Back in my military days, it was a thing to hit a base club for a few drinks with peers. The clubs were usually segregated by ranks – Airman, NCO, and Officers’ Club, or Open Mess. Food and drinks were cheap, and then there was happy hour.
In 1980, I was stationed at Randolph AFB in Texas. One co-worker and friend used to immediately hit the jukebox when we hit the club, even before ordering. He’d always select this Triumph song, “Lay It On the Line”. Then he’d sit there, pensive, waiting for the song. When it came on, he’d sit there, singing it to himself, lips moving, absent of where he was and what was happening around him.
Never saw him again after Randolph. Looked for him but never found a trace.
Michael Seidel, writer 