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Entertainment News

The 25 greatest biographical songs

Prominent events and figures have inspired some of music's greatest and most memorable songs. Many legendary performers have written about real-life happenings; sometimes, those songs defined their careers. Here are 25 of the better ones.

"The Ballad of John and Yoko" by Beatles (1969)

Typically, someone's wedding and honeymoon are not front-page news. However, when one-half of the couple is a member of the Beatles, it's a worldwide story. Those details were covered in this Beatles song written by Lennon and arraigned with help from Paul McCartney. 

"Ohio" by Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young (1970)

One of the great protest songs of all time . Neil Young wrote it in response to the May 1970 shootings of four Kent State University students by the Ohio National Guard . Young brought it to the other three band members, and the song became a massive hit for the four-piece. 

"Smoke on the Water" by Deep Purple (1971)

Known for one of the most legendary guitar riffs of all time, the story behind this hard-rock classic is just as notable . Before the band's recording session in Switzerland, Frank Zappa held a show at a casino theater within the complex Deep Purple was holding those sessions. A fire broke out at the show after someone shot off a flare gun and destroyed the complex. The song was about the incident, and the title came from a dream bassist Roger Glover had when remembering the smoke from the fire hovering over nearby Lake Geneva.

"American Pie" by Don McLean (1972)

While the overall theme of this classic is the end of innocence, the frequently sung phrase, " the day the music died ," has become one of the most iconic lines in pop-rock music history. The reference to that tragic plane crash from 1959, which took the lives of legendary rockers Buddy Holly, The Big Bopper, and Ritchie Valens, was the catalyst for a song about Americana.

"Walk on the Wild Side" by Lou Reed (1972)

One of the more unique songs on this list . This Reed classic pays homage to several real-life figures who touched his life, such as prominent New York City personalities who often visited Andy Warhol's Manhattan studio known as the Factory and actors Joe Dallesandro and Joe Campbell. For a portion of the 1960s and early '70s, these people and day-to-day activities impacted and influenced many lives in NYC.

"30,000 Pounds of Bananas" by Harry Chapin (1974)

The late Chapin was known for his beloved "Cats in the Cradle." However, perhaps the best story behind any of his songs is this one . It's about a truck driver carrying a load of several thousand bananas to a grocery store in Scranton, Penn., in 1965. A mechanical failure caused the driver, Eugene Sesky, to lose control of his rig as he sped into town. Sadly, Sesky died when the truck tipped over, and the bananas flew onto the streets.

"Candle in the Wind" by Elton John (1974)

As we'll see, a few of the songs on this list are straight-up tributes to famous or historical figures. In this case, Elton John and his legendary lyricist Bernie Taupin chronicled the life of famed actress Marilyn Monroe . Fast forward 23 years, and "Candle in the Wind" was re-worked by John and Taupin as a tribute to Princess Diana following her tragic death in late August 1997. 

"Sweet Home Alabama" by Lynyrd Skynyrd (1974)

We touched on Neil Young earlier in this list. Two other popular tracks of his, " Southern Man " and " Alabama ," drew fire from Skynyrd, especially late frontman Ronnie Van Zant. As legend has it, Van Zandt and Co. took offense to some of Young's lyrics from those tracks. " Sweet Home Alabama " was an "answer" to each song and became a massive hit for the band and remains a classic rock staple.

"Hurricane" by Bob Dylan (1975)

" Hurricane " chronicles the arrest, investigation, initial trial, and eventual wrongful imprisonment of star boxer Ruben "Hurricane" Carter and John Artis for a triple murder in New Jersey in 1966. The song has quite a legacy, and Dylan himself became immersed in trying to unearth the truth about the incident.

"Joey" by Bob Dylan (1976)

Like "Hurricane," this tune about notorious New York City mobster Joey Gallo can be found on Dylan's exceptional Desire  record. Even longer than "Hurricane," taking just over 11 minutes of the album, Dylan goes into quite the sympathetic lyrical detail regarding Gallo's life and 1972 murder at Umberto's Clam House in the Little Italy neighborhood. 

"The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald" by Gordon Lightfoot (1976)

Arguably the popular 1970s singer-songwriter's most notable hit . Clocking in at roughly 6 1/2 minutes, the song tells the ill-fated tale of the freighter SS Edmund Fitzgerald, which sank during a massive storm on Lake Superior in November 1975. All 29 crew members died. Lightfoot was reportedly inspired to write a track that reached No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 after reading about the incident in a Newsweek article.

"Bullet" by Misfits (1978)

Many punk fans loved the macabre world of the Misfits. The lyrical imagery was essentially fantasy, and perhaps no song by the band exemplified that more than " Bullet ." It's a rather twisted take on the 1963 assassination of President John F. Kennedy. Then again, would we expect anything less from Glenn Danzig and Co.?

"I Don't Like Mondays" by The Boomtown Rats (1979)

To the casual pop-rock fan, it might seem obvious that the song is about hating Monday. But the song is about the 1979 school shooting in San Diego, where 16-year-old Brenda Ann Spencer killed two adults and injured several children and a police officer . Her reasoning: "I don't like Mondays. This livens up the day." Bob Geldof has said he regrets co-writing the track because it brought undue attention to Spencer. 

"Nebraska" by Bruce Springsteen (1982)

Many critics and fans of The Boss believe Nebraska is his most creative and authentic album. One reason why is the haunting yet brilliant title track . It's a first-person tale about Charles Starkweather, the spree killer who murdered 10 people in Nebraska and Wyoming over a roughly week-long stretch in 1958 along with his girlfriend. Springsteen cited Woody Guthrie as a major influence in his songwriting, and this is the perfect example.

"Sunday Bloody Sunday" by U2 (1983)

One of the band's most popular songs sits atop a long list of politically and historically fueled singles, especially during the 1980s, that became synonymous with Bono and Co. It mainly details the observation of the deadly Bloody Sunday incident in Northern Ireland in 1972, when British soldiers gunned down several unarmed civil rights protestors. When it comes to political songs, this ranks among the greatest of all time. 

"Creeping Death" by Metallica (1984)

One of the highlights of Metallica's stellar second album Ride the Lightning . The band has been known to touch on the historical subject matter in its songs throughout the years. In this case, James Hetfield, Kirk Hammett, Lars Ulrich, and the late Cliff Burton took on the tale of the tenth plague of Egypt.

"Bonzo Goes to Bitburg" by Ramones (1985)

The Ramones usually did not infuse politics into their music. However, with help from prominent songwriter Jean Beauvoir, the band veered in that direction with this mid-1980s song that became more popular as time passed. The song calls out then-President Ronald Reagan's controversial visit to a military cemetery in Bitburg, Germany , where Nazi soldiers are buried, as part of a tribute to those victimized by Nazism.

"We Didn't Start the Fire" by Billy Joel (1989)

The "Piano Man" didn't just settle on one historical event, figure, or piece of iconography to sing about. He offered more than 100. In this fast-paced, rapid-fire listicle of some of the most famous and infamous moments or people in world history, starting in 1949 (the year Joel was born), the famed pop star scored a No. 1 hit and earned a Grammy nomination. To this day, even the most die-hard fans of the song probably have a hard time getting all the words right

"Polly" by Nirvana (1991)

Late Nirvana frontman Kurt Cobain wrote this single off the group's groundbreaking Nevermind  record about the 1987 kidnapping and rapė of a 14-year-old girl by Gerald Arthur Friend in Tacoma, WA . Cobain, whose music was often inspired by disturbing news events, seemed to be particularly enamored with his story of a young girl who was abducted after leaving a concert. 

"Jeremy" by Pearl Jam (1992)

Pearl Jam is no stranger to delving into politics and other headline news. This is perhaps Pearl Jam's most controversial song . The tune is based on 15-year-old Jeremy Wade Delle's 1991 suıcide shooting in front of a full Texas classroom and another school-shooting incident in San Diego, with whom the shooter was reportedly an acquaintance of lead singer Eddie Vedder.

"Man on the Moon" by R.E.M (1992)

Another tribute song. This time to the discombobulated and tragic life of comedian and actor Andy Kaufman , who died in 1984 of lung cancer at age 35. The song highlights some of the more prominent and controversial moments from Kaufman's short but memorable life. The song was a hit for R.E.M. and the name of the 1999 film about Kaufman's life.

"James Connolly" by Black 47 (1993)

Connolly was the revered founder of the Irish Socialist Republican Party and was executed during the Easter Rising of 1916. He has been praised in song on more than one occasion through the years. However, one of the more contemporary tributes to Connolly came from these underrated New York City Celtic punk rockers with this early 1990s anthem that was a fan favorite during their spirited live shows. 

"Harrowdown Hill" by Thom Yorke (2006)

Off the debut solo album of the Radiohead frontman, " Harrowdown Hill " is one of his better solo efforts. The song is about David Kelly, a British weapons expert who reportedly committed suıcide after proclaiming that the British government falsely claimed there were weapons of mass destruction in Iraq.

"The Empty Chair" by Sting (2016)

This is one of Sting's best solo efforts. The tune was nominated for an Academy Award as part of the documentary Jim: The James Foley Story . Written for the film, the song tells the life story of American photojournalist Jim Foley, kidnapped and beheaded by ISIS forces in Syria . It's one of Sting's darker songs.

"Darkness" by Eminem (2020)

The track is about gun control and was released early in 2020 as the first single off Eminem's Music to Be Murdered By record. From his perspective, Eminem takes us into the mind of Stephen Paddock, the man who shot and killed 61 people attending a concert while he was positioned in a window of a Mandalay Bay hotel room in Las Vegas in 2017. 

A Chicago native, Jeff Mezydlo has professionally written about sports, entertainment and pop culture for parts of four decades. He was an integral member of award-winning sports sections at The Times of Northwest Indiana (Munster, Ind.) and Champaign (Ill.) News-Gazette, where he covered the NFL, PGA, LPGA, NCAA basketball, football and golf, Olympics and high school athletics. Jeff most recently spent 12 years in the editorial department at STATSPerform, where he also oversaw coverage of the English Premier League. A graduate of Northern Illinois University, Jeff's work has also appeared on such sites at Yahoo!, ESPN, Fox Sports, Sports Illustrated and NBA.com. However, if Jeff could do it again, he'd attend Degrassi Junior High, Ampipe High School and Grand Lakes University

More must-reads:

• 20 songs that were surprisingly written by other recording artists
• 20 underrated '90s bands worth rediscovering

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10 Great Musical Biographies That Tell the Stories Behind Your Favorite Artists

September 29, 2023

You might know all the songs and albums of your favorite musicians, but do you know the experiences and inspirations behind their work? Luckily, you can find out by listening to some great musical biographies on Spotify. 

With picks that include memoirs from legendary stars including Dave Grohl , Billie Eilish , Gucci Mane , and Dolly Parton , you can discover all the wisdom these greats have to share. 

The Storyteller: Tales of Life and Music

Written and narrated by dave grohl.

Dave Grohl’s autobiography, The Storyteller , sheds light on what it’s like to be a kid from Springfield, Virginia, who goes on to live out his craziest dreams as a musician. The rock icon reflects on everything from hitting the road with Scream at 18, to his time in Nirvana and the Foo Fighters . He remembers jamming with Iggy Pop and dancing with AC/DC and the Preservation Hall Jazz Band . He tells stories about drumming for Tom Petty and meeting Paul McCartney at Royal Albert Hall. Grohl even recounts unexpected moments like bedtime stories with Joan Jett to a chance meeting with Little Richard . 

The Sporty One: My Life as a Spice Girl

Written and narrated by melanie chisholm.

After five women answered a newspaper ad, the Spice Girls were born. They recorded their first single, “ Wannabe ,” and nearly overnight, Melanie “Melanie C” Chisholm went from small-town girl to Sporty Spice.

The Sporty One follows the meteoric rise of Melanie C and The Spice Girls, from the incredible highs of playing at Wembley, conquering the BRITs, and closing the 2012 Olympics, to the difficult lows. For the first time ever, Melanie C talks about the pressures of fame, the shaming and bullying she experienced, the struggles she has had with her body image and mental health, and the difficulty of finding herself when the whole world knew her name.

Dolly Parton, Songteller: My Life in Lyrics

Written by dolly parton, robert k. oermann.

Narrated by Dolly Parton 

Dolly Parton, Songteller goes beyond the glitz, glamor, and rhinestones to the warmth, heart, and soul of a treasured pop culture icon. In this autobiography, 10-time Grammy Award–winning artist Dolly Parton weaves her words with music and memories to give listeners the stories behind her most cherished songs.

How close did Parton come to singing “ I Will Always Love You ” as a duet with Elvis Presley ? How did she become an actress? And exactly who was “ Jolene ”? This one-of-a-kind audio experience answers the most burning questions that Parton’s fans have.

The Autobiography of Gucci Mane

Written by gucci mane and neil martinez-belkin.

Narrated by Guy Lockard

For the first time, hip-hop legend Gucci Mane tells the story of his rise, fall, and redemption in The Autobiography of Gucci Mane . With a string of influential mixtapes and street anthems that pioneered the sound of trap music in the 2000s, the rap icon inspired and mentored a new generation of artists and producers including Migos , Young Thug , Nicki Minaj , Zaytoven , Mike WiLL Made-It , and Metro Boomin .

Taking listeners back to his roots in Alabama, the streets of East Atlanta, and the studio where he found his voice, Gucci Mane reflects on his successes while also confronting his dark past, which included drug addiction, murder charges, and a prison sentence. 

But Gucci Mane has changed, and in this music bio, he provides an intimate glimpse into his radical transformation following his 2016 prison release—one that saw the rapper emerge sober, smiling, focused, and positive. This is one of music’s great comeback stories.

Born to Run

Written and narrated by bruce springsteen.

In 2009, Bruce Springsteen performed at the Super Bowl halftime show. The experience was so exhilarating that he decided to write about it, which then inspired him to tell the story of his entire life.

Vividly recounting his relentless drive to become a musician, his early days as a bar band king in New Jersey, and the rise of The E Street Band , Springsteen fills the pages of Born to Run with humor, originality, and disarming candor. For the first time, the superstar rocker shares the personal struggles that inspired his best work, and shows us why the song “ Born to Run ” reveals more than we previously realized. This isn’t just a legendary rock star’s memoir. This is a book for anyone who has ever wanted to be baptized in the holy river of rock and roll. 

Billie Eilish: In Her Own Words

Written by billie eilish.

Narrated By Billie Eilish, Maggie Baird, Patrick O’Connell

In this special audiobook companion piece, global pop phenomenon Billie Eilish walks fans through the personal highlights and special moments of her life and career, both on and off the stage. 

Billie Eilish: In Her Own Words is full of exclusive and unique content, including memories shared by her parents. Capturing the essence of Billie inside and out, listeners get personal glimpses into her childhood, her life on tour, and more, making this audio edition essential for any fan.

It’s a Long Story: My Life

Written by willie nelson and david ritz.

Narrated by Christopher Ryan Grant

It’s a Long Story is the complete, unvarnished story of Willie Nelson ‘s life. Told in his distinct voice and leaving no moment or experience unturned, the country legend takes listeners on a ride from Texas and Nashville to Hawaii and his legendary tour bus.

Nelson shines a light on all aspects of his life, including his drive to write music, the women in his life, his biggest collaborations, his lowest lows, and his highest highs—from his bankruptcy to the founding of Farm Aid.

Talking to My Angels

Written and narrated by melissa etheridge.

Following the success of her first memoir, award-winning rocker and trailblazing LGBTQIA+ icon Melissa Etheridge returns to take stock of her life in the years that have followed. 

Talking to My Angels is a profoundly honest look into Etheridge’s inner life as a woman, an artist, a mother, and a survivor. With characteristic wit and courage, Melissa delves into how numerous tragedies served as a catalyst for growth, and what the past two decades have taught her about the value of music, love, family, and life in the face of death. This audiobook also features live, stripped-down performances of many of Melissa’s songs, including “ Talking to My Angel ” and “ Here Comes the Pain .”

Chronicles of the Juice Man: A Memoir

Written by juicy j and soren baker.

Narrated by Adam Lazarre-White

The hustle still continues for hip-hop OG Juicy J in Chronicles of the Juice Man , where he shares his invaluable story as an unwavering force in the music industry. Jordan Houston’s rise to stardom was never easy. Beginning with his journey on the streets of Memphis in the ’80s, Juicy J was always inspired by music and had big dreams of becoming a superstar rapper. The Three 6 Mafia member stuck to his plan with determination, rising from a young, poor, ambitious kid to an Academy Award–winning and Grammy-nominated recording artist and entrepreneur. A never-before-seen look into one of the most influential tastemakers in the game, Chronicles of the Juice Man offers Juicy J’s wisdom as a respected industry veteran.

Tell It Like It Is: My Story

Written and narrated by aaron neville.

Tell It Like It Is shares the trials and tribulations of legendary singer and songwriter Aaron Neville through the lens of his faith, family, and music.

Scoring his first number-one hit in 1966 with “ Tell It Like It Is ,” the artist went on to form the Neville Brothers with his siblings Art , Charles , and Cyril . Aaron was the breakout star, and over the next six decades, he’s enjoyed four platinum albums, three number-one songs, and entry into the Grammy Hall of Fame.

But few people know the challenging and circuitous road Aaron took to fame. Born in a housing project in New Orleans, he struggled as a teenage father working to raise a family while building his career as a musician, surviving a stint in jail for car theft and battling heroin addiction for many years. Now for the first time, fans can discover the inside story. 

Eligible Spotify Premium users in the U.K. and Australia can now look forward to 15 hours of audiobook listening per month on any audiobook marked “Included in Premium.”  Learn all about it.  

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Biographical Songs

Songs for teaching about famous people in history.

Add some fun to your social studies curriculum by supplementing your lesson plans with songs!  Whether you need educational music for teaching about explorers, inventors, artists, musicians, scientists, government officials or hereos, you'll find a varied selection below. These Biographical Songs are for children of all ages... and many will also appeal to grown-ups.

* Instrumental or Open-Ended Biographical Songs are available for selected titles. * Sheet music for Biographical Music is available for selected titles. Please also see our School Concert Songs that have additional sing-along backing tracks and/or sheet music available for purchase.

These Biographical Songs are available from a variety of albums:

General Biography Songs Boys Who Rock the World ** - Two of a Kind Girls Who Rock the World ** - Two of a Kind Oh Wait, That Wasn't Me! - Randy & Dave

Songs about Explorers and Adventurers A Brand New World - Ben Stiefel  A Shorter Way To the Indies - Ben Stiefel Age of Exploration ** – Learning by Song Amelia Earhart * – Kathleen Wiley Brigham Young – Kathleen Wiley Christopher Columbus * – Kathleen Wiley Christopher (Kit) Carson - Kathleen Wiley Columbus Revisited * – Two of a Kind Grateful Henry Tempest - Kathleen Wiley Haul Away Henry Hudson – Skip West Henry Hudson's Last Letter – Shawna Audet Grandma Gatewood – Jeff & Paige Groseilliers and Radisson – Shawna Audet Let's Celebrate Columbus Day - Ben Stiefel  Lewis and Clark * – Kathleen Wiley Mae Jemison ** – Two of a Kind Until We Live Our Dream (Jackie Cochran) * – Judy Leonard Until We Live Our Dream (Matthew Henson) * – Judy Leonard Songs about Inventors, Innovators & Scientists Black Lives Made STEM History – Roy Moye, III - 1 Tribe Collective Doctor (Elizabeth Blackwell) – Jonathan Sprout E=mc2 (Albert Einstein) – Jonathan Sprout Hey Oh, Galileo * – J.P. Taylor Interconnected (Rachel Carson) – Jonathan Sprout The Peanut Man: George Washington Carver – Kymberly Stewart Rachel, Rachel – Bay Song Thomas Alva Edison * – Kathleen Wiley Wouldn’t It Be Great * – Judy Leonard  The Wright Brothers * – Kathleen Wiley Through The Eyes Of A Child (Walt Disney) – Jonathan Sprout

Famous Artists Art, Art, We Love Art! (Famous Artist Rap) * – School Art Theatre Productions Henri Matisse – School Art Theatre Productions Henri Rousseau – School Art Theatre Productions Leonardo da Vinci – School Art Theatre Productions Marc Chagall – School Art Theatre Productions Michelangelo: His Biography * – School Art Theatre Productions  Michelangelo Mad – Greg Percy Nothing Wrong With The Black Crayon (Jean-Michel Basquiat) – DJ WILLY WOW! Rembrandt van Rijn – School Art Theatre Productions Review Rap of Famous Artists – School Art Theatre Productions Vincent van Gogh: His Biography * – School Art Theatre Productions  Famous Musicians & Celebrities A Grain of Sand (Pete Seeger) – Bay Song BACH, Johann Sebastian - “Minuet in G” * * – Sing Your Way to the Classics Giuseppe Verdi and La Donna é Mobile from "Rigoletto" ** – Sing Your Way to the Classics LeVar Burton – Pierce Freelon PACHELBEL, Johann - “Canon in D” * * – Sing Your Way to the Classics

Famous Athletes Can't Stop Running (Wilma Rudolph) – Jonathan Sprout Hall of Fame (Roberto Clemente) – Jonathan Sprout Jesse Owens * – Kathleen Wiley

Government Officials United States Presidents The 43 Presidents Song * – Tim Pacific Abe Lincoln * – Sharon Luanne Rivera Abraham – Sam Jones  Abraham Lincoln * – Kathleen Wiley All Across The Land (Abraham Lincoln) – Jonathan Sprout George Washington – Andrew C. Germain Honest Abe – Linda Brown/Dr. Thomas Moore John F. Kennedy * – Sharon Luanne Rivera Man in the Arena (Theodore Roosevelt) – Jonathan Sprout Teddy Roosevelt * – Kathleen Wiley Thomas Jefferson * – Sharon Luanne Rivera Washington – Linda Brown/Dr. Thomas Moore Washington's Hat – Jonathan Sprout What He Wrote (Thomas Jefferson) – Jonathan Sprout Canadian Prime Ministers First Among Equals * – Kim Soleski Ward Prime Ministers Are People Too – Shawna Audet

American Heroes A Tribute to Martin Luther King, Jr . – Mary Miche Agitate (Frederick Douglass) – Jonathan Sprout Aren't I A Woman (Sojourner Truth) – Jonathan Sprout Carry On (Susan B. Anthony) – Jonathan Sprout Chief Black Hawk and Bishop Kerns – Kathleen Wiley Come With Me! (William Penn) – Jonathan Sprout Dr. Martin Luther King * * – Learning by Song  Eleanor (Roosevelt) – Jonathan Sprout The Freedom Three  (Washington, Lincoln, and M.L. King) – Lauren Mayer  Harriet Tubman * – Kathleen Wiley Harriet Tubman Song – Nancy Bryan Harriet Tubman's Freedom Song – Kymberly Stewart Helen Keller – Jonathan Sprout Heroes, Heroes, We Love Heroes! * – Sharon Luanne Rivera I Have a Dream / This is Our Moment (Dr. MLK) ** – Barbara Klaskin Silberg  Johnny Appleseed – Intelli-tunes The Least That I Could Do (Jane Addams) – Jonathan Sprout Martin – Jonathan Sprout Martin is Calling * – Vitamin L Martin Luther King's Dream – Kymberly Stewart & Kira Rappaport Martin Luther King Jr. * – Sharon Luanne Rivera Martin's Heart * – Vitamin L My Name Is Johnny Appleseed – Sam Jones Patrick Henry * – Kathleen Wiley Rise Up: Martin Luther King Day * – Jack Hartmann Rosa Parks – Andy Glockenspiel  Rosa Rosa, Roll On! ** – Marla Lewis  Ruby's Anthem: Education Is A Right – Kymberly Stewart Sacajawea – Kathleen Wiley Share A Dream (Martin Luther King, Jr) * – Craig A. Thompson Sí, Se Puede/You Can Do It! (Cesar Chavez) * – Jim Rule Squanto * – Kathleen Wiley Stand Up for Your Beliefs – Jennifer Fixman Unstoppable (Julliet Gordon "Daisy" Low) – Jonathan Sprout We All Live (John Lewis) – Melanie DeMore - 1 Tribe Collective

Biographical Musical Plays European Explorers in the New World – Bad Wolf Press Martin Luther King, Jr. (10 Minute Mini) – Bad Wolf Press Greatest Americans of the 20th Century – Bad Wolf Press Rappin Clappin Singin 'bout Art Play - Vol. 1 * – School Art Theatre Productions U.S. Presidents – Bad Wolf Press

* Instrumental or Open-Ended Biographical Songs are available for selected titles. ** Sheet music for Biographical Music is available for selected titles. Please also see our School Concert Songs that have additional sing-along backing tracks and/or sheet music available for purchase.

See more of our Social Studies , Native American , Pilgrims , Pioneers , Music and Art Appreciation Song Lyrics

The Legacy of John Lennon's Song "Imagine"

"Now I understand what you have to do. Put your political message across with a little honey." So said John Lennon about "Imagine," the most successful single of his solo career. The song has been covered by artists in every genre, from Liza Minnelli and Stevie Wonder to Neil Young and Lady Gaga , and performed at some of the biggest events across the globe. The Olympics. New Year's Eve. Concerts for Peace. Concerts for Hunger.

The impact of the song is unquestionable. But disguised within its message of peace and love and its flowing piano melody is a collection of edgy, "dangerous" ideas that challenge society as we know it. The song that has become an anthem all over the world is actually full of controversial lyrics and radical ideas. Lennon once called it "’Working Class Hero’ for conservatives,” and indeed, it challenges the status quo at its most fundamental.

READ MORE: John Lennon's Death: A Timeline of Events

It only took one session to record "Imagine"

Lennon composed the song in one session, sitting at his white grand piano in his Tittenhurst Park estate in England in May 1971. His wife, Yoko Ono , watched him as he played the melody and wrote most of the lyrics. He recorded it in his home studio with help from musicians Alan White, longtime Beatle friend (and artist behind the cover of the Revolver album) Klaus Voorman, Nicky Hopkins, and producer Phil Spector , who uncharacteristically kept the track fairly simple. They experimented, at one point having Hopkins play on the same piano as Lennon, but on a higher octave. The more they added, the more they ended up stripping away.

The final mix was done at The Record Plant in New York City, a city where Lennon and Ono would soon make their home. Strings were added by members of the New York Philharmonic, called "the Flux Fiddlers" by Lennon.

The song was released on October 11, 1971. Everyone knew the song was special at the time, but couldn't have had any idea of the impact it would have on the world, both musically and politically. Paul McCartney — someone inclined to be less than generous about Lennon's early solo career, given what Lennon said about his — admitted he knew it was “a killer” the first time he heard it. Bono said it was the reason for his career. George Martin, famous for producing the Beatles' records and helping steer them to musical superstardom, says the album it's on, Imagine , is the one he most wishes he'd produced. And Jimmy Carter said, "...in many countries around the world — my wife and I have visited about 125 countries — you hear John Lennon's song 'Imagine' used almost equally with national anthems."

Critics had issues with the meaning behind the lyrics

It's this that seems ironic, given the lyrics: “Imagine there's no countries / It isn’t hard to do / Nothing to kill or die for...” The song has been accepted all over the world as a song of peace and unity, as it asks us to embrace what some call anarchy and early critics labeled communism. "Imagine there's no heaven.... Imagine there's no countries.... Imagine no possessions.... And no religion, too." Sounds about as anti-American, anti-British, anti-establishment as a song can be, and yet it's a song of positivity and hope, about the possibilities of a better human existence. Feelings of peace and acceptance are swirled around lyrics suggesting we abolish some of the things people hold most dear. Even those who claim to accept the message struggle with its meaning. Lennon was approached by the World Church asking if they could use it but change the lyrics to "one religion" instead of “no religion.” Lennon said no, explaining that that would defeat the whole purpose of the song. Since his death, Ono has been approached many times by groups who wanted to do the same thing, and she consistently refuses. No doubt all the world's fanatics are imagining one religion, but that’s the opposite of what he was singing about.

Those weren’t the only lyrics people had issues with. Many thought it was hypocritical for a man who owned a custom-painted Rolls Royce (and barely drove it) to be preaching "imagine no possessions." ( Elvis Costello , a lifelong Lennon fan, even included it in the lyrics to "The Other Side of Summer," in which he sang, "Was it a millionaire who said imagine no possessions?") Lennon, always a step ahead of everyone, was updating his lyrics in live performances. A year after the song was released, during a performance at Madison Square Garden on August 30, 1972, he’d already changed two of the lines. "Imagine no possessions / I wonder if you can" became "Imagine no possessions / I wonder if we can," and "Nothing to kill or die for / A brotherhood of man" changed to "Nothing to kill or die for / A brotherhood/sisterhood of man."

The second, in particular, was a big shift for someone who'd spent most of his youth as a chauvinist. He later admitted to writer David Sheff that the song had been inspired by poems from Ono's book Grapefruit , and that he should have credited the song to Lennon-Ono. (In 2017, Ono was finally given a songwriting credit.) He said he would have done that for any male artist he worked with, but at the time, he was still backwards thinking and wasn’t “man enough” to do the right thing. But he wouldn't have written the song without her poem and acknowledged it publicly by putting it on the back of the Imagine album cover. His other lyrical influence was a Christian prayer book given to him by comedian/activist Dick Gregory , which touted the concept of positive prayer. The imagination, Lennon was telling us, is the most powerful tool we have.

READ MORE: Inside John Lennon's 'Lost Weekend' Period

"Imagine" is represented all over the world

Of all the songs he wrote and performed, many of which have had a tremendous impact on our culture, “Imagine” has the most resonance. While its influence reaches across the globe, there are physical representations of it in the two places that most represented home to Lennon. The Liverpool Airport, renamed the Liverpool John Lennon Airport, has the line “above us only sky” painted on the roof. Yoko's monument to her husband, in the Strawberry Fields section of Central Park, is a mosaic of the word Imagine, where fans gather to mourn him as well as to celebrate his legacy.

Like Lennon himself, “Imagine” is complex. At first listen, it's easy to think of it as a simple ballad, a song of peace and a piano-driven melody. But the call of peace calls for the abolition of what we often cling to most fiercely. It's not a blueprint, with instructions on how to give up some of the parameters by which we define ourselves, but a call for us to imagine something that seems unimaginable in the world we live in. It's revolutionary without calling for literal revolution and has no less relevance in the uncertain world of today than it did in 1971 when it was written. In a world of unending conflict over exactly the things he mentions in the song, we want to imagine it too.

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