Goya's "The Sleep of Reason Produces Monsters" provided the title of Mushuggah's song (and album) "The Violent Sleep of Reason." The etching depicts a nightmare, possibly Goya's commentary on the social and political climate in Spain. Mushuggah repurposed it as a look at the horrors in the Middle East.
Don't play "I Will Always Love You" at your wedding - Dolly Parton wrote it about leaving someone behind to strike out on her own.
Jay-Z was going to ask Mary J. Blige to duet on "Empire State of Mind," but he decided on Alicia Keys when he heard the piano stabs on the track.
"The Rubberband Man" is a "short, fat guy" with rhythm and grace. Spinners producer Thom Bell wrote it to boost the self-esteem of his rotund son.
A roadie for the Allman Brothers came up with the line "The road goes on forever" for "Midnight Rider," and got a songwriting credit for his contribution.
Harry Chapin's wife Sandy wrote the lyrics to "Cat's In The Cradle," which were actually about her first husband.
One of Tom Petty's most personal songs is "Room At The Top," which he stopped performing because it brought back painful memories.
When he was asked to write a song for the Singles soundtrack, Mark thought the Seattle grunge scene was already overblown, so that's what he wrote about.
Billy Joel and Hall & Oates hated making videos, so they chose a director with similar contempt for the medium. That was Jay Dubin, and he has a lot to say on the subject.
Long before Eminem, Justin Bieber and Nicki Minaj created alternate personas, David Bowie, Bono, Joni Mitchell and even Hank Williams took on characters.
Many unusual folks appear in Grateful Dead songs. Can you identify them?
Does he have beef with Gaga? Is he Sean Lennon's godfather? See if you can tell fact from fiction in the Elton John edition.
The former Dead Kennedys frontman on the past, present and future of the band, what music makes us "pliant and stupid," and what he learned from Alice Cooper.
