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.
The Motown team of Holland-Dozier-Holland wrote "Where Did Our Love Go" with The Marvelettes in mind, but they turned it down. When The Supremes recorded the tune, Diana Ross was forced to sing in a lower, breathier style than she was used to because it wasn't written for her.
Robin Thicke had a #1 hit with "Blurred Lines" in 2013, but he wasn't the first in his family with a hit song. His mom, Gloria Loring, was a singer who had a hit in 1986 with "Friends And Lovers," a duet with Carl Anderson.
The names Louise, Jack, Marie and Milo all show up in the song "Footloose." Marie was the mother of Dean Pitchford, who co-wrote it.
When the Elvis stamps came out in 1993, lots of folks used them to mail letters with bad addresses so they would be Returned To Sender.
"Rockin' In The Free World" is a very pro-America title, but the song takes on politicians who are indifferent to the poor and disenfranchised.
In the summer of 1990, you could get arrested for selling a 2 Live Crew album or performing their songs in Southern Florida. And that's exactly what happened.
Did they really trade their guitarist to The Doobie Brothers? Are they named after something naughty? And what's up with the band name?
Don breaks down "Hotel California" and other songs he wrote as a member of the Eagles. Now we know where the "warm smell of colitas" came from.
The guy who brought us "Stacy's Mom" also wrote the Jane Lynch Emmy song and Stephen Colbert's Christmas songs.
U2, Carly Simon, Joanna Newsom, Brian Wilson and Fiona Apple have all gone to Van Dyke Parks to make their songs exceptional.
