
Irving Berlin said "God Bless America" was "not a patriotic song, but rather an expression of gratitude."

"Twilight Zone" by Golden Earring was inspired by the Robert Ludlum novel The Bourne Identity, not by the TV show.

"Killing An Arab" by The Cure was inspired by Albert Camus' book The Stranger.

16-tear-old Lorde wrote the lyrics to "Royals" at home in just half an hour. She was inspired by the "ridiculous, unrelatable, unattainable opulence" that runs through such albums as Kanye West and Jay-Z's Watch the Throne and Lana Del Rey's Born To Die.

Harry Chapin's wife Sandy wrote the lyrics to "Cat's In The Cradle," which were actually about her first husband.

The motto for Boys Town, which was a Nebraska home for troubled youth, inspired the song "He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother" by The Hollies.
In this quiz, spot the artist who put Romeo into a song lyric.
The longtime bassist of Earth, Wind & Fire discusses how his band came to do a holiday album, and offers insight into some of the greatest dance/soul tunes of all-time.
Michael tells the story of "Send Me On My Way," and explains why some of the words in the song don't have a literal meaning.
Rosanne talks about the journey that inspired her songs on her album The River & the Thread, including a stop at the Tallahatchie Bridge.
A top country songwriter, Barry talks about writing hits for Little Big Town, Tim McGraw and Jason Aldean.
Devo founders Mark Mothersbaugh and Jerry Casale take us into their world of subversive performance art. They may be right about the De-Evoloution thing.