"All I Want For Christmas Is My Two Front Teeth" resulted from a music teacher's momentary inspiration in the classroom.
"I Just Called To Say I Love You" is Stevie Wonder's best-selling single worldwide. It topped the Hot 100, AC, R&B and UK charts all in the same week.
Jimmy Buffett's "Cheeseburger In Paradise" has muenster (cheese), not mustard, as commonly misheard in the line "medium rare with muenster'd be nice."
You wouldn't know it from the upbeat melody, but "Walkin' On The Sun" by Smash Mouth is about the 1992 Los Angeles Riots.
Fall Out Boy's "The Phoenix" samples the classical work "Allegro Non Troppo," which was composed by Dmitri Shostakovich in 1941. Vocalist Patrick Stump was inspired by "the creepiness" of the strings.
"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.
With his song "The G.O.A.T.," as in Greatest Of All Time, LL Cool J popularized that saying in hip-hop. He credits the boxer Muhammad Ali, who called himself "The Greatest," as inspiration.
Oliver Leiber talks about writing and producing hits for Paula Abdul, and explains his complicated relationship with his father, the songwriter Jerry Leiber.
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.
Based on criteria like girlfriend tension, stage mishaps and drummer turnover, these are the 10 bands most like Spinal Tap.
Are classic songs like "Over The Rainbow" and "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" in the public domain?
You may not recognize his name, but you will certainly recognize Peter Lord's songs. He wrote the bevy of hits from Paula Abdul's second album, Spellbound.
A big list of musical marriages and family relations ranging from the simple to the truly dysfunctional.