"Airplanes" by B.o.B was written by Lupe Fiasco, who recorded it but decided to pass.
The '60s hit "Then He Kissed Me" covered by The Beach Boys as "Then I Kissed Her."
Lily Allen wrote "Something's Not Right" for the soundtrack of the Peter Pan prequel, Pan. The song was inspired by the heartache that Allen experienced after suffering a miscarriage when she was six months pregnant with her first child by husband Sam Cooper in 2010.
"Heaven" by The Psychedelic Furs sounds upbeat, but is about an impending nuclear bombardment.
The name "Schoolhouse Rock," which was a series of educational cartoons, was a play on "Jailhouse Rock," the title of an Elvis Presley song.
The bedrock of David Guetta's Nicki Minaj-featuring single "Hey Mama" is a sample of "Rosie," a 1940s prison recording from folk archivist Alan Lomax that songwriter Esther Dean first showed the French DJ on YouTube.
The renown Texas songwriter has been at it for 40 years, with tales to tell about The Flatlanders and The Clash - that's Joe's Tex-Mex on "Should I Stay or Should I Go?"
Even before Soundgarden wrote a song about him, Artis was the most famous spoon player of all time. So why has he always been broke?
When Judd Apatow needed under-appreciated rockers for his Knocked Up sequel, he immediately thought of Parker, who just happened to be getting his band The Rumour back together.
The Jayhawks' song "Big Star" has special meaning to Gary, who explains how longevity and inspiration have trumped adulation.
The singer/bassist for Concrete Blonde talks about how her songs come from clairvoyance, and takes us through the making of their hit "Joey."
