By Dr Oliver Tearle (Loughborough University)
‘Love Story’ is one of Taylor Swift’s best-known songs. Released in 2008, it appeared on her second studio album, Fearless. But what is the meaning of this classic Swift ballad, and what was the inspiration behind the song? What influenced Swift in writing the song’s lyrics?
By Dr Oliver Tearle (Loughborough University)
‘Running up that Hill’ is one of Kate Bush’s best-known and best-loved songs. The album on which it appeared, Hounds of Love (1985), represented a return to form for Bush after several years of less critically acclaimed (and commercially successful) releases.
By Dr Oliver Tearle (Loughborough University)
The English pop group T’Pau have some interesting links with science fiction. Not only did the band take their name from a Vulcan elder who featured in the sci-fi series Star Trek, but their most famous song, ‘China in Your Hand’, was inspired by a book that’s arguably the first ever science-fiction novel.
By Dr Oliver Tearle (Loughborough University)
‘Ocean Eyes’ is a well-known song by Billie Eilish. However, this lyric isn’t a self-penned composition, unlike many of Eilish’s other hits. Instead, it was actually composed by her brother, Finneas O’Connell, who wrote it for his band, The Slightlys. But he let Eilish record a version of it, and it has become world-famous as a result.
By Dr Oliver Tearle (Loughborough University)
Here’s a question for you. Which classic song began as Scrambled Eggs, was a song that the songwriter couldn’t convince any other singer to record, and yet went on to become the most-covered song every written?
The answer is ‘Yesterday’, now one of the most popular and best-known Beatles songs. But this song, whose meaning is worth exploring further, had a fascinating genesis, and the story of ‘Yesterday’ is well worth telling.