This is like asking what Joe Montana's best pass was. Even narrowing this down to 50 would be quite impossible and open to debate.

Some early "songs" like Other One and Dark Star were basically "jams" every single time they played so it depends on what you prefer.

To give an answer based on something, I'll suggest a "jam" that remains cohesive without ever losing steam or structure. I'll avoid all outer space expeditions, which pretty much eliminates about every version of Playin', Dark Star, and Other One etc...

I'll stick to my guns because I've been saying this from day 1. I think the "best" jam has to be the entire Truckin' > MLB Jam > NFA > GDTRFB from 5-19-74 Portland. It never misses a beat and never loses swing from start to finish. One 45 minute piece of groove perfection.

But deep down inside I also know, there are a few shows where you can hear Wheel, Spanish Jam or Other One unfolding from the sounds of Space for a good 10 minutes before it pulls together. Any one of those (too many to think of) could win the crown on any given day. There's a Wheel coming out of space (still can't remember which one) from '90 or '91 that would melt your heart. It may be the most beautiful piece of music I've ever heard.

3 of my favorites:

09/19/70
Dark Star > St. Stephen > Drums > Not Fade Away > Darkness Jam > China Cat Jam > Jam > Not Fade Away > Turn On Your Lovelight

Primer: Dragons breath Grateful Dead

07/17/76
Comes a Time > Jam > The Other One Jam > Drums > The Other One > Space > Eyes of the World > Jam > The Other One > GDTRFB > One More Saturday Night

Primer: A band hungry to produce sweeping soundscapes

08/03/82
To Lay Me Down> Let It Grow> Drums/Space -> He's Gone-> The Other One-> Stella Blue-> Sugar Magnolia

Primer: When Stella found a hose.

1974 jams hold special place in my heart. 6/28 Boston (Dick's Pick 12) Weather Report Suite > Jam > U.S. Blues.

9/10 London (DP 7) Dark Star > Spam Jam > Morning Dew

Many others, great year

I like that "joe montana's best pass" analogy.

Phish would be peyton manning then.

@MJZ1974 said:

This is like asking what Joe Montana's best pass was. Even narrowing this down to 50 would be quite impossible and open to debate.

Some early "songs" like Other One and Dark Star were basically "jams" every single time they played so it depends on what you prefer.

To give an answer based on something, I'll suggest a "jam" that remains cohesive without ever losing steam or structure. I'll avoid all outer space expeditions, which pretty much eliminates about every version of Playin', Dark Star, and Other One etc...

I'll stick to my guns because I've been saying this from day 1. I think the "best" jam has to be the entire Truckin' > MLB Jam > NFA > GDTRFB from 5-19-74 Portland. It never misses a beat and never loses swing from start to finish. One 45 minute piece of groove perfection.

But deep down inside I also know, there are a few shows where you can hear Wheel, Spanish Jam or Other One unfolding from the sounds of Space for a good 10 minutes before it pulls together. Any one of those (too many to think of) could win the crown on any given day. There's a Wheel coming out of space (still can't remember which one) from '90 or '91 that would melt your heart. It may be the most beautiful piece of music I've ever heard.

The "Wheel" that you're referring to is the one on Disc 3 from the Dozin' at the Knick boxset from Albany 1990, March 24 to be exact.

A super poignant version for sure.

Veneta '72 Chinacat> IKYR is my favorite

There are many but one thats really great is 2/11/1970
Dark Star-> Spanish Jam-> Turn on Your Lovelight
with members of the Allman Brothers Band and Fleetwood Mac sitting in

Viola lee blues also really brings some serious jammin

9-19-70 Dark Star is my jam, I decided it would be the first song I dosed to a long time ago, and that day came and it was glorious.
Edit: all the song sandwiches from '68-'69 were mind-expanding Odysseys.

my favorite dead is the sugar > scarlet > fire of 12-31-78...bar none...this may not be "jamming," but it is soulful to me...i'm getting goosebumps thinking about it...i've heard this show hundreds of times and know it note for note...and it never fails to astound me!!!

Not really a jam as much as an awesome energetic seque, but one of my favorite moments of Grateful Dead is Sugar Magnolia -> Scarlet Begonias to open up set II of night II from Alpine '89. When Jerry sings Scarlet's opening line over the Sugar jam then the whole band drops into the Scarlet bass line... goose bumps every time.

This one's rather nice, for a soundcheck. Rumor has it that there were over 100K people already on site for this "day before" performance. ABB and the Band each produced soundcheck, too. My only friend who was there was snoozin' in the truck while his buddies were holding down a spot for him at the concert site. He never did find them.

I like the absolute freedom of this jam. There are better copies available on the archive. 1973, sigh . . .

dicks 22

The 10/31/71 Dark Sar from Dick's 2 has always been one of my all time favorites. The entire thing is perfect, but the "Tighten Up" segement of the jam is particularly amazing to me:





It's hard to pick only one, there are way too many great jams. I also really enjoy the Bird Song from Ladies and Gentlemen.. The Grateful Dead on 4/28/71. So psychedelic and blissful!

Here's a great Eyes

oh that vietta oregon show 72 maybe august? cant remember the date but that sunshine daydream video on youtube is the whole show i think but that Dark Star -> El Paso -> Dark Star is inredible, especially that first dark star. I always loved that sequence, just way out into space to hit this cowboy song and then right back into outer space

@jerrytheband, @midcoaster, @microdan, good stuff

Of the greatest threads I've ever seen/heard

11/14/73 Other One-> Big River-> Other One-> Eyes of the World-> ->Other One->Wharf Rat is one of my favorites.

@careful_w_that_axe_Miller said:

...

Go dig up a tune!

@Euclid said:

@careful_w_that_axe_Miller said:

...

Go dig up a tune!

Every time I go to YouTube, strip teases randomly pop onto my screen. I don't know dates, I couldn't have pulled these sweet snippets

Here is a nice list of some classic jams to listen to as voted on by some people "in the know."

I personally would like to mention the jam out of He's Gone at the Stanley Theater 12-1-79. It unfolds into the first ever hints of Gloria and then the debut of C C Rider before going into space. It all sounds so spontaneous and yet so lively and inspired. Check it out if you haven't

4/8/72 Dark Star> Sugar Mag> Caution. Just go put it on right now.

The 4-29-71 Hard to Handle is one of my all time favorite Dead jams

That Hard to Handle and a bunch of my other "best of" jams are in my Mediafire vault. If interested, hit me up at @ACDCbag on Twitter and I will send you the link. Phish, SCI, Ween, Blotto, JGB etc. They are not the best ever jams by any means, but they are some of my all time favorites.

Watkins glen 1973 jam> wharf rat is a pretty famous jam. It has a peak where it turns major and sounds similar to fire on the mountain. Def worth listening to for any dead fan.

http://archive.org/details/gd73-07-27.aud.weiner.gdadt26.26363.sbeok.shnf