A book, an album and a shared Helena experience

Decemberists' singer/songwriter COLIN MELOY and I have at least one thing in common: We were both living in HELENA, MONT., when our respective parents divorced.

Our paths diverged somewhat at that point. Meloy stayed in Helena en route to indie music stardom, while I moved back to my native California en route to eventually starting this blog.

Here's another similarity: We both love "LET IT BE" by THE REPLACEMENTS.

Meloy wrote a 106-page essay on "Let it Be" for Continuum's "33-1/3" book series on classic albums.

Instead of merely reading it, I practically consumed Meloy's book this morning.

Rather than detailing the album's specifics, Meloy wrote a poignant memoir about how the 1984 college rock classic accompanied his adolescence in Montana's capital. "Let it Be" arrived in Meloy's life just as he was "listening to music like it was medicine."

"I listened to 'Let it Be' endlessly," Meloy wrote. "The record seemed to encapsulate perfectly all of the feelings that were churning inside me. The leap from seventh to eighth grade had felt like a quantum shift and my head was reeling from the changes."

As I continued reading, I learned Meloy and I have a few other things in common, including uncles living in EUGENE, ORE.

We also share a deep love of music, and are cognizant about how it weaves through the threads of our daily lives.