Jack's note reminds me that Michael Naismith (yes, once of the Monkees) did a countryish-folkish song a few years ago about a Russell painting. I think the song was called "Laugh Kills Lonesome", and I think that's also the name of the painting.

There are innumerable rock songs about being "Just a Singer in a Rock-n-Roll Band" (Moody Blues). "Write what you know."

Don MacLean (sp?) started off this discussion. I've heard fairly reliably that "Killing Me Softly", by Charles Fox and Norman Gimbel, is about him.

Richard Strauss's opera Ariadne auf Naxos is about producing an opera. He also wrote an opera about whether lyricists or composers are more important. It's called... um... I just saw it a couple years ago... something about Alzheimer?... no, that's not it...