"Stop Your Sobbing" was first recorded by The Kinks in 1964. It became the Pretenders first single 15 years later, leading to a relationship between Ray Davies and Chrissie Hynde.
"Mr. Roboto" by Styx was written by their keyboard player, Dennis DeYoung, who used Japanese words and imagery to create an allegory about censorship.
Chaka Khan's hit "I Feel For You" was written and originally recorded by Prince four years before she covered it.
Beyonce Knowles and Michelle Williams wrote the Destiny's Child song "Girl" for Kelly Rowland as an encouragement for her to end her relationship with a verbally and physically abusive boyfriend.
Cher was 43 in 1989 when she landed one of her biggest hits: "If I Could Turn Back Time." It made her an unlikely MTV star thanks to a video shot on the battleship USS Missouri where she's entertaining the troops in fishnet stockings and a thong.
The Lady Gaga/Beyoncé collaboration "Telephone" isn't just about turning down an unwanted caller, it's an analog for how Gaga was feeling overwhelmed, like a phone was always ringing in her head.
"When seeds that you sow grow by the wicked moon/Be sure your sins will find you out/Your past will hunt you down and turn to tell on you."
"Mony Mony," "Crimson and Clover," "Draggin' The Line"... the hits kept coming for Tommy James, and in a plot line fit for a movie, his record company was controlled by the mafia.
The men of Sparks on their album Hippopotamus, and how Morrissey handled it when they suggested he lighten up.
Since emerging from MySpace with her hit "Bubbly," Colbie has become a top songwriter, even crafting a hit with Taylor Swift.
An interview with Dr. John Covach, music professor at the University of Rochester whose free online courses have become wildly popular.
Deep Purple's guitarist since 1994, Steve talks about writing songs with the band and how he puts his own spin on "Smoke On The Water."