Music can serve many purposes in our lives, from being an outward expression of an internal emotion to a sonic pick-me-up to teleporting us through time and space to another time in our lives. Indeed, listening to certain songs can feel like a time machine, whisking you back to the good ol’ days, even if the song itself didn’t come out during the days you’re imagining. Sometimes, the lyrics are enough to travel through time. Of course, if you’re in the baby boomer generation, these four songs from 1968 will teleport you to your younger years both because of the songs’ lyrical content and because you can remember when they first came out.
“Those Were The Days” by Mary Hopkin
Mary Hopkin’s 1968 hit song “Those Were The Days” is the definition of a nostalgic, “remember when” kind of song. Set to a Russian romance song by Boris Fomin, the global chart-topper invites listeners to look back on scenes of yesteryear as they describe the “tavern where we used to raise a glass or two / remember how we laughed away the houses and think of all the great things we would do.” As baby boomers inch further and further from the year 1968, the lyrics of this sentimental song continue to hit increasingly hard.
“Summertime Blues” by Blue Cheer
Eddie Cochran first released “Summertime Blues” in the summer of 1958. Ten years later, Blue Cheer put out their rendition of the song, proving that the struggles of teenagers to be seen and heard by the world around them persist no matter the generation. Indeed, any teen can relate to feeling mistreated by their boss, parents, and even congresspeople who ignore their wants and needs because of their young age. Even decades later, this song will transport any baby boomer back to this frustrating period in their lives.
“Summertime” by Big Brother & The Holding Company
“Summertime” is originally from the George Gershwin opera, Porgy And Bess, and plays a pivotal role in the storyline several times throughout the show. The song has since become a jazz standard, with countless artists putting their own spin on it. That includes Janis Joplin, the frontwoman of Big Brother & The Holding Company. Baby boomers will not only remember the time when Joplin was still riding high among rock ‘n’ roll royalty of the day. But the reflective lyrics will also remind them of gentler, easier summers from their youth.
“Hey Jude” by The Beatles
Finally, “Hey Jude” by The Beatles has an inherently nostalgic quality to it. Paul McCartney wrote the song as a sort of sonic pep talk for his bandmate’s son, Julian Lennon, the firstborn of John Lennon and his first wife, Cynthia Lennon. Despite this hyper-specific intention, McCartney managed to craft a song that is universally relatable. Regardless of one’s personal life, songs like “Hey Jude” remind them of their younger selves. Maybe they were a bit more innocent or naive. But they got us to where we are today, and as such, we deserve to give those younger versions of ourselves more grace and respect.
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