David Bowie's "Space Oddity" tells the story of an astronaut who cuts off communication and floats into space. The BBC used it extensively in their coverage of the 1969 moon landing - an odd choice considering the lyrics.
Jay-Z did the rap on Beyoncé's "Crazy In Love" at the last minute. They had just started dating; she asked him to feature on the track the night before she had to turn in her album.
The Texas songwriter Jerry Jeff Walker wrote "Mr. Bojangles" after a weekend in jail where a fellow inmate told him his life story.
The Ben Folds Five song "Brick" is about a difficult time when Folds' girlfriend got an abortion.
"Master Blaster (Jammin')" is Stevie Wonder's tribute to Bob Marley, released less than a year before Marley died.
"Stuck In The Middle With You" by Stealers Wheel was the unlikely choice for a scene in Quentin Tarantino's 1992 movie Reservoir Dogs where somebody loses an ear.
Songwriting Hall of Famer Linda Perry talks about her songs "What's Up" and "Beautiful," her songwriting process, and her move into film music.
The 5-octave voice of the classical rock band Renaissance, Annie is big on creative expression. In this talk, she covers Roy Wood, the history of the band, and where all the money went in the '70s.
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.
How did The Edge get his name? Did they name a song after a Tolkien book? And who is "Angel of Harlem" about?
How well do you know your David Bowie lyrics? Take this quiz to find out.
A founding member of the band War, Harold gives a first-person account of one of the most important periods in music history.