David Bowie's "Space Oddity" tells the story of an astronaut who cuts off communication and floats into space. The BBC used it extensively in their coverage of the 1969 moon landing - an odd choice considering the lyrics.
Young MC shows up in the George Clooney movie Up In The Air performing his hit "Bust A Move."
The Simon & Garfunkel song "Mrs. Robinson" was originally called "Mrs. Roosevelt," most likely after First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt. The title was changed when it was considered for use in the film The Graduate, where Anne Bancroft's character is Mrs. Robinson.
Fleetwood Mac were going through various internecine romantic tribulations while recording their Rumours album. The song "Dreams" was written by Stevie Nicks with the line "Players only love you when they're playing" directed at their guitarist, Lindsey Buckingham.
"Zoot Suit Riot" isn't just a Cherry Poppin' Daddies song - the Zoot Suit Riots were real riots in Los Angeles that took place in 1943 and inspired the song's lyrics.
"Livin' La Vida Loca" is a Latin pop landmark, but "la vida loca" are the only Spanish words in the lyric - "mocha" is English.
The lead singer and pianist for Procol Harum, Gary talks about finding the musical ideas to match the words.
Steve Cropper on the making of "In the Midnight Hour," the chicken-wire scene in The Blues Brothers, and his 2021 album, Fire It Up.
A selection of songs made to be terrible - some clearly achieved that goal.
Danny played guitar on Sweet Baby James, Tapestry, and Running On Empty. He also co-wrote many hit songs, including "Dirty Laundry," "Sunset Grill" and "Tender Is The Night."
Iron Maiden, Adele, Toto, Eminem and Earth, Wind & Fire are just some of the artists with songs directly inspired by movies - and not always good ones.
With $50 and a glue stick, Bruce Pavitt created Sub Pop, a fanzine-turned-label that gave the world Nirvana and grunge. He explains how motivated individuals can shift culture.