Verb
go way back (third-person singular simple present goes way back, present participle going way back, simple past went way back, past participle gone way back)
(informal) To have been in a (friendly, romantic, etc.) relationship that dates back far into the past.
He and I go way back.
In terms of the idea of long-term occupation - I have been reading a little bit more about this period - and you can see in that occupation are many lessons for the current occupation of Iraq. So we have these connections that go way back that people aren't aware of. Edwidge Danticat
Honestly, I would think I would go way back to Biblical times and be one of the guys who saw Jesus' Sermon on the Mount. It would be so cool to see what he was really like in person. Jason Dolley
When names are brought up as pioneers of "modern” science fiction, remembers Simak. this veteran's stories go way back into the Gernsback days, and they've been good all along. Whether he has run neck-and-neck with the big-name leaders, or paced them most of the way, it's hard to say. Clifford D. Simak