Whether you realize it or not, the soundtrack of your life is continuously being compiled and each track is encoded with a select memory. Beyond the melody or lyrics, each song is ingrained with moments, great and small, carrying the innate ability to virtually transport you back in time, even for a short while. Artist/producer Bradley Denniston’s soulful new single, the aptly titled, “Bring Those Good Times Back,” embodies how extraordinarily memorable music can be and its far reaching resonance.
On “Bring Those Good Times Back,” Denniston is heavily influenced by the simmering and snappy style of soul from yesteryear. Altogether, the track jovially jumps and jives with infectious energy. On top of that, it is a strategic style choice that originated in an era that Denniston openly drops references to throughout the track. On the whole, it’s about how to best represent how nostalgia, literally, plays an instrumental role in what we hear as consumers of music. For Denniston, it’s about re-creating the sound that he feels most at home within the memories it produces.
As previously mentioned, Denniston sprinkles in name drops of the Godfather of Soul, James Brown, Funkadelic of George Clinton fame and Sam Moore of the legendary R&B duo, Sam & Dave. Beyond paying homage to the greats, it’s also about remembering when music served as the score of pivotal scenes in life. Fast forwarding to the present, it’s about envisioning music as the spark for rekindling what you once had. It’s about how the transformative power of melodic frequencies and lyrical expression can live on past a sliver in time. In addition, hip-hop artist KONCEPT seamlessly drops in with a spirited, guest performance.
The central question of this track is “can we bring those good times back?” Playing off of that, a follow-up question might be “why do you want to go back?” The answer, as is with the song itself, is the desire to go back to the safety and comfort of the familiar. On “Bring Those Good Times Back,” Denniston searches his musical memory banks for nostalgic ease and retrieves this ultra groovy jam.
Written by Travis Boyer
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