
Teen Spirit was a kind of deodorant marketed to young girls. That's where Kurt Cobain got the title "Smells Like Teen Spirit."

The Nicolette Larson hit "Lotta Love" was written by Neil Young, who recorded a very different version of the song.

War got the idea for "Why Can't We Be Friends?" when they were traveling in Japan and found they had a kinship with the citizens even though they didn't speak the same language.

The motto for Boys Town, which was a Nebraska home for troubled youth, inspired the song "He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother" by The Hollies.

Bob Marley gave the songwriting credit for "No Woman No Cry" to his friend Vincent Ford, who ran a soup kitchen in Trenchtown, the area of Kingston where Marley grew up.

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.
She thinks of herself as a "song interpreter," but back in the '80s another country star convinced Emmylou to take a crack at songwriting.
The Third Day frontman talks about some of the classic songs he wrote with the band, and what changed for his solo country album.
Elvis, Little Richard and Cheryl Cole have all sung about Teddy Bears, but there is also a terrifying Teddy song from 1932 and a touching trucker Teddy tune from 1976.
David Gray explains the significance of the word "Babylon," and talks about how songs are a form of active imagination, with lyrics that reveal what's inside us.
Devo founders Mark Mothersbaugh and Jerry Casale take us into their world of subversive performance art. They may be right about the De-Evoloution thing.
For songwriters, Johnny represents the American man. He has been angry, cool, magic, a rebel and, of course, marching home.