Are there any tunes that bring back memories for you?
There is one tune in particular, it’s a hymn called Majesty. I first heard it at Celtic Park at Parkhead many years ago when Billy Graham was visiting here in Scotland. My wife Anne and I had the pleasure of meeting him for a cup of tea before he went through to Glasgow. And then we travelled through to him and we arrived at Celtic Park, where he was speaking. We got there, and it was full. There were thousands of people there. The choir was singing Majesty and it was the first time I had heard it. And Billy Graham got onto the podium and he stood there and allowed the choir to finish and he stood there. And a deadly silence came over the whole crowd and he looked about, and he said ‘At last. At last I’ve arrived in Paradise.’ And of course Paradise is the pet name of Celtic supporters for their ground.
And how do you feel when you hear it now?
Oh, the hairs stand up on my neck because I have such a pleasant memory of it. And if ever I get asked what it was like to hear Billy Graham, that’s the hymn that I pick.
Another hymn is when Pope John Paul visited Scotland. It was an afternoon visit and he landed at Edinburgh airport and came to Murrayfield. And it was all young people from Scotland, thousands of them. And as they drove in they were singing My God Reigns. He climbs again onto the podium and he says, ‘Young people of Scotland’. And the roar went up. There was a lot of emotion in the ground and those are two hymns that bring back memories to me.
Do you think hymns are more powerful than popular music for bringing back memories?
Hymns are more lasting memories. One reason is we were brought up as Catholics, going to church, going to mass and benediction was important to us. All the hymns were there from a very early age and these things stick with you. It’s quite amazing how I have come across people who have suffered from dementia. They would hardly remember you had visited them and when you leave the room it’s as if a cloud comes over. But if you sit with them, singing a tune, then it goes back to their young days and its amazing how they can remember the words. And of course hymns are important to a lot of people in their young days, as they are important to me.
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