Sweet's hit "Ballroom Blitz" was inspired by an incident in 1973 when the band were performing in Scotland and driven offstage by a barrage of bottles.
Avril Lavigne has a perfume named after her song "Black Star." It smells much better than her Sk8er Boi scent, which reeks of Axe body spray and road grime.
The rockabilly sound was big in the late 1950s, when Buddy Holly was popular. One of the biggest hits in that genre was the #1 "Party Doll" by Buddy Knox, which used a cardboard box filled with cotton as the drums.
"Sunday Girl" was written by Blondie guitarist Chris Stein to cheer up Debbie Harry after her cat had run away whilst they were away on tour. The gray cat was called Sunday Man.
Al Gore chose an inspiring but obscure campaign song when he ran for president in 2000: "Let The Day Begin" by The Call.
The Black Eyed Peas shot the video for "Just Can't Get Enough" in Japan just a week before a devastating earthquake hit the country.
He wrote "She Blinded Me With Science" so he could direct a video about a home for deranged scientists.
The singer-songwriter Melanie talks about her spiritual awakening at Woodstock, "Brand New Key," and why songwriting is an art, not a craft.
Steppenwolf frontman John Kay talks about "Magic Carpet Ride," "Born To Be Wild," and what he values more than awards and accolades.
Since emerging from MySpace with her hit "Bubbly," Colbie has become a top songwriter, even crafting a hit with Taylor Swift.
Wolfgang Van Halen breaks down the songs on his debut album, Mammoth WVH, and names the definitive Van Halen songs from the Sammy and Dave eras.
One of Canada's most popular and eclectic performers, Hawksley tells stories about his oldest songs, his plentiful side projects, and the ways that he keeps his songwriting fresh.