Paul McCartney wrote "Blackbird" in Scotland after reading about race riots in the U.S. when federal courts forced the racial desegregation of the Arkansas capital's school system.
Australian singer-songwriter Sia Furler wrote "Diamonds" for Rihanna in just 14 minutes.
"Cruise" climbed from 6-5 on the Hot 100 in its 34th week. In doing so it set a record for the slowest ascent to the Top 5 in the chart's history, which was beaten by Imagine Dragon's "Radioactive" 42-week clamber to #4 three weeks later.
The woman "singing" in the video for Technotronic's "Pump Up The Jam" didn't speak English. She was used just for her look, and also appeared on the album cover.
The horn flourish at the beginning of "Jump Around" comes from Bob and Earl's "Harlem Shuffle"; the squeal throughout the song might be a Prince sample.
Bob Marley gave the songwriting credit for "No Woman No Cry" to his friend Vincent Ford, who ran a soup kitchen in Trenchtown, the area of Kingston where Marley grew up.
Famous songs that lent their titles - and in some cases storylines - to movies.
Is "Have You Ever Seen the Rain" about Vietnam? Was John Fogerty really born on a Bayou? It's the CCR edition of Fact or Fiction.
On Glen's résumé: hit songwriter, Facebook dominator, and member of Styx.
In the name of song explanation, Al talks about scoring heroin for William Burroughs, and that's not even the most shocking story in this one.
Prince is shrouded in mystery, making him an excellent candidate for Fact or Fiction. Is he really a Scientologist? Does he own an exotic animal?
Rick has a surprising dark side, a strong feminine side and, in a certain TV show, a naked backside. But he still hasn't found Jessie's Girl.
