"Truckin'" was written as the Grateful Dead were starting their long, strange trip, settling into a life of constant touring. They rode busses and holed up in modest hotels to stay grounded.
Radiohead's "Harry Patch (In Memory Of)" is about the last surviving World War I veteran to fight in the trenches.
"I Wish" by Skee-Lo was the first hit song to use the word "baller" in the chorus ("I wish I was a baller..."). That term pervaded pop music over the next several year.
The Phoenix song "1901" is about Paris. Their lead singer Thomas Mars said: "Paris in 1901 was better than it is now. So the song is a fantasy about Paris."
An unknown Kesha (known then as Ke$ha) sang on Flo-Rida's #1 hit "Right Round," but refused to appear in the video because she wanted to make a name for herself.
Alicia Keys wrote "If I Ain't Got You" just after she'd heard the news that Aaliyah had passed away. in a plane crash.
Rosanne talks about the journey that inspired her songs on her album The River & the Thread, including a stop at the Tallahatchie Bridge.
Ozzy, Guns N' Roses, Judas Priest and even Michael Bolton show up in this Classic Metal quiz.
In the summer of 1990, you could get arrested for selling a 2 Live Crew album or performing their songs in Southern Florida. And that's exactly what happened.
The Evanescence frontwoman on the songs that have shifted meaning and her foray into kids' music.
The singer-songwriter Melanie talks about her spiritual awakening at Woodstock, "Brand New Key," and why songwriting is an art, not a craft.
