Earlier this week, my niece asked me an interesting question. Is there a show or a movie you wish you could watch again for the first time? I could not answer this question easily. Part of me considered shows and movies that had an interesting or unexpected twist that I wished I could experience all over again. (My sister was asked the same question and she picked “A Sixth Sense,” which fit this idea.) Another part of me thought about shows that made me think. It could be something like West Wing or Newsroom that would make my political heart happy. Of course, there are shows that filled my heart like when I fell for the show, Roswell. Then, I realized that there is another answer to this question. I wished that I could go back in time and watch Roswell for the first time, not just because I loved the show but I would like to go back and join the fan community immediately. In the case of Roswell, it took me a long time before I began reaching out to fellow fans, before I joined message boards or read fanfic or anything else fan related. I missed out on a lot because I was late. Yeah, that’s my answer. I would want to go back and watch Roswell for the first time because I loved the show but also to join the fan community from day one. As I answered the question, I found myself wondering the same thing about Duran.
Is there a song or an album you wish that you could listen to again for the first time? Why that song or album? When I thought about this question in terms of music and Duran, I immediately answered with All You Need Is Now. I heard the snippet of the song on the Behind the Music credits but listening to the entire album for the first time was magical. I remember that I had some Duranie friends over the day I got the album and we sat in my living room, quiet, anxious, and hopeful as we listened to each and every song. As the music washed over all of us, the emotions that were seen mirrored on each others’ faces were ones of wonder and pure joy. Tears were literally shed. This was our band. Our Duran. It felt like such an old friend while being brand new at the same time. It was comfort and excitement. More significantly, it felt like a love letter to us, the fans. This leads me to remember watching the video in my parents’ basement while on the phone with Rhonda for the first time. The band looked so good, so happy. Then, there were all of the images of fans and our fandom since the reunion. If I didn’t love the song then, that alone might have done it. I felt like I was part of amazing story. It definitely helped bring me some joy in the midst of a time of loss in my personal life.
Of course, I could also pick Sunrise for this question, too. This song will always represent the reunion, the return of the Fab Five. For me, it also represents my return to the fold. Yep, my Duranieness was renewed and then some. This was a time when it was all Duran, all the time. I spent every waking moment when I was not working on message boards chatting with fellow fans or reading up on everything I missed when I had been away from Duranland. This was also when it was about touring planning and squeeing over images old and new of our favorite band members. To me, it felt like the best time of fandom. I was no longer a kid like I was in 1984 so I could go out and enjoy my fandom but I wasn’t too old that I didn’t have the energy for it. Besides, it felt like there was nothing but love and openness with fellow fans. The future felt very, very bright.
Yet, I have to consider what I said with TV. Would I want to go back in time to join the fandom earlier? I would have joined the fan community earlier in the reunion, if I could go back, for sure. Would I like to go back to the early 80s to join the fan community then? For me, it depends on if I could do that as an adult or not. If I was a grown person, then, maybe. That said, maybe I shouldn’t change anything. Maybe my fandom story is exactly what it was meant to be.
What about the rest of you? What song or album do you wish you could hear again for the first time?
-A
