The first #1 hit with a rap was "Rapture" by Blondie in 1980. Debbie Harry's rhymes left lots of room for improvement.
Jimmy Webb was inspired to write "Up-Up and Away" by a balloon that his friend William F. Williams flew on promotions for radio station KMEN.
"True" by Spandau Ballet is about chief songwriter Gary Kemp's unrequited love for Altered Images singer and Gregory's Girl star Clare Grogan.
"Que Sera, Sera (Whatever Will Be, Will Be)" was written for Doris Day to sing in the Alfred Hitchcock movie The Man Who Knew Too Much.
At the end of the Doors song "Touch Me," Jim Morrison chants, "Stronger than dirt!" The line is from an Ajax commercial where a white knight rides around destroying dirt.
The lyric to "Hold On" by Wilson Phillips was inspired by Chynna Phillips' struggles with addiction. "Hold on for one more day" is something she heard in AA meetings.
He wrote "She Blinded Me With Science" so he could direct a video about a home for deranged scientists.
The Reverend rants on psychobilly and the egghead academics he bashes in one of his more popular songs.
Roger reveals the songwriting formula Clive Davis told him, and if "Eight Miles High" is really about drugs.
How did The Edge get his name? Did they name a song after a Tolkien book? And who is "Angel of Harlem" about?
Billy Joel and Hall & Oates hated making videos, so they chose a director with similar contempt for the medium. That was Jay Dubin, and he has a lot to say on the subject.
If counterpoint and polyrhythms are your thing, you might love these guys. Even by Progressive Rock standards, they were one of the most intricate bands of the '70s. Then their lead singer gave us Bon Jovi.
