I don't like to live in the past tho. I know guys that remember some pieces of gear, and go off on how awesome it was, and while I don't argue the fact that it WAS good, there's some new stuff that can do the best of what the old stuff ever could, and then some, with more options and flexability. Inevitably I get the "Naw, there was something about that" speech. Like the gear gods came together in a deux ex machina like event to make this one item, and there was something special, in a circuit board that was meant as a product. Gearheads can live in the amber of time, suspended and preserved in the past, best viewed with rose colored glasses. Gear that can be called "old faithful" is great, when it's faithful, and not just old.
Some of this old gear is just that, old gear, and this effect has it's place. It takes a certain player to develop their sound and make it their own. Eric Clapton shunned the wah wah pedal for years, then did "Bad Love" and brought it back. It's not the use of something that's bad, it's the abuse of something that is bad.
I talked about my current chorus choices and my use of them in the music I make. It's like a seasoning or sauce. I like Sirracha, but on ice cream, I'm sure it's not that great. So I use chorus now for an "effect", not part and parcel of my overall sound. It's a great application of this effect to drive something home, like the chorus of a song. Butch Walker commented that "You gotta have a chorus pedal to play the chorus". Kind of a no brainer statement.
Here's a great video of Butch talking about some of the past, as well as his use of a chorus pedal (around 2:10):
"A chorus pedal can be your friend sometimes" is a great statement. If that's the case I've had a more than a few friends that helped me make music over the years. Thankfully, that's a literal as well as figurative statement that stands true, in my situation. Throughout my musical experiences, I've had growth through the gear that helped me make my sound, and the friends that I've been lucky to play with.
This was a fun romp down memory lane, but as of now, I'm waiting to see what the future brings..in so many ways.