Katy Perry's breakout hit, "I Kissed A Girl," was surprising to those familiar with her past: Her parents were pastors and she started off singing Christian music.
Eminem sampled Dido's "Thank You" for his song "Stan," and Dido appeared in his video as Stan's unfortunate wife.
Clarence Clemons, who played the sax in Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band, had the biggest solo hit of anyone in the group - aside from Springsteen - when "You're A Friend Of Mine" hit #18 in 1985.
Aimee Mann's "Save Me" was inspired by her relationship with the actor Dave Foley, who had gone through a divorce and was an emotional train wreck.
"Little Talks," released in 2011 during the folk-rock boom, was the big hit for the Icelandic group Of Monsters And Men. The song is delivered as a conversation between a longtime married couple, but the woman might be going crazy and talking to a ghost.
The first version of The Beatles' "Helter Skelter" was a 27-minute jam, so you can imagine what Ringo was going through pounding away on drums. To convince the guys he needed a break, he screamed, "I've got blisters on my fingers!" This was included on the fadeout.
Famous songs that lent their titles - and in some cases storylines - to movies.
When a waitress wouldn't take him home, Jack wrote what would become one of the Eagles most enduring hits.
You know the scenes - Tom Cruise in his own pants-off dance off, Molly Ringwald celebrating her birthday - but do you remember what song is playing?
One of the first successful female singer-songwriters, Janis had her first hit in 1967 at age 15.
On Glen's résumé: hit songwriter, Facebook dominator, and member of Styx.
Wolfgang Van Halen breaks down the songs on his debut album, Mammoth WVH, and names the definitive Van Halen songs from the Sammy and Dave eras.