The shows, and especially the 2nd sets, from 1978 have fewer songs (and shorter show length) than the 1977 shows.
Do think that Garcia's beginning-of-the-year illness that led to Weir-only shows (that themselves were relatively short) established a pattern that wasn't broken? The shows at the end of 1977 were quite a bit longer than their 1978 counterparts so it's not as though they aged and lost endurance in a month or 2. Any thoughts?