Curiosities you may not have known about Sam Smith, who turns 31 today

Sometimes a cover song manages to be more successful than the original song. In fact, some of these songs have climbed the charts after being recorded by other artists or bands, despite the fact that theirs is not the original version.

From rock to metal to country and pop: many musicians have created new versions of historical songs, creating true masterpieces.

For many of these songs, we have even forgotten who the author or musician was who created the original version. Here are some of the most sensational cases.

'Club 27' is a journalistic expression referring to a number of songwriters and musicians, mostly from a rock background, who all died at the age of 27. 

This project, created with the support of Artificial Intelligence by artist Gil Finkelstein (Instagram account @gilfinkelstein), shows what these great musicians of the past would look like today if they had not all left when they were still very young. 

From Kurt Cobain to Jim Morrison: what would music stars who died at the age of 27 look like today.

There are so many band in which, compared to the original lineup, the guitarist is the last one left still working.

We are talking about some of the most famous groups in the world, in which, for a variety of reasons, the other members of band are no longer part of the team. Some of these groups, however, continue to exist by enlisting the support of new members or turnaround singers and musicians.

Browse the photo gallery to learn about bands in which the guitarist has remained the only original member.

Boy bands have always been an institution in music. Over the decades, the definition of a boy band has changed and evolved from a real youth band to a simple vocal group. 

The well-known Rolling Stone magazine asked its readers to vote for their top ten favourite boy bands and then compiled and published their ranking, based on this poll. 

Here, according to Rolling Stone, are the 10 best boy bands of all time, always bearing in mind that there is nothing more subjective than music and everyone has, inevitably and rightly, their own personal Top 10.

Puns, references to events of the past or random terms: often behind the birth of the name of some of the most famous band in the world there are very curious anecdotes.

Some names were born almost by chance, such as that of the Rolling Stones, while others derive from musical characters of the past, as in the case of the Pink Floyd.

Here's where the name of some of the main groups that have made the history of music, especially in the world of rock come from: browse the photo gallery to learn more!

When a band becomes famous, the name by which everyone knows it may not have been the first choice in the initial phase of the band's life.

In fact, in addition to the band members, one of the most important decisions for a band is the name to be used. The name is the first detail that represents the band; it must be impressive, it must mean something and it must remain in the hearts and memories of the fans.  

Many famous bands, which have now become historical, opted for a different name at the beginning of their career: here are some of the most famous examples.

In its issue 931 of 18 September 2003, the well-known music magazine Rolling Stone published a list of the 100 best guitarists of all time. The list is mostly made up of American rock, blues and jazz guitarists, and although there are some of the best artists in the history of music, some feel that certain positions are unfair. 

The list was later revised by Rolling Stone after eight years: in particular, the new ranking was published in the 8 December 2011 issue. Here are the top 20 places. 

Of course, there is nothing more subjective than music, which means that this list does not necessarily indicate whether one musician is better than the other in absolute terms, but everyone will always have their own personal and unquestionable opinion.

They climbed the charts, their songs are very famous and recognizable by the first note, but the success lasted only the time of that song.

The term One-Hit Wonder refers to musicians capable of achieving only one hit during their career, and then no longer replicating those results, ending up gathering consensus only in their country of origin or little more.

Here are some of the most famous cases of One-Hit Wonders, also chosen based on the ranking made by the historic VH1 television network.

Any instrument can have unforgettable melodies or riffs that can generate a memorable song.

Usually, in fact, the  most famous riffs are those of electric guitar, particularly those regarding rock music. Often, however, people underestimate the electric bass, which instead plays a key role in successful songs.

Here are some of the best bass lines ever, which are part of songs that have become symbols of some of the most famous bands around the world. Do you agree with this list?

Music would be meaningless without the support of live events: for a musician or band today, a tour is crucial for its earnings.

Over the decades, there have been memorable tours, even lasting for more than a year, in which singers have toured the world, earning considerable revenues.

Here is a list of the highest-grossing tours ever, as reported by Forbes magazine. This ranking, before inflation, only takes into account official box office data from reliable sources: tours for which there are no reliable sources may not be included.

The AFI, American Film Institute is an independent nonprofit organization created by National Endowment for the Arts that aims to promote and protect film works, particularly those in the United States.

AFI over the years has produced numerous film-related rankings, such as those for the 100 Best Movies, 100 Best Heroes, and 100 Best Antagonists.

Among such rankings, there is also one dedicated to the films with the best soundtrack of all time: here are what the top ten rankings are according to AFI.

Preply, an online platform dedicated to e-learning, conducted a study on the fan bases of bands and solo singers to find out the predominant emotion that characterises the audience, from sadness to anger to happiness and love. 

To conduct this research, Preply analysed over 200,000 posts and comments on forums and social networks using a dataset called 'Emotion'. The latter identified emotion-related words and phrases in the communities and the results then showed how frequently these words are linked to certain emotions. 

Here is Preply's list, which ranked the bands with the fans that tend to be the happiest.

Many songs are full of symbolic references, allusions, lyrics that seem on the surface to be about love, for example, when this is not the case. 

Very often the authors pour their personal experiences into the songs they write, but the general public does not know this and therefore ends up giving a different interpretation to the meaning of a song. 

Frequently, it is the musicians themselves who clarify the true meaning of their lyrics. Here are some of the most famous examples of songs whose meaning is often misunderstood by listeners.

All the most successful artists and bands sooner or later release one or more 'greatest hits', a collection of their greatest musical achievements. 

The 'Greatest Hits' is a key moment in the career of musicians, as it can mark the end of a specific artistic phase, the break-up of a band or the recapitulation of a glorious recording career. 

Sometimes 'Greatest Hits' also include previously unreleased material and in any case can achieve very high sales figures, even higher than albums containing only previously unreleased songs. Here are some of the most successful 'Greatest Hits' in music history.

Coldplay, Bono, Elvis Presley and beyond: all the leading figures in music history have had special lives and something sensational to tell.

Especially musicians rock we know that they often lead lives that are off the charts, almost bordering on the insane (sometimes even beyond that).

Browse through the photo gallery to learn anecdotes about the greatest rock stars ever, from the 1960s to the present day!

Did you already know them or will you discover them today?

Although today music is listened to almost exclusively digitally, there was a time when, in order to sell physical records, it was also important to make iconic covers.

Music in fact is art in all respects and it is not only the tracks that count, but also the images: throughout history, unique covers have been made, full of stories and legends about their creation.

Here are ten historical covers, represented by photographs or realised through graphics, and the stories behind their creation.

Among the rankings published by the well-known US magazine 'Rolling Stone' is one of the 100 best drummers of all time.

In making this list, 'Rolling Stone' took into consideration above all the ability of the various drummers to enhance songs and their ability to become innovators in the use of this musical instrument. 

In any case, it is only fair to remember: although it is a ranking, there is nothing more subjective than music and everyone has their own tastes and preferences.