Paul McCartney wrote "Blackbird" in Scotland after reading about race riots in the US, triggered when federal courts forced the racial desegregation of the Arkansas capital's school system.
Chuck Berry's only #1 hit was "My Ding-a-Ling," a novelty song about a boy and his... you know.
"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.
Producer Bob Ezrin convinced Pink Floyd to put a disco beat and children's chorus on "Another Brick In The Wall (Part 2)," which started out as a short interstitial for their album The Wall.
Janet Jackson's "Alright" video features Cab Calloway and Cyd Charisse, stars of musicals she loved as a kid.
The Sam & Dave classic "Soul Man" was re-recorded by Sam Moore and Lou Reed for the 1986 movie Soul Man, about a white guy who pretends to be black so he can get a scholarship to Harvard.
Chad tells tales from his time as drummer for Nirvana, and talks about his group Before Cars.
A selection of songs made to be terrible - some clearly achieved that goal.
Did they really trade their guitarist to The Doobie Brothers? Are they named after something naughty? And what's up with the band name?
Tom talks about the evolution of Cinderella's songs through their first three albums, and how he writes as a solo artist.
She thinks of herself as a "song interpreter," but back in the '80s another country star convinced Emmylou to take a crack at songwriting.
Jon Fratelli talks about the band's third album, and the five-year break leading up to it.
