Jack & Diane started off as an interracial couple; Mellencamp took race references out of the song at the request of his record company.
Rod Stewart wrote "Maggie May" about the woman who deflowered him when he was 16.
Bob Marley's "I Shot The Sheriff" deals with police brutality in the Trenchtown section of Jamaica, where he grew up. He felt that police assumed young men in the area were all criminals.
Dolly Parton wrote her #1 hit "9 to 5" for the 1980 movie she starred in as a secretary. The film is a comedy and the song has a lighthearted feel, but the message of gender discrimination in the office was very real. Both the song and movie helped bring the issue to the fore.
Clarence Clemons, who played the sax in Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band, had the biggest solo hit of anyone in the group - aside from Springsteen - when "You're A Friend Of Mine" (a collaboration with Jackson Browne) hit #18 in 1985.
Elton John's classic "Levon" runs 5:22, and Elton wouldn't let his record company edit it down for the single. His next single was "Tiny Dancer," which is even longer, running 6:12.
Was Janet secretly married at 18? Did she gain 60 pounds for a movie role that went to Mariah Carey? See what you know about Ms. Jackson.
Scaramouch, a hoople and a superhero soundtrack - see if you can spot the real Queen stories.
How Bing Crosby, Les Paul, a US Army Signal Corps Officer, and the Nazis helped shape rock and Roll.
"How much does it cost? I'll buy it?" Another songwriter told Jonathan to change these lyrics. Good thing he ignored this advice.
Greg talks about writing songs of "universal truth" for King Crimson and ELP, and tells us about his most memorable stage moment (it involves fireworks).
The renown Texas songwriter has been at it for 40 years, with tales to tell about The Flatlanders and The Clash - that's Joe's Tex-Mex on "Should I Stay or Should I Go?"