Hey, fans! Happy Day of the Dead!

As some of you may know, we here at the Grateful Dead Clubhouse have been working on the critically acclaimed Best Versions Project for more than a year now. At some point, when we were bickering about whether 2/18/71 should make our Dark Star list, someone suggested that we do a Best Segments Project for stuff that just didn't fit anywhere else. Well, it took us nearly three months, but it's finally done.

Way way back in August, as we started listening/discussing, we decided that we needed some parameters. We agreed that eligible segments would be "at least three songs, segued together" - not including Dark Star > St. Stephen > The Eleven or Help on the Way > Slipknot! > Franklin's Tower. But any component of those triplets could count as one song toward the three-song limit. And the Weather Report and Cryptical Envelopment Suites could each count as one song toward the limit.

As originally pitched, the idea was a Top 25 list, with our usual Historically Significant and Honorable Mention add-ons. The "HS" and "HM" lists got unmanageable pretty quickly - segments that deserved to be ON the list (e.g. 4/29/71) were being relegated to the HS list for legitimate reasons (last Fillmore East show, last Alligator). So we (or actually, I) decided to scrap the HS/HM lists and make this project a straight Top 25.

That move met with immediate and vehement disagreement. Folks thought we couldn't whittle down to just 25. Anyway, they argued, 25 isn't even a round number, and what's more, it's arbitrary: just b/c college football uses it, does that mean we have to? If we're going to pick an arbitrary number, they continued, why not make it something prime, you know? (At that point, somebody mentioned "thick air." I'm telling you, feathers were definitely ruffled, lol.)

So we're doing a Top 31 (?!) list. The plan is to post the list today, then work on sendspaces for the tradeable segments and post them in a few weeks. After that, we'll officially be on hiatus for a bit, but look for us in GD threads on a green board near you.

The usual boilerplate...


STANDARD DISCLAIMER:
The Best Segments Project differs from the lists in the GD Taper's Compendium in what Ribot_for_President calls "good taste and common sense." This project isn't necessarily definitive (well, it kinda is to us), and it’s not an invitation to debate. It’s a list of solid segments that you all ought to hear.

Then, enough ado, the list...

The Grateful Dead’s Top 31 Jam Segments:

10/12/68:
Cryptical Envelopment > Drums > The Other One > Cryptical Envelopment > New Potato Caboose > Jam > Drums > Jam > Feedback
SBD

3/2/69:
Alligator > Drums > Jam > And We Bid You Goodnight Jam > Jam > Caution Jam > Caution (Do Not Stop On Tracks) > Feedback > And We Bid You Goodnight
Fillmore West '69 Box Set

11/8/69:
Dark Star > The Other One > Dark Star > Uncle John's Jam > Dark Star > St. Stephen > The Eleven > Caution (Do Not Stop On Tracks) > Jam > Main Ten Jam > Caution (Do Not Stop On Tracks) > Feedback > And We Bid You Goodnight
Dick’s Picks #16; Weinberg AUD

2/13/70:
Dark Star > Cryptical Envelopment > Drums > The Other One > Cryptical Envelopment > Turn On Your Lovelight
Dick’s Picks #4; SBD

9/19/70:
Dark Star > St. Stephen > Drums > Not Fade Away > Darkness Jam > China Cat Jam > Jam > Not Fade Away > Turn On Your Lovelight
SBD

11/6/70:
Alligator > Drums > Jam > Not Fade Away > GDTRFB > Mountain Jam > Not Fade Away > Caution (Do Not Stop On Tracks) > Turn On Your Lovelight
Weinberg AUD

2/18/71:
Dark Star > Wharf Rat > Dark Star (aka Beautiful Jam) > Me and My Uncle
So Many Roads Box Set (Beautiful Jam only); SBD

4/29/71:
Alligator > Drums > Jam > GDTRFB > Cold Rain and Snow
Ladies and Gentlemen…the Grateful Dead; Weinberg AUD

8/14/71:
Truckin’ > Drums > The Other One
SBD

12/10/71:
Truckin' > Drums > The Other One > Sittin' On Top of the World > The Other One > Not Fade Away > GDTRFB > Not Fade Away
SBD

4/14/72:
Dark Star > Sugar Magnolia > Good Lovin' > Caution (Do Not Stop On Tracks) > Who Do You Love? > Caution (Do Not Stop On Tracks) > Good Lovin' > Not Fade Away > GDTRFB > NFA
SBD; AUD

5/11/72:
Dark Star > Drums > Dark Star > Sugar Magnolia > Caution (Do Not Stop On Tracks) > Who Do You Love? > Jam > Truckin' > Uncle John’s Band
SBD

5/26/72:
Truckin' > The Other One > Morning Dew > The Other One > Sing Me Back Home
SBD

10/18/72:
Playing in the Band > Drums > Dark Star > Morning Dew > Playing in the Band
SBD

3/24/73:
He's Gone > Truckin' > Spanish Jam > Dark Star > Sing Me Back Home > Sugar Magnolia
Bertha Remaster SBD

3/31/73:
He's Gone > Truckin' > Drums > The Other One > Spanish Jam > I Know You Rider
SBD

6/22/73:
He's Gone > Truckin' > Nobody's Fault But Mine Jam > Bass Solo > Jam > The Other One > Wharf Rat > Sugar Magnolia
SBD; Amick AUD

10/25/73:
Dark Star > Mind Left Body Jam > Dark Star Jam > Eyes of the World > Stella Blue
SBD

11/11/73:
Dark Star > Mind Left Body Jam > Eyes of the World > China Doll
SBD

11/20/73:
Truckin' > The Other One > Mind Left Body Jam > Stella Blue > Sugar Magnolia
SBD; Wolfson AUD

11/21/73:
Mississippi Half-Step > Playing in the Band > El Paso > Playing in the Band > Wharf Rat Jam > Dark Star Jam > Wharf Rat > Playing in the Band > Morning Dew
SBD; Finley AUD

5/19/74:
Truckin' > Jam > Mind Left Body Jam > Not Fade Away > GDTRFB > One More Saturday Night
SBD

6/23/74:
Dark Star Jam > Spanish Jam > U.S. Blues
So Many Roads Box Set; SBD/AUD; Moore AUD

6/28/74:
Weather Report Suite: Prelude > Weather Report Suite: Part 1 > Let It Grow > Space > Mind Left Body Jam > Jam > U.S. Blues
Dick’s Picks #12; Moore AUD

10/17/74:
He's Gone > The Other One > Spanish Jam > Mind Left Body Jam > The Other One > Stella Blue
 The Grateful Dead Movie Soundtrack

7/17/76:
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
SBD; Menke AUD

10/3/76:
Playing in the Band > Drums > The Wheel > Jam > Good Lovin' > Jam > Comes a Time > Dancing in the Street > Not Fade Away > Dancing in the Street > Around and Around
SBD/AUD; Humboldt? AUD

12/31/76:
Sugar Magnolia > Eyes of the World > Wharf Rat > Drums > Good Lovin' > Samson and Delilah
Live at the Cow Palace

5/28/77:
Playing in the Band > Terrapin Station > Drums > Not Fade Away > Wharf Rat > Playing in the Band
SBD; Moore AUD

11/20/78:
Jam > Drums > Jam > Jack-A-Roe > Playing in the Band > Shakedown Street > If I Had the World to Give > Playing in the Band > Around and Around
SBD/AUD; Bertrando AUD

10/27/79:
Dancing in the Street > Franklin's Tower > He's Gone > The Other One > Drums > Not Fade Away > Black Peter > Around and Around
Charlie Miller SBD;; Rolfe AUD

These were the versions on the debate table until the end. With a project such as this we felt it remiss to not mention these as they are all serious business Dead jam segments. We also avoid lighting the fire under hot-heads such as myself by including versions that some may have felt strongly about.

01/23/68
Cryptical Envelopment> The Other One> Cryptical Envelopment> Clementine> New Potato Caboose> Born Cross-Eyed> Spanish Jam - SBD

02/11/70:
Dark Star> Spanish Jam> Lovelight - SBD

04/15/70:
Cryptical Envelopment -> Drums -> Jam -> Drums -> The Other One -> Cryptical Envelopment -> Dire Wolf - SBD

04/08/72:
Dark Star> Sugar Magnolia> Caution - Steppin' Out With The Grateful Dead

11/17/72:
He’s Gone> Truckin> Jam> Other One> Brokedown - SBD

02/15/73:
Dark Star-> Eyes Of The World-> China Doll - SBD

05/26/73:
He's Gone> Truckin> Other One> Eyes> China Doll - SBD

10/23/73:
Truckin> Other One> WRS Prelude> WRS Part 1> Let It Grow> Sugar Magnolia - SBD

06/20/74:
Truckin> Eyes> Slipknot> China Doll> Saturday Night - SBD

06/26/74:
Truckin> Other One Jam> Spanish Jam> Wharf Rat> Sugar Magnolia - Moore Aud

10/19/74:
Sugar Magnolia> He's Gone> Truckin> Caution Jam> Drums> Space> Truckin> Black Peter - The Grateful Dead Movie Soundtrack

12/29/77:
Playin> China Cat> I Know You Rider> China Doll> Playin> Drums> NFA> Playin – Dick’s Picks #10

Quick note:

Since we finished Lovelight over the summer, the rumored GDP/Rhino Records deal went down, and the Rhinos met with some GDP-affiliated guys (Lemieux, Norman, Gans) to get their two-cents on what direction to take vis-a-vis the vault. There has been some fairly reliable scuttlebutt that the next release will be 12/31/76, sometime after the new year. Excellent news: Not only is the first Rhino release a great show, but it's also a great omen that Rhino is interested in hearing from guys who know/love this music.

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