These Days

Well I've been out walking
I don't do that much talking these days
These days
These days I seem to think a lot
About the things that I forgot to do
For you
And all the times I had the chance to

Jackson Browne was 16 when he wrote These Days in 1965, and 25 when he released a recorded version on his album For Everyman.  In his young hands, the lyrics sound presumptuous and pretentious, as did the title of the album.

Glen Campbell was 72 when he recorded These Days in 2008.  He'd lived quite a life.  Considered one of the finest guitarists in America, a noted session musician since 1960, a recording star (listen to Wichita Lineman), host of a TV show, a tumultuous and public love life, with bouts of alcoholism in the mix, Campbell had something to sing about and it shows in his version of the song.  The last line of the song weighs heavy here:

Don't confront me with my failures/ I had not forgotten them

Two years after this recording Campbell was diagnosed with Alzheimers (whether he was already showing signs of the disease in 2008 I don't know). Glen Campbell passed in 2017.