diff --git a/pkg/sql/exec_util.go b/pkg/sql/exec_util.go
index 00f50f0100ac..e418770b5314 100644
--- a/pkg/sql/exec_util.go
+++ b/pkg/sql/exec_util.go
@@ -1443,6 +1443,7 @@ func WithAnonymizedStatement(err error, stmt tree.Statement) error {
 //
 // SessionTracing and its interactions with the connExecutor are thread-safe;
 // tracing can be turned on at any time.
+// XXX: Study this guy.
 type SessionTracing struct {
 	// enabled is set at times when "session enabled" is active - i.e. when
 	// transactions are being recorded.
diff --git a/pkg/util/tracing/crdbspan.go b/pkg/util/tracing/crdbspan.go
index 170ef3d8c95f..0d71c65151f8 100644
--- a/pkg/util/tracing/crdbspan.go
+++ b/pkg/util/tracing/crdbspan.go
@@ -29,6 +29,11 @@ import (
 // crdbSpan is a span for internal crdb usage. This is used to power SQL session
 // tracing.
 type crdbSpan struct {
+	// XXX: I think we want a handle on the tracer object. Or an interface to
+	// it, for the "structured event store".
+	tracer         *Tracer
+	bypassRegistry bool
+
 	traceID      uint64 // probabilistically unique.
 	spanID       uint64 // probabilistically unique.
 	parentSpanID uint64
@@ -77,7 +82,7 @@ type crdbSpanMu struct {
 	tags opentracing.Tags
 
 	stats      SpanStats
-	structured []Structured
+	structured []Structured // XXX: This moves into the tracer registry.
 
 	// The Span's associated baggage.
 	baggage map[string]string
@@ -163,6 +168,13 @@ func (s *crdbSpan) getRecording(m mode) Recording {
 	return result
 }
 
+// XXX: Would be nice to dump these into our store too. But for now we've
+// limited ourselves to only structured events. Perhaps this isn't necessary,
+// yet. I was just thinking of using all these in-memory objects as "shells"
+// that only contain the metadata, nothing heavier than that. This way they
+// could be fixed in size, and predictable. But we're also not looking to change
+// out how "logging" data is stored (which is in-memory), the same as remote
+// spans.
 func (s *crdbSpan) importRemoteSpans(remoteSpans []tracingpb.RecordedSpan) error {
 	// Change the root of the remote recording to be a child of this Span. This is
 	// usually already the case, except with DistSQL traces where remote
@@ -200,9 +212,19 @@ func (s *crdbSpan) record(msg string) {
 }
 
 func (s *crdbSpan) recordStructured(item Structured) {
+	if s.bypassRegistry {
+		return
+	}
+
 	s.mu.Lock()
 	defer s.mu.Unlock()
-	s.mu.structured = append(s.mu.structured, item)
+	// s.mu.structured = append(s.mu.structured, item)
+
+	// XXX: We're recording into the tracer object. Probably should expose a
+	// method instead of the raw form here.
+	s.tracer.activeStructuredEvents.Lock()
+	s.tracer.activeStructuredEvents.m[s.spanID] = append(s.tracer.activeStructuredEvents.m[s.spanID], item)
+	s.tracer.activeStructuredEvents.Unlock()
 }
 
 func (s *crdbSpan) setBaggageItemAndTag(restrictedKey, value string) {
@@ -271,17 +293,29 @@ func (s *crdbSpan) getRecordingLocked(m mode) tracingpb.RecordedSpan {
 		rs.DeprecatedStats = stats
 	}
 
-	if s.mu.structured != nil {
-		rs.InternalStructured = make([]*types.Any, 0, len(s.mu.structured))
-		for i := range s.mu.structured {
-			item, err := types.MarshalAny(s.mu.structured[i])
-			if err != nil {
-				// An error here is an error from Marshal; these
-				// are unlikely to happen.
-				continue
-			}
-			rs.InternalStructured = append(rs.InternalStructured, item)
+	// if s.mu.structured != nil {
+	// 	rs.InternalStructured = make([]*types.Any, 0, len(s.mu.structured))
+	// 	for i := range s.mu.structured {
+	// 		item, err := types.MarshalAny(s.mu.structured[i])
+	// 		if err != nil {
+	// 			// An error here is an error from Marshal; these
+	// 			// are unlikely to happen.
+	// 			continue
+	// 		}
+	// 		rs.InternalStructured = append(rs.InternalStructured, item)
+	// 	}
+	// }
+
+	// XXX: We're grabbing these from the tracer "store".
+	se := s.tracer.getStructuredEvents(s.spanID)
+	for i := range se {
+		item, err := types.MarshalAny(se[i])
+		if err != nil {
+			// An error here is an error from Marshal; these
+			// are unlikely to happen.
+			continue
 		}
+		rs.InternalStructured = append(rs.InternalStructured, item)
 	}
 
 	if len(s.mu.baggage) > 0 {
diff --git a/pkg/util/tracing/span.go b/pkg/util/tracing/span.go
index 170c79bcca71..d69c946965ff 100644
--- a/pkg/util/tracing/span.go
+++ b/pkg/util/tracing/span.go
@@ -156,6 +156,10 @@ func (s *Span) ResetRecording() {
 	s.crdb.mu.recording.children = nil
 	s.crdb.mu.recording.remoteSpans = nil
 	s.crdb.mu.Unlock()
+
+	s.tracer.activeStructuredEvents.Lock()
+	delete(s.tracer.activeStructuredEvents.m, s.crdb.spanID)
+	s.tracer.activeStructuredEvents.Unlock()
 }
 
 // GetRecording retrieves the current recording, if the Span has recording
@@ -243,6 +247,9 @@ func (s *Span) Finish() {
 	s.tracer.activeSpans.Lock()
 	delete(s.tracer.activeSpans.m, s)
 	s.tracer.activeSpans.Unlock()
+	s.tracer.activeStructuredEvents.Lock()
+	delete(s.tracer.activeStructuredEvents.m, s.crdb.spanID)
+	s.tracer.activeStructuredEvents.Unlock()
 }
 
 // Meta returns the information which needs to be propagated across process
diff --git a/pkg/util/tracing/tracer.go b/pkg/util/tracing/tracer.go
index 430f32762513..14b2f8863a99 100644
--- a/pkg/util/tracing/tracer.go
+++ b/pkg/util/tracing/tracer.go
@@ -159,6 +159,12 @@ type Tracer struct {
 		syncutil.Mutex
 		m map[*Span]struct{}
 	}
+
+	// XXX: Only records structured events
+	activeStructuredEvents struct {
+		syncutil.Mutex
+		m map[uint64][]Structured // spanID
+	}
 }
 
 // NewTracer creates a Tracer. It initially tries to run with minimal overhead
@@ -167,6 +173,7 @@ type Tracer struct {
 func NewTracer() *Tracer {
 	t := &Tracer{}
 	t.activeSpans.m = map[*Span]struct{}{}
+	t.activeStructuredEvents.m = map[uint64][]Structured{}
 	t.noopSpan = &Span{tracer: t}
 	return t
 }
@@ -374,12 +381,14 @@ func (t *Tracer) startSpanGeneric(
 	}{}
 
 	helper.crdbSpan = crdbSpan{
-		traceID:      traceID,
-		spanID:       spanID,
-		operation:    opName,
-		startTime:    startTime,
-		parentSpanID: opts.parentSpanID(),
-		logTags:      opts.LogTags,
+		tracer:         t,
+		bypassRegistry: opts.BypassRegistry,
+		traceID:        traceID,
+		spanID:         spanID,
+		operation:      opName,
+		startTime:      startTime,
+		parentSpanID:   opts.parentSpanID(),
+		logTags:        opts.LogTags,
 		mu: crdbSpanMu{
 			duration: -1, // unfinished
 		},
@@ -614,6 +623,25 @@ func (t *Tracer) VisitSpans(visitor func(*Span)) {
 	}
 }
 
+// XXX: What does the span visitor look like with a tracer centered storage?
+// This is what would feed into the vtable. Perhaps scan the map for the list of
+// span IDs first? forms the "structured event storage" interface. So trace
+// gives you a way to iterate over all the spans. Spans expose a way to get its
+// recordings, which is coming back here. As for "consuming it", you can now
+// iterate + consume it from here directly? Probably need another kind of
+// iterator. But it avoids the hairy questions of consuming from spans, while
+// still iterating, and what the lifecycle of the span looks like? Right now the
+// verbose "message" recordings are part of the span itself. This is for just
+// the structured events.
+func (t *Tracer) getStructuredEvents(spanID uint64) []Structured {
+	t.activeStructuredEvents.Lock()
+	se := make([]Structured, 0, len(t.activeStructuredEvents.m[spanID]))
+	se = append(se, t.activeStructuredEvents.m[spanID]...)
+	t.activeStructuredEvents.Unlock()
+
+	return se
+}
+
 // ForkCtxSpan checks if ctx has a Span open; if it does, it creates a new Span
 // that "follows from" the original Span. This allows the resulting context to be
 // used in an async task that might outlive the original operation.