CirdecSongsSpins: The National in Concert

The National is one of my favorite bands. I was introduced to them via their appearance on Saturday Night Live and was hooked immediately.

My first album I got was the one they were promoting on SNL, Trouble Will Find Me. The deep dive into their catalog followed quickly because I loved the music so much.

I got to see The National live for the first time at the Civic Opera House in Chicago in 2017. It was an amazing show! I knew these guys were going nowhere but up. My chances to see them in a smaller venue were going to be shrinking by the minute. I just knew it.

Sure enough, the next time I saw them was at Chicago’s Auditorium Theater, where they played four shows. Alas, I could only make one of them. They’ve been here once more since then. Where was the gig? Why, at the United Center, of course!

As a personal rule, I don’t do arena gigs. It was official: The National has outgrown me. Great for them even if it is kinda bad for me.

Sigh …

I really hated that I missed the other three shows, especially since I didn’t get to hear one of my favorite songs, “I Need My Girl,” at my show. The National switched up their setlist each night. Of course, they played my tune. Just not at my gig.

For some reason, I thought it would be fun to replicate The National’s setlist on Spotify. No, the tunes wouldn’t be live, but at least I could get a feel for what was played.

With help from the setlist.fm website, I was able to find out what was played, and create a playlist for each night The National played the Auditorium Theater. Since I’d gone that far, I replicated the United Center gig as well.

Whadda ya know? I’ve enjoyed doing this!

The playlists are not 100 percent identical to the live sets. The National played a couple of tunes that hadn’t been recorded yet, and I believe they played a couple of covers. So, I’ve done the best I could with what I had to work with.

With that in mind, I give you five — count ‘em, five — sets of some fantastic music by an amazing band.

Enjoy!

The National @ the Auditorium Theater

NIGHT ONE: May 18, 2023

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/72v0nhZExv1MRtv8ijHWK1?si=TWpJ-R3NSYSvN6IMx2bqpg&pi=u-r2cBI3q5QZa8

NIGHT TWO: May 19

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/09Pe5w4O6jdy5esOHZTPUt?si=z4Dw8CSISUmI9f-9xy-rwg&pi=u–dpZ3I4qRJmS

NIGHT THREE: May 20

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/6WoyoMMeguqnr10wOyVtbt?si=ArpXpJqUTJSKKnBJsk5dRQ&pi=u-NZNcMFp8TjKH

NIGHT FOUR: May 21

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/0xS9lcx9kbOIjoQ25nrtk7?si=4wVV51eaQpqt9-b-fRpgPQ&pi=u-szR56QI-QGi_

The National @ United Center