This month, I’m jumping into the #APlaceInTheSong challenge from @JukeboxJohnny2. Great songs have that special ability to describe places in a way that makes us feel like we’re right there. Each day, I’ll pick a track that I think accomplishes that feat.

Year: 2019

A couple of months before the pandemic, I saw The National at NYC’s legendary Beacon Theater. They showed excerpts from a short film directed by Mike Mills, featuring songs from I Am Easy To Find—and ended with just a small handful of the fan favs. That night, I saw an evolution of the band that I’ve loved for many years. It’s not that they lost their edge, but they were older, wiser and more contemplative now—and “Light Years” was their beautiful banner statement for this new era.

The National will be back in NYC this summer, and it’s almost certain they will play “Light Years”. It represents an aspect of what they do best: ballads that speak on a deeply personal level, not some contrived set of words. I do miss the harder, louder, faster side of the band which has taken a back seat on the last two albums. But “Light Years” – with Berninger’s masterful lyrics, the piano interludes and atmospheric accents – is a reminder that few bands do ballads better than The National.

“I was always ten feet behind you from the start.”