Ronnie Van Zant wrote the Lynyrd Skynyrd classic "Gimme Three Steps" after making the mistake of dancing with a girl whose boyfriend was in the bar and probably had a gun. He asked for a 3-step head start.
Sia Furler originally sent "Pretty Hurts" to Katy Perry, but she didn't see the email, so Beyonce ended up recording it instead.
Boston leader Tom Scholz went back to his job at Polaroid after releasing the group's debut album. When his co-workers kept coming by to tell him "More Than A Feeling" was playing on the radio, he knew it was time to quit his day job.
The Men Without Hats lead singer wrote "The Safety Dance" after getting kicked out of a bar for dancing too aggressively. The song is literally about being safe to dance if you want to.
Joni Mitchell's "Big Yellow Taxi" is about the commercialization of Hawaii. On her first trip to the islands, she looked out of her hotel window and saw a parking lot as far as the eye could see.
In Belgium, where the Battle of Waterloo took place, "Waterloo" by ABBA was a huge hit, #1 for five weeks.
After cutting his teeth on hardcore punk videos, Paul defined the grunge look with his work on "Hunger Strike" and "Man in the Box."
"Great songwriters don't necessarily have hit songs," says Chris. He's written a bunch, but his fans are more interested in the intricate jams.
How did The Edge get his name? Did they name a song after a Tolkien book? And who is "Angel of Harlem" about?
A drummer for one of the most successful metal bands of the last decade, Chris talks about what it's like writing and performing with Slipknot. Metal-neck is a factor.
Beef with Bon Jovi? An unfortunate Spandex period? See if you can spot the true stories in this Metallica version of Fact or Fiction.
Starting in Virginia City, Nevada and rippling out to the Haight-Ashbury, LSD reshaped popular music.