Nostalgia...not what it used to be! 30th November 2007

Ahh... do you remember the days when not everyone was completely obsessed with nostalgia? They were great times...
Nostalgia overload, and the ensuing cashing-in of faded popstars desperately grasping at the coat-tails of fame, has sucked all the joy out of those happy memories.In the early days - before ‘corporate nostalgia’ sunk its teeth in - just the mention of Magnum PI, Air Wolf and Thundercats was enough to get anyone born in the ‘80s smiling. That smile soon turned into a toothy grin at the thought of movie classics such as Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, Beverley Hills Cop, Dirty Dancing and Top Gun.The 1980s were ridiculed for most of the 1990s - think Wham, Bros, preposterously coiffured haircuts and an obscene amount of denim. Then, out of the blue, it became ‘kitsch’ and, after all, coolness is but a small leap from ‘kitsch’.Nostalgia tends to work in 20 year cycles, which explains the arrival of ‘80s icon Mr. T in ads for Snickers; but this decade seems to have gone over the top. Not only are people fondly remembering and re-enacting fads from 20 years ago, but also from 10 years ago and less.It could be because so much has happened since the millenium and the birth of the 2000s. Perhaps people cannot cope with the rush of changes that have been forced upon them. Things have moved rapidly in the last eight years or so. Many terms and phrases, now commonplace, were unheard of in 1999 - Wi-fi, iPods, Al-Qaeda, hands-free, SatNav, hoodies, ASBOs and so on.Maybe that is why, in this decade, we have clung to nostalgia much more than in previous decades. I solemnly remember the return of DISCO for a brief period in the late ‘90s but it was tolerated because it was a fleeting gimmick. However, the gimmicks are coming thick and fast in the 2000s and show no signs of letting up.It appears to be a weekly event that a pop group, who split up five minutes ago, are reuniting for a comeback tour and the re-release of a re-packaged ‘Best Of’ compliation.Tickets go on sale this morning for Boyzone’s comeback gig
at the Odyssey Arena in Belfast. No doubt they will sell out in seconds as Irish women reflect on how, as impressionable children and teens, they swooned before the Dublin lads in the mid ‘90s.East 17 and 5ive both attempted comebacks, but neither of those two ensembles had much success.Ginger, Sporty, Posh, Baby, and Scary will all make millions from their upcoming ‘round the world’ tour, not to mention the ensuing endorsements. Last week, the new single from the ‘Spice Girls’ failed to break into the top ten, much to the annoyance of the grown women in the band. However, I am sure they won’t dwell on the disappointment for too long.At loggerheadsThe song, ‘Headlines (Friendship Never Ends)’, is awful and the public are wise to the ploy. The women have been at loggerheads for years and only got back together once all potential solo projects had been completely exhausted.
A more realistic title would have been ‘(We are desperate to make) Headlines - Friendship can be resurrected by a seriously fat cheque’.The reason the comeback single flopped so miserably - apart from its inherent rubbishness - is because their management do not fully understand the attraction of nostalgia. It is the memories people love. It is the process of looking back through rose-tinted glasses at the innocence of youth. For some people, this involves singing “I wanna zig-a-zig-ah!” into a hairbrush and, for others, adopting the name Maverick or IceMan while running round shooting make-believe Russians and flying imaginary jets.Only Take That have managed the ‘comeback’, plus the dreaded release of new material, with any shred of dignity. That is due to their combined humility, good humour (they always knew they were ‘kitsch’) and the fact that their new tunes are damn fine song
s.People enjoy nostalgia because it reminds them of the times, good times which have now been relegated to the dustbin of history. They were fun while they lasted and it is nice to think on them now and again, but we have all moved on. No one in their right mind would actually want to go through all those experiences again, especially the teenage ones.DownfallUnfortunately, our current infatuation with nostalgia could signal its eventual downfall. The 1980s will be remembered for Terminator, Indiana Jones, synthesiser music and awful hair. The 1990s will be remembered for Brit Pop, the Spice Girls and ‘New Labour’. Twenty years from now, will we be able to look back on the 2000s with such a warm and fuzzy feeling? I doubt that will be possible when our memories are filled with images of Terminator 3, Die Hard 4, Rocky 6 and, worst of all, the bloody ‘Spice Girls’...again!