By Ralph Greco, Jr.
So, somehow, I managed to catch three music documentaries I was interested in on Disney + before I had to pay for another month. Come on, admit it, you do this too: Sign up for a streaming service for a month, binge what you want to see, then dump it before getting charged for another month.
My interest this time was in Beatles ’64, Elton John: Never Too Late, and Road Diary: Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band. Sure, they are not all new, and not all Disney +-only offerings. Still, I finally caught the three and found each interesting, poignant, informative, and, as usual in the case of these kinds of things, reminding me of when things were louder, faster, younger, better.
Having seen so many of my favorite musical artists back in my and their youth, I witnessed some amazing performances (the mid to late 70s is the time I am mostly referencing). Seeing Bruce Springsteen with his E-Street band when the band consisted of only six players in the summer of 1978 at Madison Square Garden, was not only one of the best shows I ever attended, but also considered one of the best the Springsteen and company ever performed, according to the documentary.
It’s not that the newer version of “Bruuuce” and his band aren’t great because they are. But when I saw the band was a bad-ass unit that delivered an intimate crack-jack blitzkrieg that could not be bested, for me, they were louder, faster, younger, better.
Seeing Queen featuring all its original members. Catching Genesis many times with Phil Collins on drums. I was treated to Rory Gallagher warming up for Jefferson Airplane in a 3,000-seat theater steps from my home. Meat Loaf and his band with Jim Steinman on their first big tour through the States set the stage ablaze at that same small venue. The time I saw…OK, I could go on and on.
Because I never imbibed — and still don’t — any substances that could take me out of my head, I have spot-on recall of all these shows and more. So, I know that what I saw back then was — yes, say it with me again even if you don’t agree — louder, faster, younger, better.
This is a product of older age, I know. Especially for someone like me who lives in the past so deeply, the pining — I’d say ache actually — makes it hard not to compare what is to what was. As science tells us (but what does science know, really), when we look back at our ‘life script,’ the memories we remember more than most are of two types: Happy ones and ones from events that happened when we were in our teens to early 20s. This second grouping becomes so important because we undergo a psychological development called a ‘reminiscence bump,’ remembering our younger adult times so vividly because our brains are growing when we are undergoing an unprecedented flood of emotions. This is akin to how you can recall that yummy French toast breakfast you had with your first serious boyfriend or girlfriend of decades ago, but if I asked you what you had for breakfast two days ago, you might not remember. Those first-time heavy-duty feelings, both good and bad, get imprinted even deeper if you heard a song during that juicy time in your development when you were working through your real first significant social interactions.
Makes sense, right?
So, it is with me, being human and all that. But only to some degree. To another, I simply prefer that which was many years ago more than I do now because it speaks to my sensibilities more. And when it comes to music, I always feel it was (here we go again, sorry) louder, faster, younger, better.
But I’m glad our older rockers are still out there, even in those instances where there is hardly anyone left from the original band. Go out, do your thing, I say to these musicians, have fun, make your living and bring pleasure to the multitudes. But just remember, I have seen you, heard you, enjoyed you once upon a time when you were…Well, you know.
