THE GRATEFUL DEAD’S live recordings represent a special order of surfeit. Nearly 2,200 Dead shows exist on tape, of the 2,350 or so that the group played. Most of those are available online — either for free streaming on Web sites like archive.org and nugs.net, , or for download on iTunes, like the “Dick’s Picks” series and the more recent “Road Trips” archival series, which uses master-tape audio sources.
Deadheads have often been polled about their favorite show, through fanzines and Web sites. The answers have stayed fairly consistent. May 8, 1977, at Barton Hall, Cornell University. The pairing of Feb. 13 and 14, 1970, at the Fillmore East in New York — perhaps the first widely traded shows.
via Music – Dissecting the Grateful Dead, Forever Live – NYTimes.com.
Lets not forget the night after Cornell in buffalo 5-9-77. Big fat “comes a time” to die for. 4/28-29/71 at the filmore were big. I remember 2 nights in Greensboro, one being april fools day with a huge “dark star” and the next night being Easter with a second set opener of Samson> Eyes…. may be the best Eyes of the world ever. A solid 25 minutes long with Jerry taking solo after solo and changing his guitar sound with each time. Even better than the New years “Eyes” with Branford marsalis. I think it was in 91. How about Hampton in 89 with the break outs of Dark Star, death dont have no mercy,and attics of my life. Billed as the warlocks since the Dead were banned from playing there. We showed them.
Or how about the show the night before Cornell 5-7-1977 at the Boston Garden killer wharf rat killer estimated eyes the entire show is fire!