How The Romantics went from Motor City Rockers to MTV darlings
Straight out of Detroit Rock City, The Romantics made their first entry into the Billboard chart with a high-energy tune sung by their drummer. That song, “What I Like About You,” later became the sub...
25 Maj 20228min
Judas Priest's "Living After Midnight:" Metal Gods riding the razor’s edge of British Steel
When Judas Priest released their classic British Steel album in 1980, it paved the way for metal music to really hit the mainstream, and is one of the reasons the band were finally given the Rock & Ro...
11 Maj 202215min
Billy Idol’s “Rebel Yell”: from punk rocker to pop star
“Rebel Yell” by Billy Idol is now a classic for good reason. It showcases his unique ability to put a hard edge on a pop song, and it was one of the reasons his 1983 Rebel Yell album went double plati...
27 Apr 202212min
The Cars’ biggest hit was a pop oddity
“Drive” by The Cars was their biggest hit, with a video that sparked a long marriage for Ric Ocasek and supermodel Paulina Porizkova, but the song touches on unusual questions. Cruise through the hist...
13 Apr 202211min
The Thrill Ride of Van Halen's "Panama"
Van Halen’s rip-roaring “Panama” from their classic album 1984 is a song about a car, and a girl, and it represents a joyful, pedal-to-the-metal breakout moment for the band just before frontman David...
30 Mars 202213min
Investigating Elvis Costello’s “Watching The Detectives”
Elvis Costello’s first song to chart in the US was “Watching The Detectives,” a song born out of a night spent listening to The Clash with lyrics that tell two tales. Find out all about it in this epi...
9 Mars 202210min
How Deep Purple’s classic song was born out of flames
“Smoke On The Water” by Deep Purple is a true account of a horrific fire that the band witnessed in Switzerland while waiting to record the Machine Head album in 1971. Find out the insane story of how...
23 Feb 202212min
The J. Geils Band’s hit song about love gone wrong
The new episode of the Behind The Song podcast is about the lyrics and history of “Love Stinks” by The J. Geils Band. An anti-Valentine’s tune that we can all sing along to, it was written just after ...
9 Feb 202210min
