step > Ramble on Rose, Big River, Just Like Tom Thumb's Blues, Dear Prudence > Alligator > Hard to Handle
II: Viola Lee Blues > Dark Star > Shakedown Street > Viola Lee Blues > Born Cross-Eyed > Dark Star > Viola Lee Blues > Standing on the Moon, New Speedway Boogie > Good Lovin
E: Box of Rain > Ripple

11/13/2010 UIC Pavilion, Chicago, IL
I: Minglewood Blues, Dire Wolf, Mama Tried, Doin That Rag, Mason's Children > Passenger > Caution > Get Back
II: Lost Sailor > Saint of Circumstance, The Mountain Song > I Know You Rider > Morning Dew, Unbroken Chain, Lady with a Fan > Terrapin > At a Siding > Terrapin Flyer > The Eleven > The Other One
E: One More Saturday Night

Chicago Joe, are you are saying the 'best' shows of all time were all 1989 or later - and near Chicago? Sounds like this is when you got into the band.

This is the best shows I saw
To make any statements on shows I did not see would make sense to me.
I have favorite recording, but I did not attend the shows.

The questions should be phrase: best bootlegs ever then, right?