No other generation was as influenced and defined as Baby Boomers by their music.

The music celebrated a life unfettered; it cajoled change -- that peace is better than war, freedom is better than oppression; it lit a candle in the darkness of personal despair.

And the music and its musicians just keep on giving.

Songwriters and musicians and bands that moved us 30 or more years ago continue to do so with the release of new albums or the release of compilations or the release of remastered classics.

What better way to celebrate the holidays than to give the gift of this music to someone who appreciates its significance, even if that someone is you.

Here are a few recommendations:

The Beatles USB stick
The unique, apple-shaped USB drive is loaded with the re-mastered audio for The Beatles’ 14 stereo titles, as well as all of the re-mastered CDs’ visual elements, including 13 mini-documentary films about the studio albums, replicated original UK album art, rare photos and expanded liner notes.

Paul McCartney's "Good Evening New York City", the new 2 CD/1 DVD set that documents three nights at Citi Field in Queens, N.Y., last July performing crowd-pleasing sets that included a lot of Beatles tracks.

Sting's new album "If on a Winter's Night" is an homage exclusively to winter.

Tom Petty
"The Live Anthology" is a new release in the form of a a multi-CD boxed set covering 30 years of road work with his band the Heartbreakers.

According to Petty's web site store description, the collection brings together material culled from hundreds of hours of live concert recordings, from 1978 to 2007, covering every era of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers' tours and represents the best tracks as chosen by Petty and others.

Neil Young's "Archives, Volume I": This is early Neil Young going back to his Buffalo Springfield days and continuing into Crazy Horse and Crosby, Still, Nash & Young.

There are also new Christmas albums from Neil Diamond and Bob Dylan.

Look for The Who, by the way, to continue the tradition of Baby Boomer era bands performing at the Super Bowl. Their performance is scheduled for Feb. 7. The Who was preceded by Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band in 2009, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers in 2008, Prince in 2007, the Rolling Stones in 2006 and Paul McCartney in 2005.

And here's a random thought: What if the sons of some of our generation's musicians were to get together to create a supergroup? They could call themselves Sons.

Filling the bill could be Harper Simon, son of Paul Simon; Jakob Dylan, son of Bob Dylan; Ben Taylor, son of James Taylor and Carly Simon; and James Raymond, son of David Crosby.

Your holiday list could include the music of these progeny of our Baby Boomer influences.

Check out:

• "Harper Simon," self-titled debut album by Harper Simon
• "Seeing Things," by Jakob Dylan
• "The Legend of Kung Folk Part 1 (The Killing Bite)" by Ben Taylor
• "Just like Gravity," by CPR, a collaborative effort of Crosby, musician Jeff Pevar and Raymond