Golden Days Lyrics
In the crates of a record shop
They were sexy, sexy looking back
From a night that time forgot
And she had Farrah Fawcett hair
Carafes of blood red wine
And the clock just makes the colors turn to grey
Forever younger growing older just the same
All the memories that we make will never change
We'll stay drunk, we'll stay tan, let the love remain
And I swear that I'll always paint you
Golden days, golden days
With their caviar and dead cigars
The air was sauna hot
I bet they never even thought about
The glitter dancing on the skin
The decades might've washed it out
As the flashes popped like pins
And the clock just makes the colors turn to grey
Forever younger growing older just the same
All the memories that we make will never change
We'll stay drunk, we'll stay tan, let the love remain
And I swear that I'll always paint you
Golden days, golden days
But It'll take the pain away
Right now our future's certain
I won't let it fade away
Golden days, golden days
Golden days, golden days
Given that the song was published in the wake of such passings in the music world as David Bowie and Whitney Houston, we can assume that the song is merely Brendon Urie reflecting on the artist's impact. He compared the golden days of the height of an artist or group's popularity to what happens as they get older, either falling from favor or rocketing to legendary status, in the form of a narrative about finding pictures of older stars from their glory days that reminds him of how it felt for Panic at the beginning versus what it feels like now, as what is effectively a solo artist. It makes him think about the promises you make when you're young and dumb, that you everyday break because those things can't be maintained as you age.
I believe the song is about realizing that you can't go back into the past. Brendon is singing about the "golden days" and how he's coming to the realization that he can't go back to them. He denies that they're gone at first, but slowly comes to accept it.