A gospel choir appears in Sam Smith's "Stay With Me" video, but the vocals on the song are all Smith - about 20 tracks of his voice were used to make him sound like a chorus.
Miley Cyrus didn't write "Wrecking Ball" but could very much relate to it. She was having problems in her relationship with Liam Hemsworth, so the theme of giving your love only to have it wrecked really resonated with her.
ABBA's Bjorn Ulvaeus and Benny Andersson conceived "Dancing Queen" as a dance song with the working title "Boogaloo," drawing inspiration from the 1974 George McCrae disco hit "Rock Your Baby." Their manager Stig Anderson came up with the title "Dancing Queen."
A problem with his eyes gave Jackson Browne the idea for "Doctor My Eyes," which became a song about a man whose mental health suffers when he sees the world for what it really is.
The Rick James song "Cold Blooded" is about Linda Blair from The Exorcist, his girlfriend at the time. In James' lingo, "cold blooded" means sexy, not cruel.
The 311 song "Amber" is likely about Nicole Scherzinger, who was dating the band's lead singer Nick Hexum.
The former Metallica bassist talks about his first time writing a song with James Hetfield, and how a hand-me-down iPad has changed his songwriting.
Long before Eminem, Justin Bieber and Nicki Minaj created alternate personas, David Bowie, Bono, Joni Mitchell and even Hank Williams took on characters.
Graham Nash tells the stories behind some of his famous songs and photos, and is asked about "yacht rock" for the first time.
Did Marvin try out with the Detroit Lions? Did he fake crazy to get out of military service? And what about the cross-dressing?
Oliver Leiber talks about writing and producing hits for Paula Abdul, and explains his complicated relationship with his father, the songwriter Jerry Leiber.
How well do you know your protest songs (including the one that went to #1)?