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June 29, 2019 10:24 am  #1


Misheard Song Lyrics

It always seems when this subject is brought up, I know I have a few misheard lyrics of my own, but I just can't come up with them at the time.  Well, I remembered one.

Just until probably last year, in "The Beat Goes On" lyrics, "Grandmas sit in chairs and reminisce..."  I heard, "Grandma sits in chair and grandma knits..."

To this day, I have a difficult time singing the correct lyrics.

Last edited by It's me Karen (June 29, 2019 10:24 am)

 

June 29, 2019 12:42 pm  #2


Re: Misheard Song Lyrics

I think it has happened to all of us at least once.  It took me about 30 years before I figured out the 4 Tops were singing "If I could have you to call my very own" in their song "Something About You".
I would guess the most discussed misheard lyric was Jimi Hendrix "excuse my while I kiss this guy" instead of "...kiss the sky"

 

June 29, 2019 6:43 pm  #3


Re: Misheard Song Lyrics

As a karaoke host, I love to use Mondegreens when introducing or commenting on my singers' songs... "bathroom on the right" or "the ants are my friends"  being just a couple of the most popular.  Here's a fairly representative list ... fun to browse.   https://www.thoughtco.com/what-is-a-mondegreen-1691401
 

 

June 29, 2019 11:09 pm  #4


Re: Misheard Song Lyrics

The one that always immediately comes to mind for me is the line "you and me endlessly" in The Rascals song Groovin', which is sung in a way that makes it sound like "you and me and Leslie". Up until I saw this mentioned on the old board, I was still thinking that it was Leslie, and for me it was one of pop music's enduring mysteries as to why there was suddenly a third person mentioned in this song.

 

June 30, 2019 6:37 am  #5


Re: Misheard Song Lyrics

In concert, Peter Noone tells the story of fans requesting "A Must To Avoid" but calling it "A Muscular Boy".

 

June 30, 2019 11:53 am  #6


Re: Misheard Song Lyrics

There's a pork chop on the corner in Pittsburgh Pennsylvania.

 

June 30, 2019 2:34 pm  #7


Re: Misheard Song Lyrics

A favourite of my father's was Reverend Blue Jeans ... when Forever In Blue Jeans came on the radio, he liked to sing at least the first instance of the title that way.

 

July 18, 2019 7:55 am  #8


Re: Misheard Song Lyrics

Thought of another:

In "Green Green Grass Of Home" by Tom Jones,  in the speaking part that is:

For there's a guard and there's a sad old padre...

I heard:

For there's a dawn and there's a shadow portrait...

     Thread Starter
 

July 19, 2019 12:04 am  #9


Re: Misheard Song Lyrics

And then there's "Secret Asian Man".

 

July 21, 2019 5:51 pm  #10


Re: Misheard Song Lyrics

My daughter corrected me a couple of months ago on Can't You Hear Me Knocking by the Stones
I thought the first verse was "Yeah you got satin shoes , yeah you got NASTY boots" when it's PLASTIC boots. embarrassed.

 

August 11, 2019 12:12 pm  #11


Re: Misheard Song Lyrics

In 10cc's song "I'm Not In Love", the whispered voice says:

Be quiet.  Big boys don't cry. Big boys don't cry...
 
Well, I heard:

Be quiet.  Requesting quad.  Requesting quad...

In my defense, that was the time when quad speakers were becoming popular.  I thought this band was pulling us into the future of electronics.  

     Thread Starter
 

August 11, 2019 5:06 pm  #12


Re: Misheard Song Lyrics

It's me Karen wrote:

It always seems when this subject is brought up, I know I have a few misheard lyrics of my own, but I just can't come up with them at the time.  Well, I remembered one.

Just until probably last year, in "The Beat Goes On" lyrics, "Grandmas sit in chairs and reminisce..."  I heard, "Grandma sits in chair and grandma knits..."

To this day, I have a difficult time singing the correct lyrics.

Same here. My mind deals with this by picturing a grandma sitting, knitting, and reminiscing all at the same time. 
 

 

August 11, 2019 6:43 pm  #13


Re: Misheard Song Lyrics

I don't know how many remember this spot from the 80s, but it's the quintessential example of misheard lyrics. (And it also happens to feature one of my all time favourite oldies, Israelites by Desmond Dekker & The Aces, a 1969 #1.



 

 

August 12, 2019 7:07 am  #14


Re: Misheard Song Lyrics

aflem wrote:

I don't know how many remember this spot from the 80s, but it's the quintessential example of misheard lyrics. (And it also happens to feature one of my all time favourite oldies, Israelites by Desmond Dekker & The Aces, a 1969 #1.



 

That's great!  My husband sings something like,"Get up in the morning, waiting for breakfast..."

     Thread Starter
 

August 30, 2019 12:22 am  #15


Re: Misheard Song Lyrics

A classic that I can't get out of my mind:  Manfred Mann/Bruce Springsteen's hit, "Blinded By The Light."  It's one of those that I kept thinking,"One of these days I have to look those lyrics up because it can't be what I think it is":  Springsteen wrote: "...cut loose like a deuce..." referencing a hot rod deuce coupe, which is one of Springsteen's real loves - racing cars.  BUT  Manfred Mann changed some of the lyrics including those, changing them to: "...revved up like a deuce..."  That's when the famous mondegreen developed and was commonly misheard as "...wrapped up like a douche..."  That has always been my very loose, misconstrued interpretation until I looked it up tonight.  My reference:  Wikipedia.

Last edited by Little Rich (August 30, 2019 12:23 am)

 

August 30, 2019 2:35 am  #16


Re: Misheard Song Lyrics

maybe we need to run the tape again, more slowly? who knows, you might be right.

it's worth pointing out that there have been numerous examples, primarily in the 50's and 60's i believe, where artists or their record companies incorrectly, occasionally on purpose but mostly due to confused secretaries and the like, provided publishing companies lyrics which did not jibe with what was on the wax.

what you think you heard sometimes might be what it is. in my opinion typewritten transcripts of a lyric should never be replaced by a reasonable quality headphone check, which will usually reveal the truth. or, now and again, further muddy the water...


 

Last edited by gopher (August 30, 2019 2:57 am)

 

August 30, 2019 4:57 pm  #17


Re: Misheard Song Lyrics

Little Rich wrote:

A classic that I can't get out of my mind:  Manfred Mann/Bruce Springsteen's hit, "Blinded By The Light."  It's one of those that I kept thinking,"One of these days I have to look those lyrics up because it can't be what I think it is":  Springsteen wrote: "...cut loose like a deuce..." referencing a hot rod deuce coupe, which is one of Springsteen's real loves - racing cars.  BUT  Manfred Mann changed some of the lyrics including those, changing them to: "...revved up like a deuce..."  That's when the famous mondegreen developed and was commonly misheard as "...wrapped up like a douche..."  That has always been my very loose, misconstrued interpretation until I looked it up tonight.  My reference:  Wikipedia.

Speaking of Manfred Mann, on Friday I happen to hear “Do Wah Diddy,” the group’s first and perhaps greatest oldie. When I was a kid, I was always confused by it because, although it was clearly a love song, at one point I thought the lyrics were:
 
“Well, I’m hurt
  She’s mad
  Wedding bells are going to chime.”
 
Of course, it was “I’m hers, she’s mine,” but that’s not what I heard. I could never figure out why they were going to get married if they hated each other so much.  
 
By the way, I’d nominate “Do Wah Diddy” as possibly the greatest singalong song ever in Top 40 history. I’ll never forget sitting in a meeting at work one day in the 80s, nearly 20 years after it was released, when the tune suddenly popped into my head and I just started saying, “There she was just a-walking down the street, singing…”
 
At which point I stopped, and everyone else in the room instantly quit talking and filled in the blank, as if they couldn’t stop themselves. Now that’s a powerful song.

 

September 1, 2019 1:38 pm  #18


Re: Misheard Song Lyrics

The lyrics for House of Blue  Lights contain the phrases:
There's fryers and broilers and Detroit barbecue ribs
But the treat of the treats 

Is when they serve you all those fine eight beats
But I always heard the last three words as: FINE AGED BEEF.
You can imagine what my favorite protein is....

 

 

September 3, 2019 2:58 pm  #19


Re: Misheard Song Lyrics

The lyrics in Sweet Emotion by Aerosmith are:
  
When I pulled into town in a police car
Your daddy said I took it just a little too far

I heard:

When I pulled into town in a police car

You danced your turkey just a little too far.

I know, I know...I have no idea what that means, but that's what I heard. 

 

     Thread Starter
 

September 3, 2019 3:12 pm  #20


Re: Misheard Song Lyrics

These people might understand. 
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turkey_dance#Dance

 

January 2, 2020 12:43 pm  #21


Re: Misheard Song Lyrics

I just found this out.

In "Daddy's Home" by Shep and the Limelites, the lyric goes:

"Your best friend wrote and told me..."

I heard:

"Your best friend, Robin told me..."

 

     Thread Starter
 

January 2, 2020 12:46 pm  #22


Re: Misheard Song Lyrics

I like it. The Batman producers should have asked Shep to appear on the show and sing it that way. 

 

January 2, 2020 6:59 pm  #23


Re: Misheard Song Lyrics

I thought it would be interesting to do a search to see if anyone else thought that Robin was her best friend. The answer is yes, but what I hadn't counted on was finding that there were several other best friend possiblities as well. 
http://www.amiright.com/misheard/song/daddyshome.shtml

 

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