Bono came up with the idea of focusing on a soldier's last thoughts as he dies from his wounds in the U2 song "White As Snow" after reading William Golding's 1956 novel Pincher Martin.
The White Stripes song "We're Going To Be Friends" is very innocent, but Jack White feared it would be interpreted cynically. It wasn't, and was even adapted into a children's book.
Mariah Carey's song "The Roof" is about her first kiss with Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter.
"Take On Me" was just a minor hit in Norway until a new version was released with the iconic video, making it a global smash.
When Rihanna's "Umbrella" was a hit in the summer of 2007, it rained constantly in London, prompting their newspaper The Sun to suggest a "Rihanna Curse."
In Beastie Boys' "Paul Revere," the title refers to the name of a horse. They took it from a song in the musical Guys And Dolls where a character sings, "I got the horse right here, the name is Paul Revere."
With the rise of Kindie rock, more musicians are embracing their inner child with tunes for tots - here, we look at pop stars who recorded kids' albums.
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.
An interview with Dr. John Covach, music professor at the University of Rochester whose free online courses have become wildly popular.
Songwriters have used cards and card games to make sense of heartache, togetherness, and even Gonorrhea.
Some album art was at least "inspired" by others. A look at some very similar covers.
