
Neither Peter Frampton nor Lynyrd Skynyrd ever had a #1 hit, but when Will To Power mashed up their songs "Baby, I Love Your Way" and "Free Bird" into a lite-rock medley in 1988, it hit the top spot.

"Cult of Personality" by Living Colour incorporates speeches by John F. Kennedy, Malcolm X and Franklin D. Roosevelt.

The philosophical Kansas song "Dust In The Wind" is inspired by a line of Native American poetry: "For all we are is dust in the wind."

Tone-Loc's "Wild Thing" samples Eddie Van Halen's guitar riff from "Jaime's Cryin'."

Elton John's "Crocodile Rock" borrows a bit from Don McLean's "American Pie." Both songs feature a Chevy, and are about young people who are heartbroken when their music "dies."

The '40s hit "Rum and Coca-Cola" is really about American soldiers soliciting prostitutes in Trinidad.
Rufus Wainwright on "Hallelujah," his album Unfollow The Rules, and getting into his "lyric trance" on 12-hour walks.
A talk with Martin Popoff about his latest book on Rush and how he assessed the thousands of albums he reviewed.
Bradley Cooper, Michael J. Fox, Rami Malek, Reese Witherspoon, Gwyneth Paltrow and George Clooney: Which actors really sang in their movies?
In her days with The Runaways, Joan Jett saw The Arrows perform "I Love Rock And Roll," which Alan Merrill co-wrote - that story and much more from this glam rock pioneer.
These overtly religious songs crossed over to the pop charts, despite resistance from fans, and in many cases, churches.
The Winger frontman reveals the Led Zeppelin song he cribbed for "Seventeen," and explains how his passion for orchestra music informs his songwriting.