Don’t Look Back in Anger, I Heard You Say

Slip inside the eye of your mind, don’t you know you might find, a better place to play

I love the English band Oasis. During their 90’s peak, their press coverage tended to focus on the aloof behavior of singer Liam Gallagher or the sarcastic comments offered by guitarist Noel Gallagher which had the effect of overshadowing the brilliance of the band — the MUSIC. Here in the States, it seems the enduring legacy of the band is a few 90’s hits like “Wonderwall” and “Champagne Supernova” and a ton of bickering.

But they are so much more than that to me. Being that they are English of Irish descent, they feel a lot like cousins as I am American of Irish descent with lots of relatives in the old country. I feel a level of affinity to their music, their style, their attitude. Every once in a while, I hear a word they say, a turn of phrase, or a lyric and I get the feeling they know me.

Most Oasis albums have a cool nod to the past. Some might say they rip off the Beatles or the Stones or the Jam or the Smiths or the Stone Roses but I don’t any of that in their music. Sure the chords and tones, their fashion, their haircuts are all inspired by the great bands of Liverpool and Manchester, but the brilliance of Oasis is they link all these great influences and merge it into their own package. They take something familiar that works and make it their own.

So where am I going with this? My favorite Oasis song is “Don’t Look Back in Anger”. It’s become such a crowd favorite that Noel often lets the crowd take over the singing during live performances.

The song carries so much power for the audience that transcends the lyrics.

There is a deeper level that is universal. “Don’t look back in anger. Don’t look back in anger. I heard you say.”

How many times do we have to be reminded that? ‘Don’t Look Back in Anger’, I heard you say.

In my life, constantly. If we are people of integrity, we are constantly reminded of the past, of mistakes we’ve made, people we’ve hurt, people who have hurt us. On any given day I might be angry about a stock I sold too early or bought too late. Or it may be a bad decision. Or a period of my life I regret. Or perhaps someone who wronged me. Or maybe I wronged them.

As carbon based anatomy, our minds and feelings are always looking back at our lives and assessing things that have happened to us that makes us mad. That tendency can lead to depression, doubt, fear, bad decisions, and of course anger.

Sometimes we need to “slip inside the eye of (our) mind” and try to find “a better place to play.” But as our “soul slides away” we should resist the urge to look back in anger…

At least not today.