List of autobiographical songs

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

Alphabetical order by song title

#-D

• "7 Things" by Miley Cyrus (about Nick Jonas)
• "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, about his road to stardom
• "A Quitter" by Rasputina is Melora Creager's suicide note
• "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 written by Deanna Summers
• "Black Hair" by Nick Cave (about his short relationship with PJ Harvey)
• "Brian" by Brian Wilson
• "Brian's Back" by The Beach Boys (written in response to Brian Wilson's 1976 return to the public eye)
• "Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy" by Elton John (about John's songwriting partnership with Bernie Taupin)
• "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 childhood 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)
• "Cosmia" by Joanna Newsom is about the death and importance of her best friend.
• "Coal Miner's Daughter" by Loretta Lynn (about her childhood in Kentucky)
• "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 & the Papas (describes how the band was formed)
• "Descendents" by The Descendents (about the band)

E-I

• "Early 1970" by Ringo Starr (about The Beatles)
• "Emily" by Joanna Newsom is about her sister, Emily.
• "Fall to Pieces" by Velvet Revolver (about lead singer Scott Weiland's drug problem)
• "Family Portrait" by Pink
• "Family Tradition (Hank Williams, Jr. song)" by Hank Williams, Jr.
• "Feelin better" by Hank Williams, Jr. (1977 album "The New South")
• "The Glen" by Bradley Joseph (instrumentally describes his experience on a cross-country trip)
• "Gangsters" by The Specials (supposedly about the Two-Tone band's former manager Bernie Rhodes, who also managed The Clash)
• "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)
• "Green Eyes" by Nick Cave (about his short relationship with PJ Harvey)
• "Happy Birthday, Darling" by Gene Summers (song he wrote for his wife Dea during their first year of marriage)
• "Howard Hughes by Rasputina is about Howard Hughes
• "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)
• "Homecoming" by Kanye West (childhood sweetheart named "Windy" as an extended metaphor for his origins in the Chicago)
• "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 "Another 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 and Roll Band)" by The Moody Blues
• "I'm OK" by Christina Aguilera (Aguilera speaks out about her abusive father)

J-Q

• "Johnny Was" by Bob Marley (about the notorious Jamaican "rude boy" Trevor Wilson, who was the brother of Bob's former labelmate Delroy Wilson)
• "Journey to the End" by Rancid (about Operation Ivy which shared two members)
• "Jules and Jim" by The Who (about the British journalist Julie Burchill and her relationship with Tony Parsons)
• "Julia" by The Beatles (about John Lennon's mother)
• "The Killer" by Joe Hardin Brown. Produced by Gene Summers (song about Jerry Lee Lewis)
• "The Last Time I Saw Richard" by Joni Mitchell (about Joni's first husband)
• "Layla" by Eric Clapton (about his unrequited love for George Harrison's wife Patti Boyd)
• "Letter to Titch" by Durrty Goodz (written for his brother Crazy Titch about their shared life experiences)
• "The Letter" by The Incredible String Band (about Mike, Rose and a fan)
• "Like It Or Not" by Madonna
• "Liverpool 8" by Ringo Starr (about his life with The Beatles)
• "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)
• "Lover Dearest" by Marianas Trench (band) originated as a letter Josh Ramsay had to write in rehab.
• "Me and a Gun" by Tori Amos (about being raped at knifepoint in Los Angeles when she was 21)
• "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)
• "My Book" by The Beautiful South (about Paul Heaton's life up to the formation of the band)
• "My World" by Avril Lavigne
• "Of Mice and Men" by Megadeth (about lead singer Dave Mustaine's life during his career)
• "Old Lang Syne" by Dan Fogelberg (written about his encounter with an ex-girlfriend)^[2]
• "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)
• "Nan, I am London" by Wiley (written for his grandmother)
• "Nutbush City Limits" by Tina Turner (portraits everyday life in her childhood home, Nutbush, Tennessee)
• "No, It Isn't" by +44 (about frontman Mark Hoppus' feelings regarding 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
• "Que fait-tu lá, Petula?" by Petula Clark spoofs the British public's reaction to her success in France

R-Z

• "Rehab" by Amy Winehouse is about her refusal to go to rehab.
• "Remnants of Percy Bass" by Rasputina is about the interior decorator.
• "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 the beginnings of 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 songwriter 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" by Peter Gabriel (inspired by his departure from Genesis)
• "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
• "Sweet Children" by Green Day (about Green Day when before they changed their name to "Green Day" from "Sweet Children")
• "T.B. Blues" by Jimmie Rodgers (about his tuberculosis), cited in the book Faking It: The Quest for Authenticity in Popular Music as one of the first truly autobiographical songs.
• "Teenage Whore" by Hole (about Courtney Love's stripper career before fame)
• "Tenterfield Saddler" by Peter Allen about his childhood and Australia and marriage to Liza Minnelli
• "That's What You Get (For Being Polite)" by The Jacksons It’s a story of a man ("Jack") whose quest for love and fear of being lonely causes him to do things he may not want to do. The song alludes to the experiences that Michael Jackson faced in his life.
• "Three Little Birds" by Bob Marley (a bout and for his girlfriend, the former Miss World Cindy Brakespeare)
• "To Try for the Sun" by Donovan (about his early days on the road)
• "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)
• "Wake Me Up When September Ends" by Green Day (about the death of Billie Joe Armstrong's father)
• The album The Wall by Pink Floyd; contains elements of the autobiography of lead songwriter Roger Waters
• "We Three" by Patti Smith (about her relationships with Jim Carroll and Robert Mapplethorpe at the same time in the 1970s)
• "West Country Girl" by Nick Cave (about his short relationship with PJ Harvey)
• "What's Your Favorite Color" by Living Colour
• "When We Was Fab" by George Harrison (about The Beatles)
• "Where Do We Go But Nowhere?" by Nick Cave (directed to Viviane Carneiro, a Brazilian journalist and the mother of Cave's oldest son Luke)
• "Who the Fuck Are Arctic Monkeys?" by Arctic Monkeys
• "The Wild Man Fischer Story" by Wild Man Fischer
• "Williams' Blood" by Grace Jones (about Jones' career and relationship with her family)
• "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")

Alphabetical order by artist name

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 the beginnings of blink-182)
• 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)

C-E

• Mariah Carey's "Close My Eyes" (about her troubled childhood)
• Mariah Carey's "Clown" (about Eminem)
• Nick Cave's "Black Hair" is about his short relationship with PJ Harvey
• Nick Cave's "Green Eyes" is about his short relationship with PJ Harvey
• Nick Cave's "West Country Girl" is about his short relationship with PJ Harvey
• Nick Cave's "Where Do We Go But Nowhere?" is directed to Viviane Carneiro, a Brazilian journalist and the mother of Cave's oldest son Luke
• 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) ^[3]
• Celph Titled's "I Could Write A Rhyme" (about his musical career)
• 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)
• Crosby, Stills and Nash's "4 + 20" (about Stephen Stills)
• 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)
• Donovan's To Try for the Sun" (about his early days on the road)
• 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 childhood 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)

F-I

• Marianne Faithfull's "Sliding Through Life on Charm"
• Peter Gabriel's "Solsbury Hill" (about his departure from Genesis)
• 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)

J-L

• Alan Jackson's "Home" (contains direct references to Alan's early life)
• Demi Lovato's "For the Love of a Daughter", "Shouldn't Come Back" (Lovato speaks out about her father)
• Demi Lovato's "Skyscraper", "Warrior" (about her troubled childhood)
• Michael Jackson's "Childhood"
• Billy Joel's "Piano Man"
• Elton John's "Empty Garden (Hey, Hey Johnny)" (about John Lennon's murder)
• Grace Jones's "Williams' Blood" (about Jones' career and relationship with her family)
• Roy Jones, Jr.'s "Y'all Must've Forgot"
• 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)
• 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 "Another 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"

M-N

• Madonna's "Mother and Father"
• Madonna's "Like It Or Not"
• The Mamas & 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)

P-W

• Pink's "Conversations with My 13 Year Old Self"
• Pink's "Family Portrait"
• Pink Floyd's album The Wall; contains elements of the autobiography of Roger Waters
• +44's "No It Isn't" (about frontman Mark Hoppus' feelings regarding 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)
• Jimmie Rodgers's "T.B. Blues" (about his tuberculosis), cited in the book Faking It: The Quest for Authenticity in Popular Music as one of the first truly autobiographical songs.
• 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)
• Ringo Starr's "Liverpool 8" (about The Beatles)
• Gwen Stefani's "Orange County Girl" (about her life since the days before No Doubt)
• Gene Summers' "Ballad Of Moon Dog Mayne" written by Deanna Summers
• Gene Summers' "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"

References

1. http://www.leonardcohen.com/lc06_10.html
2. "Dan Fogelberg FAQ". Retrieved 17 March 2014.
3. http://www.leonardcohen.com/lc06_10.html