Judas Priest's "Evening Star" is a Christmas carol that describes the journey of the Magi from a first person perspective.
The TV show Cheers was nearly canceled after its first season, but the theme song, "Where Everybody Knows Your Name," was very popular. To satisfy viewer demand, the theme was made into a full song and released as a single.
"Dark Fantasy" by Kanye West opens with a reinterpretation of Cinderella as read by Nicky Minaj.
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.
The Devo song "Freedom Of Choice" is about mindless consumerism - how people like to make frivolous choices, but otherwise want to be told what to do.
Angus Young created the distinctive opening guitar part for "Thuderstruck" by playing with all the strings taped up, except the B. He learned the studio trick from his older brother George Young, who was the rhythm guitarist for The Easybeats.
Fagen talks about how the Steely Dan songwriting strategy has changed over the years, and explains why you don't hear many covers of their songs.
Does Angus really drink himself silly? Did their name come from a sewing machine? See if you can spot the real stories about AC/DC.
The first of Billy's five #1 hits was the song that propelled Madonna to stardom. You'd think that would get you a backstage pass, wouldn't you?
The stories behind "Whole Of The Moon" and "Red Army Blues," and why rock music has "outlived its era of innovation."
The Sevendust frontman talks about the group's songwriting process, and how trips to the Murder Bar helped forge their latest album.
Writing with Phil Lynott, Scott saw their ill-fated frontman move to a darker place in his life and lyrics.
