How can you start a YouTube musical medley with Brian Adams and end up with Luciano Pavarotti? Is that possible? I’ve done that a while ago and might share the thought process that led me to this strange mix. Without further ado, let’s see how…

I felt a bit down as it was the last day of Durga puja, the quintessential Bengali festival I miss every year despite any attachment to the religion. Posts on social media made me think of what I’d have been doing if I were with my childhood friends. Nostalgia is pleasant when you recount the happy memories, but too much of it makes you permanently look backwards. It could be your safe haven; it could as well be the quagmire that, at times, can make you live in the past. Most of the time, I shake off my blues, but then, as I sat in front of the TV, Family Guy was on, and it featured Everything I Do by Brian Adams. It brought back memories of my uni years, and I thought I must listen to the song again later. That’s how it started, as I put Brian Adams on, and Everything I do filled my ears…

Robert Cray – Right next door: As the song about love led to songs about betrayal, and they’re no better song about it.

Bruce Springsteen – Dancing in the Dark: Mainly following in from Brian Adams’ nostalgia, unmissable songs from The Boss, thoughts about the great American dream, Born in the USA and arguably the most notable song, not just of the album but his entire music career.

Bruce Springsteen – Death to my hometown: I have been trying to find the name of this song for a long time, as I remember listening to it on BBC Radio 2 and instantly liking the lyrics of it. I was lucky this time and found the song immediately and couldn’t help listening to it.

Simon and Garfunkel – Bridge over the Troubled Water: Thinking about the ’70s and how many brilliant songs were there from that era that I’m yet to discover, Simon and Garfunkel were definitely one of them, and this song is not only one of my most favourite, I remember this from the funeral of a family member.

Bob Dylan – Like a Rolling Stone: ’70s transitioned into ’60s. I inevitably thought about this song from my uni days that I instantly hated. I always thought it was a love song, but listening to it again after many years, it felt more like an act of revenge; its sense of spite was unmissable. It was ironic that one of Dylan’s most iconic songs wasn’t about love, hope, or optimism but a lyric he described as vomit.

Joan Baez – Diamonds and Rust: The words of Rolling Stone made me think of Joan Baez and whether the song was directed at her. Again, the music brought back memories of my twenties and listening to this dreary song on an alcohol-fuelled night. Diamonds and Rust remained one of my favourite songs, and later on, I bought the cassette of the album as well. It’s a song I haven’t listened to for many years that brought back fond memories.

Gerry and the Peacemakers – You’ll Never Walk Alone: I thought this had to be the last song I listened to before stopping this musical roulette. I love the lyrics, and it made me think about my life after moving to the UK and how, for many reasons, I found a connection with Liverpool despite never having set foot in the city. And it made me think YNWA has to be one of the songs that remains a beacon of hope in the dire times we’re in.

Elvis Presley – You’ll Never Walk Alone: I thought about many singers who sang the song before Gerry and the Peacemakers, and definitely, the version from The King has to be one of the most notable ones. Although many legends sang the song, after listening to Elvis, I thought that the version from Gerry and the Peacemakers, with their Scouse accent, is still my favourite version by a long mile.

Johnny Hallyday & Lara Fabian – Requiem pour un fou: Song from Elvis made me think about who would parallel Elvis in other languages. Johnny definitely came to mind for French, and I picked up one of his iconic songs. It was definitely a tour de force, but the contribution from Lara made it reach another dimension.

Yanni – Aria: The high notes from Lara Fabian made me wonder if her voice was a soprano, but then I thought of this masterpiece from Love at the Acropolis, and I knew Lara wasn’t soprano, as were the two singers on the performance.

Yanni – Violin duel between Ann Marie Calhoun and Samuel Yervinyan: I remembered this duel from a long time ago, during another YouTube medley. This was a short distraction but an enjoyable one.

Sarah Brightman – Nessun Dorma: Listening to Aria reminded me of the best female version of Nessun Dorma I’ve listened to, so I thought this would be the last song before I went to sleep. An unforgettable performance.

Luciano Pavarotti – Nessun Dorma: You cannot listen to Nessun Dorma and not end with the version by Pavarotti. There’s no word to describe the feeling. Still, as he sang the last line, ‘All’alba vincerò’ from a relatively low note to the final one, his voice seemed to be washing away all the blues and lifting your spirit to a new high. I felt it was the ‘high note’ I’d been searching for that evening.

So yes, it was entirely possible to start with a Brian Adams hit of the ’90s and end up with a timeless classic by Pavarotti in a logical sequence while constantly searching for the perfect song to end the medley.