An Allen Ginsberg line from his poem Howl inspired "Machinehead" by Bush: "Machine says I saw the best minds of my generation."
"I Won't Back Down" is a very personal song for Tom Petty. "I thought it wasn't that good because it was so naked," he said.
"Walking In Memphis" isn't so much about Memphis as it is The Hollywood Cafe in Mississippi, where Marc Cohn encountered an older woman named Murial playing piano.
The Goo Goo Dolls got the title for their song "Iris" from a country singer named Iris DeMent. The word doesn't show up in the lyric; lead singer Johnny Rzeznik said he was "trying to be pretentious and arty by calling it that."
The biggest hit of 2015 was "Uptown Funk," a collaboration between Bruno Mars and guitarist/producer Mark Ronson. Ronson says making it took "six or seven months of chasing Bruno around on tour."
The first #1 hit with a rap was "Rapture" by Blondie in 1980. Debbie Harry's rhymes left lots of room for improvement.
The outlaw country icon talks about the spiritual element of his songwriting and his Bob Dylan mention.
The Yardbirds drummer explains how they created their sound and talks about working with their famous guitarists.
A founding member of the band War, Harold gives a first-person account of one of the most important periods in music history.
"Lullaby" singer Shawn Mullins on "Beautiful Wreck," beating the Devil, and his writing credit on the Zac Brown Band song "Toes."
Martyn talks about producing Tina Turner, some Heaven 17 hits, and his work with the British Electric Foundation.
Foreigner's songwriter/guitarist tells the stories behind the songs "Juke Box Hero," "I Want To Know What Love Is," and many more.