Michael Jackson's "Human Nature" was written by the keyboard player from Toto, who was working on the Thriller album.
"How To Save A Life" by The Fray was inspired by a teenager lead singer Isaac Slade mentored at a camp for troubled youth in Colorado.
"Paranoid" reflects a feeling Black Sabbath bass player Geezer Butler often felt after using drugs.
Avril Lavigne's 2011 song "Darlin" was written much earlier; she says it's the second song she ever wrote, composed when she was an unsigned 15-year-old living in Napanee, Ontario. The song reflects those years when she was "trying to figure it all out."
David Gilmour really was "Learning To Fly" when he co-wrote the Pink Floyd song - the aviation jargon came from his lessons.
"The Night Chicago Died" was written and recorded by the British group Paper Lace. They talk about Al Capone in the song, but got a lot of details wrong - understandable since they wrote it based on gangster movies.
With a few clues (Works at a diner, dreams of running away), can you name the character in the song?
A top country songwriter, Barry talks about writing hits for Little Big Town, Tim McGraw and Jason Aldean.
Scaramouch, a hoople and a superhero soundtrack - see if you can spot the real Queen stories.
Long before Eminem, Justin Bieber and Nicki Minaj created alternate personas, David Bowie, Bono, Joni Mitchell and even Hank Williams took on characters.
Nirvana, Billy Joel and Bruce Springsteen are among those who wrote songs with cities that show up in this quiz.
The Brazilian rocker sees pictures in his riffs. When he came up with one of his gnarliest songs, there was a riot going on.