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Song 'When You And I Were Seventeen' On Phonograph



I love the song that Gatsby plays for Daisy when they are alone together on the phonograph. "When You And I Were Seventeen". It was a big hit in 1924, there were jazz versions and piano/pianola player piano versions. I love the song so much. It's romantic, it's old-timey, it's nostalgic. It's about remembering a past love of youth. That's the core of Gatsby's love for Daisy. He loves her as he did before the War and when they were both young adolescents. For very romantic and sentimental types, the past is very important and they often dwell in the past. I know the feeling as I'm that type. It's sad because the past cannot be repeated and people's lives change and that's the point of the novel/movie. Daisy chose to marry someone else other than Gatsby, despite having that long-ago romance with Gatsby.

Here's a great player piano version of the song on Youtube. I love it!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dr8Dd5TypPU

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I love the song as well. It's so wistful and sad.

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