PORTAGE la PRAIRIE, MB – Tracey Broadbent was 15-years-old when she first heard Bryan Adams’ ‘Summer of ’69’. She fell in love with it and it became the theme song for her and her friends summer of ’85.

“It probably was the best summer of my life,” Broadbent said. “I fell in love with the man who I ended up getting married to that summer. We had our fist kiss with that song on the radio.”

For 35 years, ‘Summer of ’69’ was her favourite song of all time. She had seen Bryan Adams in concert five times and knew every lyric but for some reason the true meaning of the song eluded her.

“I remember a little while after the song came out thinking Bryan Adams would have only been like ten,” Mike Broadbent explained. “That’s when the light went on. I was like, ya Bryan, you sly dog, right on.”

Broadbent never bothered sharing his revelation with his then girlfriend.

“She just loved that song so much. At first I figured she knew what it meant but then the longer it went it was obvious she didn’t. I guess I just didn’t want to ruin it for her,” Broadbent shared.

In hindsight, it would have softened the blow over three decades later if someone would have clued Tracey Broadbent in.

Last week she was belting out ‘Summer of ’69’ with her teenage children at home and in a moment of aggravation and youthful pettiness they bluntly told her what the song was implying.

“Mom is so irritating when that song is on,” Kennedy Broadbent said. “I guess we just had enough. Sometimes she’s so clueless and that song is so lame.”

With a disproportionate amount of satisfaction the Broadbent children asked their mother why her favourite song was about a sexual position popular with teenagers.

In mid-song Broadbent stop singing and couldn’t muster a response to her children after hearing, “It’s not about the year!”

“She’s always complaining about how our music is so crude and stuff,” Ian Broadbent said. “It was kind of nice to give it back to her a bit. Why do all parents think it’s okay for songs to be about sex and stuff if it’s an old band?”

“She hasn’t mentioned the incident and when ‘Summer of ’69’ came on the radio the other day she turned the radio off and glared at me,” Mike Broadbent said.

Tracey Broadbent is now haunted by some of the lines from her favourite song of all time.

Lines like “Ain’t no use in complainin’, When you’ve got a job to do
Spent my evenings down at the drive-in,” and “Man we were killin’ time,
We were young and restless, We needed to unwind, I guess nothin’ can last forever,” now make Broadbent blush.

“We used to go to the All-Nighters all the time at the Delta Drive Inn,” Mike Broadbent shared. “My parent’s car had a spacious back seat, I don’t think we actually watched too many movies.”

“I don’t like talking about that kind of stuff when the kids are around,” Tracey said. “I used to dance to my memories when that song came on but now I’m just too embarrassed. I certainly can’t listen to it when the kids are around.”

“I was born in 1969 so I should have known it wasn’t about the year but I guess I just didn’t get it. I’m so embarrassed. I don’t even know how Bryan Adams can sing that song live anymore.”

Mr. Broadbent plans to play the song at their upcoming 30th wedding anniversary when the couple plans to renew their vows. He is hopeful his wife’s embarrassment will dissipate in time to have the song put her in the mood.

Photo Credit: Marco Maas

Notice to readers – click here to read the full disclaimer/disclosure and legal statements of great importance. You should have known long ago that The Summer of ’69 was not about the year but the sexual position called 69. We won’t explain the finer details of what 69 means because, again, you should already likely know that. Please don’t google what it means from your work computer as that may get you a meeting HR. If you don’t know what it means please ask a friend you trust and respect and who won’t make fun of you. As for this story it is not real, it is fictional but that is what the disclaimer you never clicked on would explain in legal language that is quite dry and dull. Tracey and her family are not real they are just fictional characters used for dramatic effect to explain to people that the Summer of ’69 is not about the year. Bryan Adams is real and the song Summer of ’69 is real and it really isn’t about the year 1969. Stay safe. Say I love you often. Forgive often. Those aren’t satellites, they’re spaceships.