Songs About Actual Events and People Quiz

Answer: Superior

The Edmund Fitzgerald was a 729-foot freighter that capsized and sunk during a severe winter storm on November 10, 1975. It was a large vessel that was full of iron ore, en route to Detroit. In fact, it was the largest ship ever to sink in the Great Lakes until the end of the 20th century. Despite radioing for assistance, twenty-nine men perished in this accident. In tribute to the men who lost their lives that day, the last line of the song is "Superior, they said, never gives up her dead / When the gales of November come early."

Answer: A boxer

Bob Dylan wrote "Hurricane" about boxer Rubin "Hurricane" Carter. Carter was falsely arrested and charged with murder in 1966. He was found guilty the following year. Carter wrote an autobiography in prison, and in it proclaimed his innocence. Bob Dylan visited him in jail, and became convinced that he was telling the truth.

The protest song was released in 1975, but Carter was not released from prison until 1985 after bringing evidence that he had been wrongfully convicted.

Answer: We can't be absolutely sure

Carly Simon has never revealed who the entire song "You're So Vain" is about. She has suggested that one verse is about Warren Beatty, but that the other two verses are about other men in her life. She has also revealed that the man's name contains an "E".

It could have been written about any one of the options, since she was rumoured to have been romantically involved with each of them at some point in her career. Then again, it could have been about someone else. Simon herself has never revealed who the "You're" is; I guess she has preferred to keep us guessing.

Answer: On a ski lift

John Denver wrote this beautiful salute to his then-wife while he was riding on a ski lift in Colorado in 1973. He released the song in 1974. He reported that he had been exhilarated by his surroundings when he was skiing, and those senses were translated into the song.

The ride on the lift took about ten minutes, and he was able to compose the song in that time. "Annie's Song" was ranked as song Number 25 on Billboard's list for 1974.

Answer: Rock stars' genitalia

The song "Plaster Caster" was released by the rock band Kiss on their 1977 album "Love Gun". It is about a woman named Cynthia Plaster Caster (born Cynthia Albritton), an artist who gained fame in the 1960s by making plaster casts of rock stars' erect penises.

Her collection contains about fifty pieces, including the penises of Jimi Hendrix, and Eric Burdon (of the Animals). In 2000, Cynthia Plaster Caster started to cast the breasts of female musicians.

Answer: Founding band member Syd Barrett

Syd Barrett (guitar and lead vocals) founded Pink Floyd in 1964 with Nick Mason (drums), Roger Waters (bass guitar, vocals), Richard Wright (keyboards, vocals) and Bob Klose (guitars); Klose quit in 1965. David Gilmour also joined the band in 1967. By 1968, Barrett's schizophrenia had taken over.

Besides his mental health, he was struggling with addictions to drugs. He was asked to leave the band by the other members who felt that he could no longer contribute to the success of the band. In turn, they wrote "Shine on You Crazy Diamond" about him.

The song appears on ten albums by both Pink Floyd and solo albums by Roger Waters and David Gilmour.

Answer: 1889

"Vincent" begins with the line "starry, starry night", and is a tribute to Van Gogh's beautiful oil painting that he created while he was in an asylum in Saint-Rémy-de-Provence. His window faced east, and he was able to capture the sky just before sunrise. Van Gogh was self-admitted to the asylum after he disfigured his own left ear during a breakdown in December, 1888.

The sad tale of a brilliant artist on the brink of madness comes across in the somewhat melancholy tune by McLean.

Answer: R.E.M.

The members of R.E.M. wrote and sang this song as a tribute to Andy Kaufman after his death from lung cancer at the age of 35 in 1984. Kaufman was a comedian, well known for playing Latka Gravas on the sitcom "Taxi". Kaufman was known for his imitation of Elvis, and for a variety of his acts that included wrestling characters, and many hoaxes.

When he passed away, many fans believed that he had faked his own death due to the many hoaxes that he had created and perpetuated over the years. The song "Man in the Moon" makes reference to his many imitations and the hoaxes that he pulled over the years.

Answer: Paul McCartney

Even though it is credited to the Lennon-McCartney partnership, Paul McCartney actually wrote "Hey Jude" in honour of John Lennon's son Julian. He started with the lyrics "Hey Jules" after Lennon and his first wife separated in 1968 due to John Lennon's affair with Yoko Ono.

He has stated that he wanted to sing a song to comfort to their young son who was five years old at the time and likely struggling with the upheaval in his life. "Hey Jude" has sold over 4,000,000 copies in the US, and reached Number One on music charts around the world.

Answer: The Queen

The Sex Pistols released their song "God Save the Queen" in 1977, the year that the Queen celebrated her Silver Jubilee. It was their second single, and was on their only studio album "Never Mind the Bollocks, Here's the Sex Pistols". Despite the fact that Rolling Stone has ranked the song at Number 175 on their list of 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll, the song was banned from being played on many radio stations in the UK.

The ban is no surprise given that the song has lyrics like "God save the queen; The fascist regime; They made you a moron; Potential H-bomb; God save the queen; She ain't no human being; . . ."