(Started January 6th, 2022) Part 1 of Best Songs Mentioning Actual or Fictional People

Hello,

This blog is inspired by the amazing performance of "Hamilton" I saw last night with a friend. 

These are songs about either famous characters or actual people- either referred to in song title or referenced in the lyrics. In other words, there won't be any of "My Sharona" or "Hey Joe".

The Tony Awards performance of "History Has It's Eyes On You" and "Yorktown (The World Turned Upside Down)":

1) "Alexander Hamilton":

Bonus song The original Broadway Cast and the Roots "Helpless":

2) Rush "Tom Sawyer":

3) Steely Dan "Kid Charlemagne":

4) Kim Carnes "Bette Davis Eyes":

A song referencing/about Billie Holiday. 5) U2 "Angel of Harlem":

A song referencing "To Kill A Mockingbird's" Atticus Finch, one of the greatest characters of modern fiction. 6) Noisettes "Atticus":

This song is about Major Tom. 7) David Bowie "Space Oddity":

8) Peter Schilling "Major Tom":

Mrs Robinson and Joe Dimaggio. 9) Simon and Garfunkel "Mrs. Robinson":

10) "The Ghost of Tom Joad":

11) Foster The People "Houdini":

Waterloo is the place of Napoleon's historic failure. 12) Abba "Waterloo":

13) Bananarama "Robert DeNiro's Waiting":

Elton John's chaste love letter to Marilyn Monroe. 14) Elton John "Candle In The Wind":

15) Herman's Hermits "Henry The 8th":

Too many celebrities to mention. 16) Madonna "Vogue":

Too many amazing Major League Baseball players to mention. 17) John Fogerty "Centerfield":

Vladimir Nabokov and Lolita 18) The Police "Don't Stand So Close To Me":

Al Capone 19) Paperlace "Don't Stand So Close To Me":

20) Michael Jackson "Al Capone":

21) "Rock Me Amadeus":

Mozart 22) "Blinded By The Light":

23) Taylor Swift "Tim McGraw":

Referencing Bob Dylan, 24) Don McLean "American Pie":

25) U2 "Pride (In The Name of Love)":

26) Weezer "Buddy Holly":

John Lennon 27) Elton John

Elvis Presley 28) Ronnie McDowell "The King Is Gone":

John Lennon. 29) George Harrison "All Those Years Ago":

30) Arcade Fire "Joan of Arc":

31) Billy Joel "We Didn't Start The Fire":

32) Larry Verne "Mr. Custer":

33) Tom T. Hall "The Day Clayton Delaney Died":

34) The Kingston Trio "Hang Down Your Head Tom Dooley":

35) Mark Knopfler "Sailing To Philadelphia":

36) Phillipa Soo, Renee Elise Goldsberry, Jasmine Cephas Jones and Leslie Odom Jr. "The Schuyler Sisters":

This song is a tribute to former Floyd member Syd Barrett. 37) Pink Floyd "Wish You Were Here":

One of the many songs from "Evita" about Evita Peron. This song catches Evita on her ascendancy and is one of the most joyous songs ever. 38) Madonna "Buenos Aires":

39) Madonna "Sooner or Later":

themusicaddict