"Brad Paisley's "River Bank" was inspired by his childhood growing up 500 yards from the Ohio River.
Christine McVie wrote "Songbird" for Fleetwood Mac's Rumours album in just half a hour after she woke up in the middle of the night with the song in her head.
"Whip It" by Devo is about the rah-rah affirmations delivered by politicians and motivational speakers who often have ulterior motives.
The Naughty by Nature hit "O.P.P." doesn't have any curse words, but many oversensitive radio stations played a "clean" version with the word "kitten" edited out, surely the first time that word was censured.
In Gary Numan's "Cars," the message is that cars lead to a mechanical society devoid of personal interaction. This didn't stop automakers from using it in commercials. Both Nissan and Oldsmobile have used it in ads.
"Video Killed The Radio Star" by Buggles was the first video to air on MTV when the network started broadcasting on August 1, 1981.
Based on criteria like girlfriend tension, stage mishaps and drummer turnover, these are the 10 bands most like Spinal Tap.
The Garbage drummer/songwriter produced the Nirvana album Nevermind, and Smashing Pumpkins' Gish and Siamese Dream.
Did Eric Clapton really steal George's wife? What's the George Harrison-Monty Python connection? Set the record straight with our Fact or Fiction quiz.
We've heard of artists putting their hearts into their music, but some take it literally.
Kristian talks songwriting technique, like how the chorus should redefine the story, and how to write a song backwards.
The Brazilian rocker sees pictures in his riffs. When he came up with one of his gnarliest songs, there was a riot going on.