They say that music is a powerful mnemonic and the way you wove music of long ago into your story gave it extra impact. It was funny, you mentioning a song invoked strong memories of childhood summers and other songs. Your reference of 10cc, I’m not in love immediately made me think of Thin Lizzy “Boys are back in town”. I chuckled at the mention of a Peter Gabriel-less Genesis. The memories of music and experiences were very powerful, but I did not tie them in my memory to the ‘current events’ of the time, I barely recall Son of Sam or Three Mile Island — it is not because they were not serious, and I do remember my parents watching the news intently on those events, but I more vividly remembering the summer country nights listening to the radio and thinking “wow, FM is clearer than AM” as Elton John, Philadelphia Freedom came on, or the BeeGees. I remember bus rides home from away football games (I was a band nerd) and looking out in the darkness of the countryside as Chicago came on. I never did get into 8 track, but I do remember the excitement of a new album — and I was a Partridge family fan too (I saw that on your spotify list!), Bobby Sherman (still love his song Seattle) (because you know he guest starred on there), and of course the MONKEE! Thank you for sharing your ‘sound track’, you have eloquently made the case that music does form the soundtrack of our lives.