I remember when I was a teenager (yeah, my memory is that good!), when music was my safe harbor. No matter what had happened, whether it was good or bad, music had to be part of it, part of the aftermath of it, and it always was.

Music then was simple, and the stories of the songs were beautiful, and the rhythms and the beats and the impacts of those songs were special to me.

From pure happiness to abysmal heartache, I had my music to listen to, and it was both a strong rock and refuge, as well as a warm comfort... I could smile with the good, or cry with the bad, but I did it to the sounds of songs in the background.

It was the way things were then, the way we did it. We coped, but we used our songs of the day to help us cope.

Today it's all changed, and not for the better, to me, to most of us of my generation, but perhaps to today's kids the music they listen to has special meanings, as ours did for us - as they still do for us.

I can only hope so, as otherwise the kids of today will be so lost, down the road, when they hit our age, without old friends to remind them of how they once were.

Our songs from days long gone by are a melodious mirror of ourselves, and we are, for a few moments, changed back into what we once were, when we listen to those old friends.

I would not trade my musical memories for any amount of gold or silver.