"Piano Man" was inspired by Billy Joel's time playing at a piano bar in Los Angeles. The "real estate novelist" was a guy who always talked about writing a book, but spent all his spare time in the bar.
"Torn" by Natalie Imbruglia was first recorded by the group Ednaswap in 1993. It was written by Ednaswap's Anne Previn and Scott Cutler, who went on to write some hits for Miley Cyrus.
"I Wish" by Skee-Lo was the first hit song to use the word "baller" in the chorus ("I wish I was a baller..."). That term pervaded pop music over the next several year.
The line, "Gotta keep 'em separated" in "Come Out And Play" by The Offspring came to lead singer Dexter Holland when he was a medical student and needed to keep bacteria samples away from each other.
The Strokes admitted to purloining Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers' "American Girl" for their 2001 hit "Last Nite." "Yeah, we ripped it off," lead singer Julian Casablancas said.
Calvin Harris' "Blame" was the first song to break 10 million streams in a week on Spotify. The record was set during the seven days of September 8 to September 14, 2014.
Ian talks about his 3 or 4 blatant attempts to write a pop song, and also the ones he most connected with, including "Locomotive Breath."
The good doctor shares some candid insights on recording with Phil Spector and The Black Keys.
Nirvana, Billy Joel and Bruce Springsteen are among those who wrote songs with cities that show up in this quiz.
Many actors have attempted music, but only a few have managed a hit. Do you know which of these thespians charted?
Are classic songs like "Over The Rainbow" and "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" in the public domain?
