1973 (2007) – James Blunt

1973 is an unusual but easygoing pop song built around nostalgia. The English recording artist James Blunt looks back on his club-going days, remembering Saturday nights spent with his muse, Simona, as youth, music and time all ran together. I was hesitant to include it at first – it felt a little like James Blunt on autopilot – but the song has grown on me over the last year or so. Hearing it again this morning, I caught myself singing along and it has a warmth that sneaks up on you. Fittingly, given the title, there’s a slightly retro feel to the groove, capturing the late night boogying, and staying out until the early hours.

1973 is also not a typical Blunt song. There’s no big, high-pitched power ballad here, and none of the bathroom sobbing of Goodbye My Lover. Instead, 1973 moves along at an upbeat but relaxed pace, with a reflective tone rather than a sad one. The song looks back on the years that have passed and quietly acknowledges how time changes us. The Saturday-night girl no longer seems to be part of his life, as Blunt admits: “Simona, I guess it’s over / My memory plays our tune / The same old song.” It feels less like heartbreak and more like accepting that those days are now in the past.

The following was abridged from the Wikipedia article below:

1973 was released as the lead single (see inset) from his second studio album, All the Lost Souls (2007). The single peaked at number four on the UK Singles Chart. It was written by James Blunt and Mark Batson. “He was trying to write an English singer-songwriter song, and I was trying the Dr. Dre end of the scale“, says Blunt. The song was inspired by the club scene in Ibiza (a Spanish island in the Mediterranean Sea), where Blunt maintains a residence and enjoys the social scene.

The video below (directed by Paul R Brown), in which a modern-day Blunt strolls among ’70s street scenes, reflects the song’s nostalgic tone. “The ’70s sound like they were a time of excess and great flamboyance“, he says, “but a sense of fun as well.” The video was shot in the Universal Studios Lot in Los Angeles.

[Verse 1]
Simona
You’re getting older
Your journey’s been
Etched on your skin
Simona
Wish I had known that
What seemed so strong
Has been and gone

[Chrous]
I would call you up every Saturday night
And we’d both stay out ’til the morning light
And we sang “Here we go again.”
And though time goes by
I will always be in a club with you in 1973
Singing “Here we go again.”

[Verse 2]
Simona
Wish I was sober
So I could see clearly now
The rain has gone
Simona
I guess it’s over
My memory plays our tune
The same old song

[Chorus]
I would call you up every Saturday night
And we’d both stay out ’til the morning light
And we sang “Here we go again.”
And though time goes by
I will always be in a club with you in 1973
Singing “Here we go again.”
I would call you up every Saturday night
And we’d both stay out ’til the morning light
And we sang “Here we go again.”
And though time goes by
I will always be in a club with you in 1973
Singing “Here we go again.”
I would call you up every Saturday night
And we’d both stay out ’til the morning light
And we sang “Here we go again.”
And though time goes by
I will always be in a club with you in 1973
Singing “Here we go again.”

[Outro]
And though time goes by
I will always be in a club with you in 1973

References:
1. 1973 (Song) – James Blunt

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“The more I live, the more I learn. The more I learn, the more I realize, the less I know.”- Michel Legrand