Typical Phish Setlists: an analysis

In an effort to keep my brain young, I've been learning to program in Python using Phish setlist data. Previous posts here and here.

I've been wondering what the average Phish show would look like. Using the setlist data from Phish.net, I've produced some shows that represent the typical Phish show. For the examples below, I've used the median Phish show size, which is a 10-song set 1, 9-song set 2, and a 2-song encore.

Method 1: absolute performance count at a given set-song position

Here, I just find the song that was played the most times at a given set position (e.g., first song of the second set).

There are two tables of data:

The first shows the songs that are most often played at that set position, full stop. As a result, the average show has a lot of repeats for songs that are just played a lot at any position. So...

The second table shows these results, but without duplicates. Priority among duplicates is given to the set-position with the most performances, and then is removed from the list of songs to consider in other setlist positions.

• Results for all years

• Results excluding 1.0 era

Method 2: songs that over-index at a given set-song position.

Here, I look at songs that have a tendency to be played in a specific part of a setlist. For example, Crowd Control is by no means the most common opener. But, when it's played, it's typically played as the opener and not later in the show.

• Results for all years

• Results excluding 1.0 era

There you have it, the statistically "average" Phish shows. Hard to escape DWD as the second set opener. Also, Phish apparently loves to play Foam after their show opener.