The Pretenders are named after the 1956 song "The Great Pretender" by The Platters.
"Total Eclipse Of The Heart" by Bonnie Tyler is a tribute to the vampire movie Nosferatu, depicting an immortal "love in the dark."
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").
Bruce Springsteen originally wrote "Fire" for Elvis Presley in 1977, and even sent him a demo. Sadly the King died before he ever heard it, and it was left to the Pointer Sisters to record the song.
Zac Hanson was just 11 years and 7 months old when "MMMbop" topped the Hot 100, making him the youngest group member to co-write and perform a US #1 single.
A scholarly analysis of yacht rock favorites ("Steal Away," "Baker Street"...) with a member of the leading YR cover band.
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.
JJ talks about The Stranglers' signature sound - keyboard and bass - which isn't your typical strain of punk rock.
Charlotte was established in the LA punk scene when a freaky girl named Belinda approached her wearing a garbage bag.
U2, Carly Simon, Joanna Newsom, Brian Wilson and Fiona Apple have all gone to Van Dyke Parks to make their songs exceptional.
