"Stay" by Shakespears Sister is based on a 1953 B-movie called Cat-Women Of The Moon.
45% of the royalties for "Somebody That I Used To Know" go to the estate of the Brazilian classical guitarist Luiz Bonfá, whose song "Seville" Gotye sampled.
The Doobie Brothers' swampy #1 hit "Black Water" is about the Mississippi River, evoking the rafting adventures Mark Twain and Huckleberry Finn.
Many people believe "Hotel California" is about a mental institution called the Camarillo, but the Eagles say it's about materialism and excess.
The disco song "Good Tmes" by Chic was a huge influence on early rap, providing the bassline for "Rapper's Delight."
"Tush" doesn't have to refer to anatomy, according to ZZ Top. It's a word that also means "lavish."
U2, Carly Simon, Joanna Newsom, Brian Wilson and Fiona Apple have all gone to Van Dyke Parks to make their songs exceptional.
Tom stopped performing Thompson Twins songs in 1987, in part because of their personal nature: "Hold Me Now" came after an argument with his bandmate/girlfriend Alannah Currie.
The hitmaking songwriter/producer Sam Hollander with stories about songs for Weezer, Panic! At The Disco, Train, Pentatonix, and Fitz And The Tantrums.
Famous songs that lent their titles - and in some cases storylines - to movies.
Newman makes it look easy these days, but in this 1974 interview, he reveals the paranoia and pressures that made him yearn for his old 9-5 job.
