Wasted Years

Wasted Years is a song by Iron Maiden; a song which also happens to be my Number One Favourite! Not just my favourite Iron Maiden song, but my overall number one favourite song in the whole wide world. The song was released in 1986 on the Somewhere in Time album, and was solely written by Adrian Smith.

A few years ago I was really struggling with depression. Everything just shut down and I was lost in a low, empty, joyless, depressed state. The only new positive I had in my life at the time was that I had recently passed my driving test, and could now drive around town. Soon after this I bought my first Iron Maiden album – The Book of Souls: Live Chapter.

I had listened to Iron Maiden several times before and really enjoyed listening to them, but I bought a live album, because at the time, it felt like that was the only way to listen to them. They didn’t sound right being in the studio. So, with a new live album in my possession, I started listening to it in the car; and listened to nothing but that for nearly six months.

I had heard several of the songs from the album before, but this was the first time I had heard all of them. But from the combination of before and after, one song stuck out in my head; Wasted Years. It had this great opening sound, followed by that brilliant adrenaline fueled riff, that just draws you in, backed up by Bruce Dickinson‘s vocals; and the entire band working in tandem to produce a great energetic sound. But the song has something else packed into it too.

The chorus is so positive and inspiring!

“So, Understand,
Don’t waste your time always searching for those Wasted Years.
Face up, Make your stand,
Realize you’re living in the Golden Years!”

When you are depressed and feeling low like I was, and having nothing to do but dwell on the bad memories of the past; hearing those lyrics in the chorus, felt like a wonderful gift, trying hard to bring me back into the positive world!

Having a song like this in my life was such a positive in a depressed time. It was a song that was found in one of my favourite musical genres; Heavy Metal. But at the same time it was a song that just spoke to me; and told me to forget about all those dark days, and realize that I may now be living in my Golden Years! And that is why it is my favourite song!