"Kokomo" gave The Beach Boys their first #1 hit in 22 years. They picked the title because it sounded tropical.
"Nuclear Device (The Wizard of Aus)" by The Stranglers was written about the then Premier of Queensland, Joh Bjelke-Petersen. His political shenanigans were observed by the band during their first tour of Australia.
The Rick James song "Cold Blooded" is about Linda Blair from The Exorcist, his girlfriend at the time. In James' lingo, "cold blooded" means sexy, not cruel.
AC/DC's 1990 song "Mistress For Christmas" is about Donald Trump, who was in the news because of his affair with the model Marla Maples.
Before she was famous on Friends, Courteney Cox danced on stage with Bruce Springsteen in his "Dancing In The Dark" video.
Oasis didn't coin the term "Wonderwall." It's the title of a 1968 movie with a soundtrack by George Harrison. It was Harrison's soundtrack that got the band's attention.
John tells the "St. Elmo's Fire (Man In Motion)" story and explains why he disappeared for so long.
U2, Carly Simon, Joanna Newsom, Brian Wilson and Fiona Apple have all gone to Van Dyke Parks to make their songs exceptional.
The Reverend rants on psychobilly and the egghead academics he bashes in one of his more popular songs.
The Bush frontman on where he finds inspiration for lyrics, if his "machine head" is a guitar tuner, and the stories behind songs from the album The Kingdom.
The longtime Eagle talks about soaring back to his solo career, and what he learned about songwriting in the group.
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."