Reminiscing Rio

"Her name is Rio and she dances on the sand
Just like that river twisting through a dustly land
And when she shines she really shows you all she can
Oh Rio, Rio dance across the Rio Grande..."

Duran Duran played this song as their final encore in their concert Thursday night.

Consequently, it has permeated the inner recesses of my brain so that I continue to sing it over and over again like a broken record. Which is quite a feat, really, given that I have practically lost all command of my vocal chords since yelling myself silly throughout their entire two-hour show.

Duran Duran is one of my all-time favorite eighties' bands.

I loved them before....

And, after finally seeing them peform live, I love them even more now....

Nostalgia overwhelmed me as the amazingly talented English musicians played their fabulously familiar tunes, and the huge Araneta Coliseum crowd collectively shrieked and danced along.

After the twenty or so years that have passed, the group undeniably sounded better than ever.

I saw many familiar faces in the excited audience - some I knew from way back in high school and college.

Flashbacks of prom nights, awkward dates, die-hard crushes, puppy loves, crazy parties, spasmodic bursts of teenage rebellion and sentimental friendships enveloped my being and spurred me to scream my lungs out even harder to the soundtracks that were my life.

I was lost, then found, in the contagious mood of frenetic reminiscence.

I felt old.

And I felt young.

Generally, I felt greater than I had in quite a while.

"Her name is Rio she don't need to understand
And I might find her if I'm looking like I can
Rio, Rio hear them shout across the land
From mountains in the north down to the Rio Grande..."