The songs shape us more than we know.

A band who got screwed over 20 years ago moved on this week. And made me realise it’s time we all did.

There was a Radio Scotland Christmas morning special on. One of those pre-records that, as a rule, should’ve missed the vibrancy of the live radio shows they used to put on. You know, the ones with Fred Macaulay and his family joining him for Christmas morning radio show larks. When they had budgets for such things. Let’s say I was already disappointed as I set off the turkey for its roast and started peeling the roots.

But my spirits lifted quickly.

Travis were the feature.

Travis were the sound of my early university years. But I went to France for nine months in 1998 and on my return never heard from them again. And yet, that album was generation-defining.

What happened?

Their sound was stolen by everyone else.

Their seminal album’s title was maybe a hint of what was to come: The Man Who (Never Was), perhaps. Turn inspired the career of Amy MacDonald and many others. Why Does It Always Rain On Me was the most inspirational and not-filmed moment at Glastonbury, where after a glorious day, the heavens opened on cue for the song. Coldplay’s Chris Martin was stage left. It didn’t take long for the sound to travel…

Healy says: “One of the things I noticed was Coldplay and the chiming guitar. I thought: ‘Oh my god, they totally took Andy’s sound’.”

The Travis singer says the difference between the two bands was that Chris Martin of Coldplay wanted them to be the biggest band in the world.

“I think Travis wanted to be the best band in the world,” says Healy.

“REM are the best band in the world. Part of their journey involved going up to the top of Mount Everest and going ‘that’s a nice view, the air is a bit thin, can’t breathe – let’s go back down’.

“There is no-one up there and it is quite barren and lonely. But Chris is still up there. He’s up there playing tennis with Bono.”

Their next album was The Invisible Band. Apt, indeed.

That thirty minutes of Fran Healy from Travis on Christmas Day is an auditory memory from the last time I might have felt truly fulfilled and happy. Family around me. My parents eating and drinking with us. Hugs. More than usual, even. Freedom to pop to Hong Kong two weeks later.

And then I heard his voice again. Tonight. Just now. On a radio catchup.

Tinny. Through a phone’s WhatsApp call, being recorded by another phone, being broadcast on BBC Radio Scotland’s afternoon show with Janice Forsyth. Rather than memories from 20 years ago, or Christmas, which might as well be 20 years ago, he told of a new album. New songs.

Fran finished writing them on March 13. He flew home to his new home in LA. He then produced a video from three locations. The song is the first new song I’ve heard since we all changed, but it’s timeless. And I love it.

And it maybe lets me press “go” again on life, rather than hankering after that Christmas Day morning of 2019.

Here’s to the music that shapes us.