Train's guitarist had to Google an instructional video to learn how to play the ukulele for "Hey Soul Sister."
"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.
The actress Michelle Pfeiffer gets namechecked in the 2014 megahit "Uptown Funk" ("Michelle Pfeiffer, that white gold"). When it was released, "Riptide" by Vance Joy was on the charts; that song also mentions her ("Closest thing to Michelle Pfeiffer that you've ever seen").
"How To Save A Life" by The Fray was inspired by a teenager lead singer Isaac Slade mentored at a camp for troubled youth in Colorado.
"Surf City" was recorded by Jan & Dean, but written by Brian Wilson of The Beach Boys. It was the first #1 hit Wilson wrote.
The Genesis song "Invisible Touch" was inspired by the Prince-written Sheila E. track "The Glamorous Life."
When he joined Guns N' Roses in 1990, Matt helped them craft an orchestral sound; his mezzo fortes and pianissimos are all over "November Rain."
When he was asked to write a song for the Singles soundtrack, Mark thought the Seattle grunge scene was already overblown, so that's what he wrote about.
Bob was the bass player and lyricist for the first two Ozzy Osbourne albums. Here's how he wrote songs like "Crazy Train" and "Mr. Crowley" with Ozzy and Randy Rhoads.
For songwriters, Johnny represents the American man. He has been angry, cool, magic, a rebel and, of course, marching home.
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).
