Christine McVie wrote "Songbird" for Fleetwood Mac's Rumours album in just half a hour after she woke up in the middle of the night with the song in her head.
Al Green wrote the lyrics for “Let's Stay Together” in five minutes after Willie Mitchell gave him a rough mix of a tune that he and drummer Al Jackson had developed.
"Walking In Memphis" isn't so much about Memphis, as it is The Hollywood Cafe in Mississippi, where Marc Cohn encountered an old woman named Murial playing piano.
Icona Pop considers "I Love It" a kiss-off to their boyfriends: "we just wanted to get the song out and get the pigs to hear it," Jawo said.
Jimi Hendrix wrote "The Wind Cries Mary" not about marijuana, but about his girlfriend at the time, Kathy Mary Etchingham.
Keith Richards did some studio alchemy on "Street Fighting Man," which is all acoustic except the bass.
Pete produced Dwight Yoakam, Michelle Shocked, Meat Puppets, and a very memorable track for Roy Orbison.
The man who created Yacht Rock with "Sailing" wrote one of his biggest hits while on acid.
Does Angus really drink himself silly? Did their name come from a sewing machine? See if you can spot the real stories about AC/DC.
A song he wrote and recorded from "sheer spiritual inspiration," Allen's didn't think "Southern Nights" had hit potential until Glen Campbell took it to #1 two years later.
Before he was the champ, Ali released an album called I Am The Greatest!, but his musical influence is best heard in the songs he inspired.
The lead singer on "Da Doo Ron Ron" and "Then He Kissed Me," La La explains how and why Phil Spector replaced The Crystals with Darlene Love on "He's A Rebel."
