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Behind The Lyrics

Latest stories

The Cars’ Lyric That Looked at Lost Love in Typically Quirky Ric Ocasek Fashion

Watch Billy Joel and His Band Deliver a Pitch-Perfect A Cappella Version of “The Longest Time” in 1984 in a Locker Room Shower

This Billy Joel Lyric Dives Deep Into His Retro Inclinations

Photo of David Ackles via Elektra

The Lyric That Truly Shows off the Songwriting Potency of the Unheralded David Ackles

The Elvis Costello Lyric That Explores the Dark Side of Passion

Portrait Of Jesse Winchester

How Jesse Winchester Established His Elite Songwriter Status With the First Lyrics He Ever Wrote

More stories

  • Warren Zevon performing

    Warren Zevon Included a Quatrain for the Ages in “Desperados Under The Eaves”

    November 2, 2025, 8:00 am

  • The Jackson Browne Lyric He Thought Might Signal the Premature End of His Music Career

    October 30, 2025, 5:00 am

  • This Bob Dylan Lyric Searches for a Wayward Woman and an Elusive Faith (And Both Might Be the Same Thing)

  • The Lyric That Put Richard and Linda Thompson Out on the High Wire

    October 22, 2025, 9:00 am

  • Anna And Kate McGarrigle

    How Kate and Anna McGarrigle Combined Travelogue and Heartbreak Into One Gorgeous Lyric

    October 19, 2025, 5:00 am

  • How Don Henley and His Co-Writers Brought Maturity to a Lost-Love Lament With “The Heart Of The Matter”

    October 17, 2025, 7:00 am

  • This Counting Crows Tune Travels Down a Particularly Lonely Avenue

    October 15, 2025, 5:00 am

  • This Billy Joel Lyric From 1976 Imagines a Bleak Future in the Big Apple

    October 14, 2025, 9:00 am

  • The Radiohead Lyric That Explores Love Damaged by Depression

  • How a Snowstorm Inspired a Lovely Lyric from Colin Meloy of The Decemberists

    October 5, 2025, 5:00 am

  • The Leonard Cohen Lyric About a Love on Its Last Legs

    October 3, 2025, 5:00 am

  • 3 Nostalgic Rock Songs From 1965 That Will Never Get Old

    How Keith Richards Explained the Motivations of “Ruby Tuesday” With Some Crucial Lines of Lyric

    October 2, 2025, 5:00 am

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      • Enter Road Ready
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      • Road Ready Rules and Deadlines
    • Hip Hop Contest
      • Enter The Beat4Beat Contest
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