How the Song Came to Be

‘It’s the Real Thing’: When a Coca-Cola Ad Inspired 2 Hit Singles

In 1971, the creative director for the beverage’s ad agency wrote down the words “I’d like to buy the world a Coke.” His vision for a new campaign took off

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Once Upon a Time: Mark Lindsay on the Raiders’ ‘Good Thing’

The group’s lead vocalist talks about writing the hit single with producer Terry Melcher, the wild story of the Los Angeles home they lived in and the Tarantino movie.

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John Fogerty Talks About Writing ‘Proud Mary’

50 years after he began writing one of his most-beloved tracks, the musician shared how the song came to be

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Gerry Rafferty, ‘Baker Street,’ and That Sax Solo!

The smash hit was written while its author was hanging out in a flat in London, trying to escape from frustrating legal proceedings.

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Zager & Evans’ ‘In the Year 2525’: The Gloomiest #1?

It was, to be sure, one of the bleakest songs ever to hit #1 on the Billboard Hot 100. And then Zager and Evans never charted again.

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‘Billy Jack’: One Tin Soldier Rides Away

The movie, directed, written and starring Tom Laughlin, had a long journey on its way to the screen. Its memorable song was recorded – and charted – multiple times

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The Mamas & the Papas’ ‘Creeque Alley’: Behind the Song

The lyrics are stocked with names and places, some of which may have been (and still are) unfamiliar to fans of the group. We break it down

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Strawberry Alarm Clock’s Psychedelic ‘Incense & Peppermints’

Trivia note: The singer on one of the biggest and most memorable hits of 1967 was not even a band member. Check out the whole back story here.

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Elvis Presley’s Inspiring ‘If I Can Dream’: Behind the Song

There are many goosebump-inducing scenes in Elvis, the sensational 2022 biopic. One such chapter is his 1968 comeback TV special, and its culminating moment

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Carly Simon’s Breakthrough to Superstardom: ‘You’re So Vain’

Watch the singer-songwriter perform a previously unheard verse of her huge 1972 hit from a ‘Carly Simon No Secrets’ classic albums special

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