"Open Arms" was a pioneering power ballad. Stadium rock bands like Journey shied away from slow songs, but when they reluctantly agreed to record the song, it became their biggest chart hit.
On the surface, "Summer Breeze" by Seals & Crofts is just a song about a guy coming home from work, but the duo claimed it had a deeper meaning about finding direction in one's personal life.
One of the first teenage stars of the Rock Era was Lesley Gore, who was just 16 when she recorded "It's My Party," a huge hit in 1963. It gave us the iconic phrase, "It's my party, I'll cry if I want to."
"Killing An Arab" by The Cure was inspired by Albert Camus' book The Stranger.
Beck's "Where It's At" is a nod to the early years of hip-hop when DJs would use two turntables to loop drum breaks, and a microphone to hype the crowd ("two turntables and a microphone...").
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.
The Stooges guitarist (and producer of the Kill City album) talks about those early recordings and what really happened with David Bowie.
The stories behind "Whole Of The Moon" and "Red Army Blues," and why rock music has "outlived its era of innovation."
Find out how God and glam metal go together from the Stryper frontman.
The story of the legendary lupine DJ through the songs he inspired.
They sang about pink torpedoes and rocking you tonight tonight, but some real lyrics are just as ridiculous. See if you can tell which lyrics are real and which are Spinal Tap in this lyrics quiz.
The revered singer-songwriter talks inspiration and explains why she put a mahout in "Drop the Pilot."