The Creedence Clearwater Revival song "Fortunate Son" is about how the Vietnam war was being fought by soldiers without the privilege or connections to get out of it. "It's the old saying about rich men making war and poor men having to fight them," John Fogerty said.
Cheap Trick hated the ballad "The Flame" but recorded it because they needed a hit, and the song delivered, going to #1.
"True" by Spandau Ballet is about chief songwriter Gary Kemp's unrequited love for Altered Images singer and Gregory's Girl star Clare Grogan.
"Jessie's Girl" was the #1 song in America when MTV went on the air. They put it in hot rotation right away, making the song even more popular.
Led Zeppelin never won a Grammy Award; Jimmy Page and Robert Plant earned their first trophies in 2000 for "Most High," a song they wrote together that explores the role of religion in society.
A popular contemporary folk singer, Williams still remembers the sticky note that changed her life in college.
The king of Christian worship music explains talks about writing songs for troubled times.
Laura Nyro talks about her complex, emotionally rich songwriting and how she supports women's culture through her art.
How a goofy detective movie, a disenchanted director and an unlikely songwriter led to one of the biggest hits in pop history.
Tom talks about the evolution of Cinderella's songs through their first three albums, and how he writes as a solo artist.
