Five Rock Hits Drew From Unexpected Personal Inspirations

Several enduring pop and rock hits were shaped by highly personal or unexpected inspirations. Henry Gross wrote “Shannon” after learning that Beach Boys member Carl Wilson had lost an Irish Setter with the same name, turning the encounter into a 1976 Top 10 tribute to a beloved pet. The New Vaudeville Band’s “Winchester Cathedral” grew from songwriter Geoff Stephens’ view of a calendar image and became a playful breakup song that topped the U.S. chart and won a Grammy. Jackson Browne said “For a Dancer” was initially written to process the death of a friend but later came to embody his memory of his late wife and the grief of many listeners. “Hang on Sloopy,” written by Wes Farrell and Bert Berns and re-recorded by the teenage Rick Derringer’s group The McCoys, became a 1965 garage-rock No. 1, while Peter Frampton wrote “Baby, I Love Your Way” under a palm tree in the Bahamas before its live version made it a 1970s soft-rock staple.