Hanoi Rocks were on the doorstep of becoming the next superstars of rock when unthinkable tragedy struck.

Some years don’t fade—they hover. And 2016 is one of those years that still shows up uninvited, sliding into your playlists like it pays rent. If the cultural mood is looping back (again), then the soundtrack has to come with it: the pop confessionals, the late-night bangers, the gleeful earworms, the songs that made you text someone you absolutely should not have texted. Here are the 21 tracks that defined the year—and if 2016 is truly returning, they’re not optional.

Johnny Cash never pretended to be neutral. While much of Nashville tried to tiptoe around the Vietnam War, Cash walked straight into it—boots first, guitar slung low, and conscience fully intact. At a time when protest could cost you radio play, sponsors, and even your career, Cash decided that silence felt worse.