Shaggy wrote his swaggering hit "Boombastic" after learning what "shag" means in the UK.
Vincent Price did the spooky narration on "Thriller." He was paid a flat fee of $20,000, turning down a percentage of the royalties that would have paid him far more.
"Stand By Me" hit #4 in the US when it was released in 1961, then went to #9 in 1986 when it was used in the movie of the same name.
"London Calling" by The Clash was written amid widespread fears that the Thames River was going to flood the city.
"The Way" by Fastball was inspired by the story of an elderly couple from Texas who drove to a nearby family reunion and kept going. Fastball's bass player imagined them taking off and having fun like they were young. The story didn't end well: the couple was later found dead after they crashed in a canyon.
KT Tunstall's "Suddenly I See" was inspired by Robert Mapplethorpe's photograph of Patti Smith on the cover of her album Horses.
Famous songs that lent their titles - and in some cases storylines - to movies.
On the "schizoid element" of his lyrics, and a famous line from "Everything Zen."
A band so baffling, even their names were contrived. Check your score in the Ramones version of Fact or Fiction.
A look at the good (Diana Ross, Eminem), the bad (Madonna, Bob Dylan) and the peculiar (David Bowie, Michael Jackson) film debuts of superstar singers.
Katy Perry mentions McDonald's, Beyoncé calls out Red Lobster, and Supertramp shouts out Taco Bell - we found the 10 restaurants most often mentioned in songs.
In this quiz, spot the artist who put Romeo into a song lyric.
