Vibrations of Days Gone By

Rediscovering our lost youth is easier than we could ever imagine. No crystal balls, no long hours spent trying to remember. SHAZAM, memories of the past can come rushing back instantly, taking us to favourite moments and once cherished locations. In an instant, you’re back on “Echo Beach” or caught up in the doing the “Time Warp” Thanks to the internet, reliving the best parts of our youth has never been more accessible, offering a portal to the past in just a keystroke.

Do you have vague memories of that High School play, "Godspell" have a quick look at how Hollywood performed it.

Of course, you did not have that big budget or a large fountain to play and splash in, but you may find yourself singing one of the Broadway numbers.

Remember those nights cruising around town as everyone in the car put their change together to afford a night moving along the streets of your hometown? How often did you hear Gary Numan’s song “Cars” blaring away on your cheap ‘Realistic’ speakers, vibrating and screeching away?

Sometimes, meeting other friends in their rides somewhere along the way. Maybe even driving to the local Drive-In theatre to watch two or more movies.

Occasionally attended the Dust to Dawn long weekend marathons where the hot chocolate spilt on you and the bugs would nearly consume you before dawn,

If you are a little older, you might have been crossing the U.S.A. or Canada listening to an A.M. radio station to songs like “California Dreaming” by the Mamas & Papas.

Picking up a hitchhiker or two along the highway, heading to nowhere or everywhere. There was even the occasional bush camping trip where you might listen to a static-filled “White Rabbit “ by “Jefferson Airplane.”

Wow, those Bush Parties of your youth. One moment, you are sitting around a campfire; the next, you suddenly become one of the “Solid Gold Dancers” from the dance party television shows like “American Bandstand.” A moment later, you find the "Kid Rock" song "All Summer Long."

As you remember these hazy memories, you are so glad the internet and camera phones did not exist as you shuffled around with a partner or tree at these events.

From John Stewart’s “Gold” to memories flooding back of people you long ago forgot about but suddenly remember with a slight smile on your face. I will forever remember a British mechanic named Nigel, who worked with me at an auto dealership in the early 1980s. Nigel always seemed to believe that “XTC’s” song “Making Plans for Nigel” was his song.

A moment later, you remember those dances at school or at a Youth Event, where air band contests seemed to be at every event. One of my favourite performances was when I was part of a group from the Anglican Youth Paper, "Logos" We combined the songs "Neutron Dance" by the "Pointer Sisters" with "Twisted Sisters" and "We're Not Going to Take It."

Before you know it, you have nothing but fond memories of your youth, forgetting about the breakups, overheating beaters you drove or those insane bosses of your youth.

Inflation worries of the eighties, the college where you lined up for five hours to maybe get one course you wanted, is replaced with “Thriller” by “Michael Jackson” or the great debate about who wrote the first great mainstream rap song with many believing it to be “Blondie” with her hit “Rapture.”

Get ready for that slight smile to cross your face as you remember trying to do the “Rumba” while listening to “Nicolette Larson” You might even, to your horror, go back to the days of Disco and remember bizarre hits like “Disco Duck” by “Rick Dees and his cast of Idiots” or even finding yourself trying to Kung Fu Fight to “Kung Fu Fighting” with “Carl Douglas”.

As you sit back, open a beverage and take a long sip, you may remember the days of social justice songs and music that supported farms and the 1980s concerns about Nuclear weapons and war.

Sometimes, the internet and music of the past can have healing effects we did not expect. Losing a spouse, children, sibling, close friend, or mentor can often have a crushing impact. One needs to find a quiet place, after which going online and finding a favourite tune from the past may help the healing process. For me, listening to “Pink Floyd, The Wall” helps me heal from the abuse I suffered in a private school setting. Someone else I knew listened to the “Roger Whittaker” song “The Last Farewell” to remember fond moments with someone precious to them.

Quiet mediation can be found on YouTube, Twitter, Instagram and Tiktok. These online sites provide the soothing sounds of ocean waves, chirping birds, rustling wildlife, or the gentle whisper of the breeze through tall grass.

I hope this has been helpful in your journey to reconnect with the past. It may also offer comfort as you navigate the loss of a loved one or long for a distant place.

It is always good to end with a feel-good song and movie.