Shaggy wrote his swaggering hit "Boombastic" after learning what "shag" means in the UK.
Musically, the Twisted Sister song "We're Not Gonna Take It" is based on the Christmas tune "O Come All Ye Faithful."
Neil Diamond originally wrote "I'm A Believer" for the Country artist Eddy Arnold. He was surprised when record executive Don Kirshner passed it instead to The Monkees.
With a message of acceptance and inclusivity, "True Colors" became a gay rights anthem. Cyndi Lauper help form an organization called True Colors United to help support LGBTQ youth.
"Jeopardy" by The Greg Kihn Band got the Weird Al treatment with "I Lost On Jeopardy." Kihn and Jeopardy game show announcer Art Fleming both appear in the video.
In Led Zeppelin's "Fool In The Rain," the guy goes into a funk when he thinks he's been stood up, but is elated when he realizes he's been standing on the wrong corner, and it's all a terrible mess.
The Canadian superstar talks about his sudden rise to fame, and tells the stories behind his hits "Sunglasses At Night," "Boy In The Box" and "Never Surrender."
Phone booths are nearly extinct, but they provided storylines for some of the most profound songs of the pre-cell phone era.
Brenda talks about the inspiration that drove her to write hit songs like "Get Here" and "Piano in the Dark," and why a lack of formal music training can be a songwriter's best asset.
The Stooges guitarist (and producer of the Kill City album) talks about those early recordings and what really happened with David Bowie.
What happens when Kurt Cobain, Iron Maiden and Johnny Lydon are told to lip-synch? Some hilarious "performances."
How a country weeper and a blues number made "rolling stone" the most popular phrase in rock.