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Allman hustled over to share the song with roadie Kim Payne, who was staying at a warehouse housing the band’s equipment. He kept playing the song again and again for Payne until the latter suggested some lyrics to help Allman finish the song. (Although Payne isn’t credited, he worked out a royalties arrangement with Allman.) Not satisfied, Allman also insisted on recording a demo that night. The problem was that the group’s recording home, Capricorn Sound Studios, was locked up for the evening. Payne took the initiative to smash a window so that the pair could get inside. Eventually, some other associates showed up and helped Allman formulate the demo. From that, the rest of the band built the track. It became one of the highlights of their Idlewild South album in 1970, proof that the band could be just as effective with a short, lyric-driven song as with their long instrumental showcases.

Jo Dee Messina takes us inside the writers room for “Days You Don’t Get Back,” written alongside Tyler Hubbard, Jon Nite, and Ross Copperman. Continue watching at the link in bio.

In his book Life, Keith Richards claims to have not only written the song in his sleep, but also recorded it. In the book, Richards stated, “I wrote ‘Satisfaction’ in my sleep. I had no idea I’d written it, it’s only thank God for the little Philips cassette player.” “The miracle being that I looked at the cassette player that morning, and I knew I’d put a brand-new tape in the previous night, and I saw it was the end. It was just a rough idea. There was just the bare bones of the song, and it didn’t have that noise, of course, because I was on acoustic… But the bare bones is all you need,” added The Rolling Stones guitarist. Following the unconscious writing of “(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction”, The Rolling Stones released the track in 1965. Following the release, the single peaked at No. 1 on the Hot 100 and at No. 1 on the United Kingdom singles chart, their fourth No. 1 hit on the chart.

In response to the gun violence and the lack of gun control laws in America, actor and comedian Jim Carrey wrote “Cold Dead Hand,” a play on Charlton Heston’s words (“I’ll give you my gun when you pry it from my cold, dead hands") from more than a decade earlier with a deeper message: Some folks ride like the wind With the whispering pines to guide them And the burning light inside them Keeps them warm in the snow Others fear the sounds they hear Make bandito’s out of mole-hills Fill their hearts with porcupine quills They’re dead and buried long before they go The title, a play on Heston’s previous slogan, Carrey portrayed the late actor in the Funny or Die music video for “Cold Dead Hand,” directed by Nick Corirossi and Charles Ingram. Also performing with his backing band, The Eels, as Lonesome Earl and the Clutterbusters, the video is set around an episode of the late-’60s to early 1980s variety show Hee Haw. Along with playing Heston as a Hee Haw guest, Carrey also plays the c

Woody Guthrie is known for plenty of classic songs, but likely none as popular as "This Land Is Your Land". Published in 1945, the song began as a parody of sorts of Irving Berlin's "God Bless America". Guthrie wrote what became "This Land Is Your Land" in 1940, one year after "God Bless America" was released. In Guthrie's original version, the song initially ended with "God blessed America for me." Later, Guthrie changed the lyric to "This land was made for you and me," which remains today. The melody comes from The Carter Family's "Oh My Loving Brother". Although Guthrie published "This Land Is Your Land" in 1945, it did not become well known until 1949. That year, Folkways Recording Company released "This Land Is Your Land", which quickly became popular among other folk artists. "This Land Is Your Land" begins with, "This land is your land, this land is my land / From California to the New York island / From the redwood forest to the Gulf Stream waters / This land was made for yo

While Kenny Chesney has been known to sing some pretty awesome party anthems, that doesn’t mean he doesn’t have some tear-jerkers as well. Here are a few Chesney songs that hit, especially once you know their backstories. Dive deeper in the comments below.

Every great song has a great backstory. I'd like to argue, though, that few are as interesting as the story that allegedly follows Whitney Houston's No. 1 hit, "Saving All My Love For You", which topped the charts in 1985. The song sings about "saving all your love" for someone who is married and has a family. In her biography, Whitney Houston 1963-2012: We Will Always Love You, Houston admitted that she herself once had "a terrible love affair." For her, this song hit close to home. The year prior to that, Houston had been involved in a year-long relationship with Jermaine Jackson. Jackson is known for singing second-lead vocals in The Jackson 5, second to Michael Jackson. At the time, Jackson was married to Hazel Gordy. Gordy is the daughter of Motown founder Berry Gordy. Apparently, the affair didn't work out because Jermaine ended up choosing his wife and family. "He was married, and that will never work out for anybody," Houston said of her own experience. "Never, no way." It

“God created you beautifully.” Jo Dee Messina shares the story behind one of the most powerful songs on Bridges. Watch at the link in bio!

It's a rare occasion that a band releases a greatest hits compilation at a time when they're still in their commercial prime. By the time a group has amassed enough hits to make a collection, they likely don't have many left in them. That was the case for REO Speedwagon. They released a 1988 greatest hits album that included their final US Top 40 hit. It also signaled the end of the band as most fans knew it. Once upon a time, a promising band could conceivably be given a long leash by their record company. That could be the case even if hits weren't immediately forthcoming. Take, for example, REO Speedwagon. They churned out eight albums in nine years in the 70s. And nary a song reached the Top 40 in that span. By the end of the decade, they had cut down on their jammier tendencies and started to focus their approach for radio. Still, the shift to commercial success mostly happened for them in one fell swoop, thanks to the power ballad "Keep On Loving You". The song went to No. 1 i

For as serious a songwriter as Paul McCartney is, he's never been one to take himself too seriously. Ever since his days in The Beatles, McCartney has had a boyish, silly charm that persists even in his 80s. That's why when musical parodist Weird Al Yankovic first approached McCartney about doing a spoof on one of his songs, the musician was intrigued. But once he heard the premise, he had to decline. When Weird Al first reached out to Paul McCartney about doing a spoof on his classic James Bond theme, "Live And Let Die", the parodist was doing so as a formality. Technically, U.S. copyright law protects parodies as fair use. Weird Al didn't need McCartney's permission. Still, he prefers to get approval before releasing a spoof to avoid developing any bad blood or potential legal trouble. He might have regretted his propensity for politeness when McCartney turned him down, though. Weird Al planned to turn "Live And Let Die" into "Chicken Pot Pie", with lyrics like, "But if there's one

Myles Smith Discusses Lyric Interpretations at Pilgrimage Music Festival (Franklin, TN). Presented by George Dickel. #mylessmith #pilgrimagefestival

Better Than Ezra discusses their artists recomendations at Pilgrimage Music Festival (Franklin, TN). Presented by George Dickel. #betterthanezra #pilgrimagefestival

Catching Up with Charlie Worsham at Pilgrimage Music Festival (Franklin, TN). Presented by George Dickel. #charlieworsham #pilgrimagefestival #georgedickel

Catching up with Lukas Nelson at Pilgrimage Music Festival (Franklin, TN). Presented by George Dickel. Read more: https://americansongwriter.com/exclusive-lukas-nelson-confirms-new-album-coming-discusses-bluegrass-cover-someone-like-you-more/) #lukasnelson #georgedickel #pilgrimagefestival

We’re throwing it back to this jaw dropping MTV Awards moment. https://loom.ly/l8t1mNw