Walking along a crowded street
I see thousands of faces before me.
Then I see a face that I used to know
Long ago in my life story.
It starts me thinking about the things you said
For your image is still inside me.
The past is gone but in my head
You’re still walking along beside me.
Is it something playing tricks with my eyes
Or just an illusion deceiving me,
Or is it someone in a disguise
Or visions of things that used to be?

But lately I’ve been going to
All the places that we once knew,
And just when I think that I am free of you
I keep seeing the things that remind me of you,
And just when I think you’re out of my head
I hear a song that you sang or see a book that you read.
Then you’re in every bar, you’re in every cafŽ,
You’re driving every car, I see you everyday,
But you’re not really there ‘cos you belong to yesterday.

No more looking back,
No more living in the past,
Yesterday’s gone and that’s a fact,
Now there’s no more looking back.
Got to be hard,
Yeah, look straight ahead.
That s the only way it’s going to be,
Yesterday’s gone and that’s a fact,
Now there’s no more looking back,
Perhaps someday I’ll stop needing you,
Then maybe one day I’ll be free of you.

But lately I’ve been going to
All the places that remind me of you.
And just when I think you’re out of my head
I hear a record you played or see a book that you read.
Then you’re in every bar, you’re in every cafŽ,
You’re driving every car, I see you everyday
But you’re not really there ‘cos you belong to yesterday.

No more looking back,
No more living in the past.
Yesterday’s gone, that’s a fact,
Now there’s no more looking back.
No more looking back.
No more living in the past.
Yesterday’s gone, that’s a fact.
Now there’s no more looking back.

At erindre betyder noget med at gå ind i sig selv. Kommer fra tysk. Og min erfaring er, at jo mere jeg erindrer og skriver om, jo mere dukker der op. Som om, at hver erindring skraber et lag af og afdækker et nyt. Erindringens arkæologi.
Nogle gange prøver jeg at erindre, hvordan ganske almindelige hverdagsaktiviteter var. Hvordan var det fx at gå til skole, dengang i tresserne. Skolevejen. Man gik den hundredvis af gange, men måske netop derfor kan det være svært at genkalde sig selve oplevelsen. Alligevel dukker noget op. Den røde mur ind til børnehaven Pavillionen. Den opgang, hvor min klassekammerat Bitten boede med sin familie. Fodgængerovergangen ved krydset mellem Nørregade og Strandbygade med Kurant Kiosken på den modsatte…[1. Temaet har selvfølgelig været genstand for litterær behandling. I 1989 og året efter udkom en række forfatteres erindringer under titlen Min Skolevej, red. af Erik Vang Jensen. De burde nok indlemmes i biblioteket her…]

Ray Davies og the Kinks udsendte i 1975 et helt concept-album om skoletiden. Schoolboys in Disgrace. Ganske vist er det en fiktion, men lur mig om ikke mange af detaljerne stammer fra Ray Davies’ egne oplevelser i det engelske skolesystem. Det kunne godt ligne ham. I en af sangene er det i hvert fald mærkbart. Sangen No More Looking Back, der netop handler om det at gå tilbage. Nogle gange kan det være en berusende oplevelse, andre gange, som i dette tilfælde, er det forbundet med smerte og pinagtighed.
Schoolboys in Disgrace blev vist aldrig den helt store sællert eller succes. Og det er en skam. For det er et fint album om den tid, som vi alle har været igennem, og som nogle helst vil glemme, medens andre forfalder til nostalgiske flashbacks…

The Kinks – Education – Schoolboys in Disgrace.