R.E.M. got the title "Shiny Happy People" from a Chinese propaganda poster.
"Panama" by Van Halen is not about the country or the canal, but about a stripper David Lee Roth met in Arizona.
Janet Jackson wrote the lyric to "Nasty" in response to random guys calling her "baby."
"Tenderness" by General Public was partly inspired by the outbreak of AIDS, which at the time was thought to be contagious.
"Criminal" is Fiona Apple's only chart hit. Royalties from it allow her to make music on her terms, releasing albums several years apart.
With Bernie Taupin, Martin co-wrote the #1 hits "We Built This City" and "These Dreams." After writing the Pretty Woman song for Go West, he had his own hit with "In the House of Stone and Light."
Established as a redoubtable singer-songwriter, the Men At Work frontman explains how religion, sobriety and Jack Nicholson play into his songwriting.
"Dead Skunk" became a stinker for Loudon when he felt pressure to make another hit - his latest songs deal with mortality, his son Rufus, and picking up poop.
We ring the Hell's Bells to see what songs and rockers are sincere in their Satanism, and how much of it is an act.
Meshell Ndegeocello talks about recording "Wild Night" with John Mellencamp, and explains why she shied away from the spotlight.
If you can recall the days when MTV played videos, you know that there are lots of stories to tell. See if you can spot the real ones.
