Ronnie Van Zant wrote the Lynyrd Skynyrd classic "Gimme Three Steps" after making the mistake of dancing with a girl whose boyfriend was in the bar and probably had a gun. He asked for a 3-step head start.
Elton John's "Rocket Man" is based on a Ray Bradbury story called The Rocket Man published in 1951.
The Jesus Jones song "Right Here, Right Now" was conceived as an optimistic version of Prince's "Sign O' The Times."
Ed Sheeran wrote the 2014 love song "Thinking Out Loud" about his girlfriend at the time, Athina Andrelos. They split the following year, and Ed started seeing Cherry Seaborn, whom he married in 2019; songs like "Perfect" and "No Strings" are about her.
The chorus in "September" by Earth, Wind & Fire is "Bada-Ya, dancing in September." Group leader Maurice White left it "Bada-Ya" instead of a real word because he never let a lyric get in the way of a groove.
"The Way" by Fastball was inspired by the story of an elderly couple from Texas who drove to a nearby family reunion and kept going. Fastball's bass player imagined them taking off and having fun like they were young. The story didn't end well: the couple was later found dead after they crashed in a canyon.
The Cult frontman tells who the "Fire Woman" is, and talks about performing with the new version of The Doors.
The Reverend rants on psychobilly and the egghead academics he bashes in one of his more popular songs.
Dan cracked the Top 40 with "Ritual," then went to India and spent 2 hours with the Dalai Lama.
The in-depth discussion about the making of Jesus Christ Superstar with Ted Neeley, who played Jesus in the 1973 film.
Fagen talks about how the Steely Dan songwriting strategy has changed over the years, and explains why you don't hear many covers of their songs.
Before "Rap" was a form of music, it was something guys did to pick up girls in nightclubs. Donnie talks about "The Rapper" and reveals the identity of Leah.