"Mother" by Danzig is about censorship, specifically the Parents Music Resource Center, which pushed record labels to put warning stickers on albums with explicit lyrics.
"Tainted Love" started as a 1964 soul song by Gloria Jones, became a huge hit when Soft Cell covered it in 1981, and was the basis for Rihanna's 2006 #1 "S.O.S. (Rescue Me)."
Jessie J had a lyric from her song "Who You Are" tattooed on her hip, but she spelled "lose" incorrectly so it reads: "Don't loose who you are in the blur of the stars."
The Lady Gaga/Beyoncé collaboration "Telephone" isn't just about turning down an unwanted caller, it's an analog for how Gaga was feeling overwhelmed, like a phone was always ringing in her head.
The EMF song "Unbelievable" samples the raunchy comic Andrew Dice Clay saying, "What the f--k was that!"
In the Belly song "Feed The Tree," the title is a reference to bodies buried under a large tree, thus feeding it. The song is about death, and also respect - take your hat off for those feeding the tree!
Brian has unearthed outtakes by Fleetwood Mac, Aretha Franklin, Elvis Costello and hundreds of other artists for reissues. Here's how he does it.
Meshell Ndegeocello talks about recording "Wild Night" with John Mellencamp, and explains why she shied away from the spotlight.
The revered singer-songwriter talks inspiration and explains why she put a mahout in "Drop the Pilot."
Rockers, rappers and pop stars have been known to quote the Bible in their songs. See if you match the artist to the biblical lyric.
The 5-octave voice of the classical rock band Renaissance, Annie is big on creative expression. In this talk, she covers Roy Wood, the history of the band, and where all the money went in the '70s.
Switchfoot's frontman and main songwriter on what inspires the songs and how he got the freedom to say exactly what he means.