"London Calling" by The Clash was written amid widespread fears that the Thames River was going to flood the city.
Vegetarian Fred Schneider of the B-52's got the idea for "Rock Lobster" at an Atlanta disco when a projector displayed images of lobsters on a grill.
"Heart of Glass" was Blondie's first foray into disco, which turned off some fans. Debbie Harry said they did it because they "wanted to be uncool."
The phrase "Mamma Mia" was big in 1976. It was the name of a popular Abba song, and also showed up in the lyrics to "Bohemian Rhapsody" by Queen.
The wild child Role Model sings about in "Sally, When the Wine Runs Out" is based on various women he encountered when he dove back into the dating pool after a long relationship.
He wrote "She Blinded Me With Science" so he could direct a video about a home for deranged scientists.
The singer/bassist for Concrete Blonde talks about how her songs come from clairvoyance, and takes us through the making of their hit "Joey."
Elvis, Little Richard and Cheryl Cole have all sung about Teddy Bears, but there is also a terrifying Teddy song from 1932 and a touching trucker Teddy tune from 1976.
Michael tells the story of "Send Me On My Way," and explains why some of the words in the song don't have a literal meaning.
For songwriters, Johnny represents the American man. He has been angry, cool, magic, a rebel and, of course, marching home.
Tom stopped performing Thompson Twins songs in 1987, in part because of their personal nature: "Hold Me Now" came after an argument with his bandmate/girlfriend Alannah Currie.
