calibrating an old iPod(w/ a newly changed battery) with a new mac.

I just changed the battery in my iPod. it worked and it turns on. the screen says 'connect to your itunes to restore". the problem is that last month my hard drive, failed on my MacBook, loosing all my info and music. i got that hard drive replaced and i was hoping to get the music off my iPod, using a ripping program, back into itunes after i changed the battery. question: does changing the battery of an iPod mean that you loose all the music on it and you need to reconnect to itunes to restore it. please tell me there is a way to get the music off my iPod.