I was parked on a side street waiting for my teenage son to say goodnight to his girlfriend just after the stroke of Midnight, January 1, 2025, when the Paul McCartney hit “Band On The Run…” from the mid-1970s was played on satellite radio.
I thought to myself, “My God, I feel old this morning…”
Has this ever happened to you? Those familiar vintage hits that were once Top 40 on FM radio stations across the nation? As “Band On The Run” unfolded, I began to feel those old feelings associated with springtime that evoke both euphoria and profound sadness. Euphoria for the aroma of spring clover and sweet honeysuckle along with balmy temperatures, the chorus of birds, and the anticipation of summertime. Sadness over a lost love – especially a love lost to someone else.
A few of us understand how that feels.
Two of the quickest connections to our pasts are our sense of smell and music.
It is remarkable what our minds retain from a lifetime ago. Raising a glass to the terrific era in which we grew up. Have a terrific weekend, everyone…
Boomer Journey... 
Ah, the reminiscence bump. I was a corporate musician of one flavor or another for 45 years. But the 13 to 19 era is the strongest for music memory, tying it to developmental memory. Isn’t that crap thing, to relegate something so personal to words? But it’s true. I hear the Supremes I’m in the car pool to junior high. I hear the Beach Boys I’m doing something stupid in my car. I hear “The Letter” I’m freshman buying lunch at the burger joint across the street from high school. I would actually extend the range from 12 to 22 or so, maybe even 25. That’s where the tunes attached to something reside. However, and I call out geezers for this all this time, I like new music, not just the oldies. Well, you can keep the whiny Americana stuff and the factory output from Country, but I heard Hendrix, Zep, a closet full of pop and folk I won’t admit to in public, all the first time around. yeah yeah, but now what? Like Zappa said, “I’m impressed by something that surprises me.” Nothing tugs the heart strings like what we have tied to our past, but nothing is better for the brain than finding out where that led us.
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