The "Doctor of philosophy" in the Indigo Girls' song "Closer To Fine" is based on a teacher Emily Saliers had who had a poster of Rasputin on his door.
The Pretenders are named after the 1956 song "The Great Pretender" by The Platters.
In 2016, Zayn Malik became the first former One Direction member to land a #1 hit on the Hot 100 when "Pillowtalk" reached the top spot.
The 1986 Linda Ronstadt and James Ingram duet "Somewhere Out There" was written for An American Tail, an animated film about a family of immigrant mice who lose one of their young.
When Rihanna's "Umbrella" was a hit in the summer of 2007, it rained constantly in London, prompting their newspaper The Sun to suggest a "Rihanna Curse."
"She Loves You" by The Beatles was the song that convinced Ozzy Osbourne to make music his life. The Beatles were a big influence on him because they were also poor kids from a small town in England.
Test your metal - Priest, Maiden, and Beavis and Butt-head show up in this one.
Soul music legend Bill Withers on how life experience and the company you keep leads to classic songs like "Lean On Me."
The guitarist/songwriter explains how he came up with his signature sound, and deconstructs some classic Fear Factory songs.
Switchfoot's frontman and main songwriter on what inspires the songs and how he got the freedom to say exactly what he means.
John tells the "St. Elmo's Fire (Man In Motion)" story and explains why he disappeared for so long.
His keyboard work helped define the Muscle Shoals sound and make him an integral part of many Neil Young recordings. Spooner is also an accomplished songwriter, whose hits include "I'm Your Puppet" and "Cry Like A Baby."