I always think that listening to the song "Billy Don't be a Hero" led me to be a fan of some of the great storytellers such as: Gordon Lightfoot, Jim Croce and The Great Harry Chapin.
Also a big fan of the works of Don MacLean and Neil Diamond.
Elton John, Phil Collins, Billy Joel and Meat Loaf had a way to express their experiences through a song also.
The list is long on the great ones but Chapin, Croce and Lightfoot belong in the elite status.