Neil Diamond wrote "I'm A Believer" early in his career. It was a hit for The Monkees and revived by Smash Mouth in 2001 for the movie Shrek, helping make Diamond cool again.
The guys who wrote "Take Me Out To The Ballgame" had never been to a baseball game but knew it was a good song topic.
"Never Tear Us Apart" was a live favorite for INXS, who would often extend the second pause for a while as the crowd went crazy.
Kenny Loggins co-wrote the Doobie Brothers hit "What a Fool Believes," which is about a guy who just can't accept that an affair from long ago was meaningless to her.
"Don't Dream It's Over" is the biggest hit for Crowded House, whose lead singer, Neil Finn, sang it on tour when he joined Fleetwood Mac. He wrote the song when he was feeling a bit lost as a way of urging himself on.
Eddie Van Halen played the guitar solo on "Beat It" as a favor to Quincy Jones, who produced the album.
The stories behind "Whole Of The Moon" and "Red Army Blues," and why rock music has "outlived its era of innovation."
The revered singer-songwriter talks inspiration and explains why she put a mahout in "Drop the Pilot."
In the name of song explanation, Al talks about scoring heroin for William Burroughs, and that's not even the most shocking story in this one.
Phone booths are nearly extinct, but they provided storylines for some of the most profound songs of the pre-cell phone era.
The longtime bassist of Earth, Wind & Fire discusses how his band came to do a holiday album, and offers insight into some of the greatest dance/soul tunes of all-time.
Medley looks back on "Unchained Melody" and "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'" - his huge hits from the '60s that were later revived in movies.