List of autobiographical songs

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This is an incomplete list of songs, which may never be able to satisfy certain standards for completeness.

Revisions and sourced additions are welcome.

Autobiographical and biographical songs. This is a list of songs concerning real people and events in the life of the songwriter.

Contents 1 Alphabetical order by song title 1.1 #-D 1.2 E-I 1.3 J-Q 1.4 R-Z 2 Alphabetical order by artist name 2.1 A-B 2.2 C-E 2.3 F-I 2.4 J-L 2.5 M-N 2.6 P-W

[edit] Alphabetical order by song title

[edit] #-D

• "1968" by The Incredible String Band (Mike Heron directly addresses Robin Williamson)
• "2000 Light Years Away" by Green Day (about the first time lead singer, Billie Joe Armstrong kissed his girlfriend, now wife, Adrienne Armstrong, formerly Adrienne Nesser, and being apart for a while)
• "And It Stoned Me" by Van Morrison about a day in his childhood fishing with a friend.\
• "Alive 'n' Kickin' by (Kenny Loggins) and (Clint Black) about Kenny Loggins' road to stardom
• "Autobiography" by Ashlee Simpson
• "Ballad of John and Yoko" by The Beatles
• "Ballad in Plain D" by Bob Dylan (about Suze Rotolo and her sister)
• "Ballad of Billy the Kid" by Billy Joel
• "Ballad Of Moon Dog Mayne" by Ricky Ringside aka Gene Summers written by Deanna Summers
• "Brian" by Brian Wilson
• "Brian is Back" by The Beach Boys
• "Chelsea Hotel No 2" by Leonard Cohen (1975—about Janis Joplin) [1]
• "Childhood" by Michael Jackson
• "Choppin" Wood" by Van Morrison written after his father died
• " The Circle Game" by Joni Mitchell (about Neil Young, in particular his song about growing up ""Sugar Mountain"
• "Cleanin' Out My Closet" by Eminem (about his chilhood and his mother)
• "Cleaning Windows" by Van Morrison about his first job after finishing school in Belfast Northern Ireland
• "Close My Eyes" by Mariah Carey (about her troubled childhood)
• "Clown" by Mariah Carey (about Eminem)
• "Coal Miner's Daughter (song)" by Loretta Lynn (about her childhood in Kentucky)
• "Cody's Song" by Kenny Loggins (written for his second son)
• "Confessions of a Broken Heart (Daughter to Father)" by Lindsay Lohan (about her father and his cruelty towards her mother)
• "Conversations with My 13 Year Old Self" by Pink
• "Creeque Alley" by The Mamas and the Papas (describes how the band was formed)
• "Danny's Song" by (Loggins and Messina) (based on the words of Kenny Loggins' older brother's letter describing the birth of his son)
• "Descendents" by The Descendents (about the band)

[edit] E-I

• "Early 1970" by Ringo Starr (about The Beatles)
• "Empty Garden (Hey, Hey Johnny)" by Elton John (about John Lennon's murder)
• "Fall to Pieces" by Velvet Revolver (about lead singer Scott Weiland's drug problem)
• "Family Portrait" by Pink
• "The Glen" by Bradley Joseph (instrumentally describes his experience on a cross-country trip)
• "Go Leave" by Kate McGarrigle (about Loudon Wainwright III, Kate's first husband)
• "Green Day" by Green Day (about lead singer, Billie Joe Armstrong's first experience with Marijuana)
• "Happy Birthday, Darling" by Gene Summers (song he wrote for his wife Dea during their first year of marriage)
• "Harold Of The Rocks" by Primus (about how Les Claypool met original guitarist Todd Huth)
• "Hey Jude" by The Beatles (Written for John Lennon's son Julian after John's divorce)
• "History Lesson Part 1" by Minutemen
• "Home" by Alan Jackson (contains direct references to Alan's early life)
• "Home To McComb" by Bo Diddley (Bo Diddley was born in the town of McComb in south-west Mississippi)
• "How Do you Sleep?" by John Lennon (John criticizes Paul McCartney's music since The Beatles' break-up " the only thing you done was "Yesterday" and since you've gone it's just "Amother Day")
• "I Miss You" by Randy Newman (Randy speaks directly to his first wife)
• "I Think That I Would Die" by Hole (about Courtney Love and Kurt Cobain's daughter custody removal)
• "I'm Just a Singer (in a Rock 'n Roll Band)" by The Moody Blues
• "I'm OK" by Christina Aguilera (Aguilera speaks out about her abusive father)
• "Ian Curtis" by Thursday ( About the lead singer of Joy Division before his suicide )
• "Isabella's Eyes" by (Kenny Loggins) written for his first daughter
• "Jimmy Carter Always Tells The Truth (Everytime He Tells A Lie He Grows Another Tooth)" by Joe Hardin Brown. Produced by Gene Summers

[edit] J-Q

• "Journey to the End" by Rancid (about Operation Ivy which shared two members)
• "Julia" by The Beatles (about John Lennon's mother)
• "Killer, The" by Joe Hardin Brown. Produced by Gene Summers (song about Jerry Lee Lewis)
• "Last Time I Saw Richard, The" by Joni Mitchell (about Joni's first husband)
• "Layla" by Eric Clapton (about his unrequited love for George Harrison's wife Patti Boyd)
• "Letter, The" by The Incredible String Band (about Mike, Rose and a fan)
• "Like It Or Not" by Madonna
• "Live Like You Were Dying" by Tim McGraw (about his father)
• "Look at Me" by Geri Halliwell
• "Love In An Elevator" by Aerosmith (about a sexual encounter Steven Tyler had with two women in an elevator)
• "Mockingbird" by Eminem (about his children and wife)
• "Mother" by John Lennon (about John's mother and father)
• "Mr. Bad Guy" by Freddie Mercury (realistically, a self-describing song)
• "Music Of Jerry Lee, The" by Joe Hardin Brown produced by Gene Summers (song about Jerry Lee Lewis)
• "My World" by Avril Lavigne
• "Of Mice and Men" by Megadeth (about lead singer Dave Mustaine's life during his career)
• "Only a Miracle" by Kenny Loggins (written for his first son Crosby)
• "Orange County Girl" by Gwen Stefani (about her life since the days before No Doubt)
• "Outta Here" by KRS-One (about his rise to hip-hop fame)
• "Nutbush City Limits" by Tina Turner (portraits everyday life in her childhood home, Nutbush, Tennessee)
• "No It Isn't" by +44 (concerning the break-up of blink-182.)
• "No More No More" by Aerosmith (about life as a touring band)
• "No Surprize" by Aerosmith (also about life as a touring band)
• "Piano Man" by Billy Joel
• "Playdough" by The Aquabats is a song about how life was easier when you were a kid and could play with Star Wars action figures
• "Que fait-tu lá, Petula?" by Petula Clark spoofs the British public's reaction to her success in France

[edit] R-Z

• "Rabbit Run" by Eminem (about Jimmy Smith's life... from the 8 Mile movie soundtrack)
• "Rite of Spring" by Angels & Airwaves (about Tom DeLonge's teenage years and him starting blink-182)
• "The Real Thing" by (Kenny Loggins) about his divorce from his first wife and describing it to his newborn daughter
• "Rosanna" by (Toto) about (Rosanna Arquette) dating Steve Porcaro at the time
• "Rock and Roll Band" by Boston about their early playing days
• "Retard Girl" by Hole (about Courtney Love's bullying at school)
• "Revelation" by D12 (about the childhood of each member)
• "Sara" by Bob Dylan (about his first wife)
• "Serve the Servants" by Nirvana (about Kurt's lifelong angst)
• "Shadow" by Ashlee Simpson
• "She" by Green Day (about self-confidence and self-esteem problems faced by lead singer, Billie Joe Armstrong's former girlfriend)
• "She Has A Girlfriend Now" by Reel Big Fish (about a girl who dumped songwirter Aaron Barrett for another girl)
• "Sliding Through Life on Charm" by Marianne Faithfull
• "Slipping Through My Fingers" by ABBA (inspired by the daughter of band members Björn Ulvaeus and Agnetha Fältskog, who had recently started school at the time the song was recorded)
• "Solsbury Hill (song)" by Peter Gabriel (inspired by his departure from Genesis (band)
• "Son of Evil" by GG Allin
• "Story of Bo Diddley" (aka "My Story") by Bo Diddley (relates Bo Diddley's birth in McComb, Mississippi and his move to Chicago, Illinois to find fame)
• "Sunset Strip" by Courtney Love
• "Suite: Judy Blue Eyes" by Crosby, Stills and Nash (about Judy Collins)
• "Sweet Children" by Green Day (about Green Day when before they changed their name to "Green Day" from "Sweet Children")
• "Teenage Whore" by Hole (about Courtney Love's stripper career before fame)
• "Tenterfield Saddler" by (Peter Allen) about his childhood and Australila and marriage to (Liza Minnell)
• "Terri Summers" by Adrian Evans
• "Two Twenty Nine" by Brave Saint Saturn (deals with the death of Reese Ropers grandmother)
• "Two Rivers" by Petula Clark
• "Undergoing Treatment" by Duran Duran (about how the band has been chronically mistreated by the music press and establishment and how it has been coping with the downward slide in their overall popularity)
• The album Wall, The by Pink Floyd; autobiography of lead songwriter Roger Waters
• "Wild Man Fischer Story, The" by Wild Man Fischer
• "We Three" by Patti Smith (about her relationships with Jim Carroll and Robert Mapplethorpe at the same time in the 1970s)
• "Wake Me Up When September Ends" by Green Day (about the death of Billie Joe Armstrong's father)
• "What's Your Favorite Color" by Living Colour
• "When We was Fab" by George Harrison (about The Beatles)
• "Who the Fuck Are Arctic Monkeys?" by Arctic Monkeys
• "With Arms Wide Open" by Creed (about lead singer Scott Stapp's son, Jagger Stapp)
• "Your Mother and I" by Loudon Wainwright III (see "Go Leave")

[edit] Alphabetical order by artist name

[edit] A-B

• ABBA's "Slipping Through My Fingers" (inspired by the daughter of band members Björn Ulvaeus and Agnetha Fältskog, who had recently started school at the time the song was recorded)
• Aerosmith's "Love In An Elevator" (about a sexual encounter Steven Tyler had with two women in an elevator)
• Aerosmith's "No More No More" (about life as a touring band)
• Aerosmith's "No Surprize" (also about life as a touring band)
• Christina Aguilera's "I'm OK" (Aguilera speaks out about her abusive father)
• Angels & Airwaves' "Rite of Spring" (about Tom DeLonge's teenage years and him starting blink-182)
• The Aquabats' "Playdough" is a song about how life was easier when you were a kid and could play with Star Wars action figures
• The Arctic Monkeys' "Who the Fuck Are Arctic Monkeys?"
• The Beach Boys' "Brian is Back"
• The Beatles' "Ballad of John and Yoko"
• The Beatles' "Julia" (about John Lennon's mother)
• Boston's "Rock and Roll Band" about their early playing days
• Brave Saint Saturn's "Two Twenty Nine" (deals with the death of Reese Ropers grandmother)
• Joe Hardin Brown's "Jimmy Carter Always Tells The Truth (Everytime He Tells A Lie He Grows Another Tooth)," produced by Gene Summers
• Joe Hardin Brown's "The Killer," produced by Gene Summers (song about Jerry Lee Lewis)
• Joe Hardin Brown's "The Music Of Jerry Lee," produced by Gene Summers (song about Jerry Lee Lewis)

[edit] C-E

• Mariah Carey's "Close My Eyes" (about her troubled childhood)
• Mariah Carey's "Clown" (about Eminem)
• Eric Clapton's "Layla" (about his unrequited love for George Harrison's wife Patti Boyd)
• Petula Clark's "Que fait-tu lá, Petula?" spoofs the British public's reaction to her success in France
• Petula Clark's "Two Rivers"
• Leonard Cohen's "Chelsea Hotel No 2" (1975—about Janis Joplin) [2]
• Creed's "With Arms Wide Open" (about lead singer Scott Stapp's son, Jagger Stapp)
• Crosby, Stills and Nash's "Suite: Judy Blue Eyes" (about Judy Collins)
• D12's "Revelation" (about the childhood of each member)
• The Descendents' "Descendents" (about the band)
• Bo Diddley's "Home To McComb" (Bo Diddley was born in the town of McComb in south-west Mississippi)
• Bo Diddley's "Story of Bo Diddley" (aka "My Story") (relates Bo Diddley's birth in McComb, Mississippi and his move to Chicago, Illinois to find fame)
• Duran Duran's "Undergoing Treatment" (about how the band has been chronically mistreated by the music press and establishment and how it has been coping with the downward slide in their overall popularity)
• Bob Dylan's "Ballad in Plain D" (about Suze Rotolo and her sister)
• Bob Dylan's "Sara" (about his first wife)
• Eminem's "Cleanin' Out My Closet" (about his chilhood and his mother)
• Eminem's "Rabbit Run" (about Jimmy Smith's life... from the 8 Mile movie soundtrack)
• Eminem's "Mockingbird" (about his children and wife)
• Adrian Evans' "Terri Summers"

[edit] F-I

• Marianne Faithfull's "Sliding Through Life on Charm"
• Peter Gabriel's ""Solsbury Hill (song)" (about his departure from Genesis (band)
• Green Day's "2000 Light Years Away" (about the first time lead singer, Billie Joe Armstrong kissed his girlfriend, now wife, Adrienne Armstrong, formerly Adrienne Nesser, and being apart for a while)
• GG Allin's "Son of Evil
• Green Day's "Green Day" (about lead singer, Billie Joe Armstrong's first experience with Marijuana)
• Green Day's "She" (about self-confidence and self-esteem problems faced by lead singer, Billie Joe Armstrong's former girlfriend)
• Green Day's "Sweet Children" (about Green Day when before they changed their name to "Green Day" from "Sweet Children")
• Green Day's "Wake Me Up When September Ends" (about the death of Billie Joe Armstrong's father)
• Geri Halliwell's "Look at Me"
• George Harrison's "When We was Fab" (about The Beatles)
• Hole's "I Think That I Would Die" (about Courtney Love and Kurt Cobain's daughter custody removal)
• Hole's "Retard Girl" (about Courtney Love's bullying at school)
• Hole's "Teenage Whore" (about Courtney Love's stripper career before fame)
• The Incredible String Band's "1968" (Mike Heron directly addresses Robin Williamson)
• The Incredible String Band's "The Letter" (about Mike, Rose and a fan)

[edit] J-L

• Alan Jackson's "Home" (contains direct references to Alan's early life)
• Michael Jackson's "Childhood"
• Billy Joel's "Ballad of Billy the Kid"
• Billy Joel's "Piano Man"
• Elton John's "Empty Garden (Hey, Hey Johnny)" (about John Lennon's murder)
• Bradley Joseph's "The Glen" (instrumentally describes his experience on a cross-country trip)
• KRS-One's "Outta Here" (about his rise to hip-hop fame)
• Avril Lavigne's "My World"
• John Lennon's "How Do you Sleep?" (John criticizes Paul McCartney's music since The Beatles' break-up " the only thing you done was "Yesterday" and since you've gone it's just "Amother Day")
• John Lennon's "Mother" (about John's mother and father)
• Living Colour's "What's Your Favorite Color"
• Lindsay Lohan's "Confessions of a Broken Heart (Daughter to Father)" (about her father and his cruelty towards her mother)
• Courtney Love's "Sunset Strip"
• Loretta Lynn's "Coal Miner's Daughter (song)"

[edit] M-N

• Madonna's "Mother and Father"
• Madonna's "Like It Or Not"
• The Mamas and the Papas' "Creeque Alley" (describes how the band was formed)
• Kate McGarrigle's "Go Leave" (about Loudon Wainwright III, Kate's first husband)
• Tim McGraw's "Live Like You Were Dying" (about his father)
• Megadeth's "Of Mice and Men" (about lead singer Dave Mustaine's life during his career)
• Freddie Mercury's "Mr. Bad Guy" (realistically, a self-describing song)
• The Minutemen's "History Lesson Part 1"
• Joni Mitchell's "The Circle Game" (about Neil Young, in particular his song about growing up ""Sugar Mountain"
• Joni Mitchell's "The Last Time I Saw Richard" (about Joni's first husband)
• The Moody Blues' "I'm Just a Singer (in a Rock 'n Roll Band)"
• Van Morrison's "And It Stoned Me" about a day in his childhood fishing with a friend.
• Van Morrison's "Choppin' Wood" written after his father died
• Van Morrison's "Cleaning Windows" about his first job after finishing school in Belfast Northern Ireland
• Randy Newman's "I Miss You" (Randy speaks directly to his first wife)
• Nirvana's "Serve the Servants" (about Kurt's lifelong angst)

[edit] P-W

• Pink's "Conversations with My 13 Year Old Self"
• Pink's "Family Portrait"
• Pink Floyd's album Wall, The; autobiography of lead songwriter Roger Waters
• +44's "No It Isn't" (concerning the break-up of blink-182.)
• Primus's "Harold Of The Rocks" (about how Les Claypool met original guitarist Todd Huth)
• Rancid's "Journey to the End" (about Operation Ivy which shared two members)
• Reel Big Fish's "She Has A Girlfriend Now" (about a girl who dumped songwirter Aaron Barrett for another girl)
• Ashlee Simpson's "Autobiography"
• Ashlee Simpson's "Shadow"
• Patti Smith's "We Three" (about her relationships with Jim Carroll and Robert Mapplethorpe at the same time in the 1970s)
• Britney Spears's "Piece of Me"
• Ringo Starr's "Early 1970" (about The Beatles)
• Gwen Stefani's "Orange County Girl" (about her life since the days before No Doubt)
• Gene Summers's "Ballad Of Moon Dog Mayne" written by Deanna Summers
• Gene Summers's "Happy Birthday, Darling" (song he wrote for his wife Dea during their first year of marriage)
• Thursday's "Ian Curtis" (About the lead singer of Joy Division before his suicide)
• Tina Turner's "Nutbush City Limits" (portraits everyday life in her childhood home, Nutbush, Tennessee)
• Velvet Revolver's "Fall to Pieces" (about lead singer Scott Weiland's drug problem)
• Loudon Wainwright III's "Your Mother and I" (see "Go Leave")
• Wild Man Fischer's "The Wild Man Fischer Story"
• Brian Wilson's "Brian"