The Matchbox Twenty song "3 AM" is about the difficult times lead singer Rob Thomas spent caring for his mother, who had cancer.
Rihanna claims that "S&M" is about her love/hate relationship with the media. Apparently her paparazzi are using whips and chains.
The disco song "Good Tmes" by Chic was a huge influence on early rap, providing the bassline for "Rapper's Delight."
"Total Eclipse Of The Heart" by Bonnie Tyler is a tribute to the vampire movie Nosferatu, depicting an immortal "love in the dark."
When the Christian band DC Talk covered Nirvana's "All Apologies" at concerts, they would change the line "Everyone is gay" to "Jesus is the Way."
Robin Thicke and his mom, Gloria Loring are the first the first ever mother-and-son to have both tallied top 10 singles on the Hot 100 as solo artists or duos. Loring reached #2 with Carl Anderson in 1986 with "Friends and Lovers" and Thicke topped the chart in 2013 with "Blurred Lines."
Pool balls, magpies and thorns without roses - how well do you know your Tom Waits lyrics?
Songs where something goes horribly wrong (literally or metaphorically), and help is needed right away.
A founding member of the band War, Harold gives a first-person account of one of the most important periods in music history.
In the summer of 1990, you could get arrested for selling a 2 Live Crew album or performing their songs in Southern Florida. And that's exactly what happened.
Producer Rupert Hine talks about crafting hits for Tina Turner, Howard Jones and The Fixx.
"I'll Be" was what Edwin called his "Hail Mary" song. He says it proves "intention of the songwriter is 180 degrees from potential interpretation by an audience."
