By: Pauline Millard It was recently revealed that Neil Diamond's song, "Sweet Caroline" was inspired by a 12-year-old Caroline Kennedy.
In the grand history of pop music, many a song has been inspired by an unexpected muse. For exmaple, it's been said that Alanis Morrisette's hit, "You Oughta Know" was inspired by "Full House" cast member Dave Coulier.
Boston.com put together a slideshow that explores
popular songs and the inspiration behind them. Career rock muse Pattie Boyd shows up in both the Eric Clapton and George Harrison entries, but Clapton has also been rumored to have inspired Sheryl Crowe's song, "My Favorite Mistake."
But back to "Sweet Caroline." Boston.com added a feature where readers can call a number and record their own version of the song. Readers can then listen (if they dare) to the amateur interpretations. It's like listening to people sing in the shower, although the pirates should get points for creativity.
Despite the singing, I like how Boston.com turned small bits of information into an interactive feature, and then took it to the next level by letting readers call in their karaoke version of Diamond's classic. It's very funny, and defintely suceeds in the "reader engagement" aspect that so many online newspapers aim for.
Here are some of my past Picks:
The 'Wisconsin State Journal' Teaches Us
Hip-Hop 101SFGate.com Makes Map Of
Bay Area Oil Spill The 'Statesman Journal' Looks At
Invasive Species In Oregon
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