Elton John's songwriting partner Bernie Taupin wrote the original lyrics for Starship's "We Built This City." It was the first Hot 100 Top 10 hit Taupin wrote without John.
"(Sittin' On) The Dock Of The Bay," released a month after Otis Redding died, was the first song to hit #1 in America after the artist died.
Ellie Goulding's hit single "Burn" was originally demoed by Leona Lewis for her 2011 Glassheart album. She scrapped the tune when the project was retooled to include more ballads.
Sheryl Crow's "Soak Up The Sun" isn't as lighthearted as it seems: the song deals with the prevailing head-in-the-sand reaction to climate change.
Jay-Z's "Hard Knock Life (Ghetto Anthem)" is based on the song "It's A Hard Knock Life" from the Broadway play Annie.
Madonna's hit "Don't Tell Me" was written by her brother-in-law, Joe Henry, who has produced albums by Hugh Laurie and Bonnie Raitt.
The trail runs from flying saucer songs in the '50s, through Bowie, blink-182 and Katy Perry.
The (Meat)puppetmaster takes us through songs like "Lake Of Fire" and "Backwater," and talks about performing with Kurt Cobain on MTV Unplugged.
Soul music legend Bill Withers on how life experience and the company you keep leads to classic songs like "Lean On Me."
An interview with Dr. John Covach, music professor at the University of Rochester whose free online courses have become wildly popular.
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.
At 80 years old, Yoko has 10 #1 Dance hits. She discusses some of her songs and explains what inspired John Lennon's return to music in 1980.