
Ed Sheeran's first single was "The A Team," a song about a drug-addicted prostitute.

Fall Out Boy's "The Phoenix" samples the classical work "Allegro Non Troppo," which was composed by Dmitri Shostakovich in 1941. Vocalist Patrick Stump was inspired by "the creepiness" of the strings.

"Tainted Love" started as a 1964 soul song by Gloria Jones, became a huge hit when Soft Cell covered it in 1981, and was the basis for Rihanna's 2006 #1 "S.O.S. (Rescue Me)."

The line, "I feel the snakebite enter my veins," led many to believe the Godsmack song "Voodoo" is about drugs, but it's really about Wiccan ritual, inspired in part by the Wes Craven movie The Serpent and the Rainbow.

"Take My Breath Away" from Top Gun was a huge hit for Berlin, but lead singer Terri Nunn was the only band member to perform on it. This caused friction that broke up the group a year later.

Featured in the 1978 musical Evita, "Don't Cry For Me Argentina" became the biggest selling UK hit by a female vocalist (Julie Covington).
Did Eric Clapton really steal George's wife? What's the George Harrison-Monty Python connection? Set the record straight with our Fact or Fiction quiz.
Some album art was at least "inspired" by others. A look at some very similar covers.
Bridesmaids, Reservoir Dogs, Willy Wonka - just a few of the flicks where characters discuss specific songs, sometimes as a prelude to murder.
The Scorpions and UFO guitarist is also a very prolific songwriter - he explains how he writes with his various groups, and why he was so keen to get out of Germany and into England.