Mondegreens, AKA Misheard Lyrics

Hi folks, just wondering if there are any song lyrics you've misheard, where you've thought the singer was singing one thing and he / she was actually singing another. I'll start with two (I'm sure there are more, but I can't think of them at the moment). There was a one-hit wonder in the '90s / 2000s called 'How Bizarre'. I always thought he was singing, 'how was I?' The other is from 'Roll Over Beethoven'; I thought the line was 'roll over Beethoven until Chai cops hear the news' (I don't know who I thought 'Chai cops' were) and I've only recently realised that it's 'and tell Tchaikovsky the news.'

Prefab Sprout - 'The King of Rock and Roll'

For the best part of a decade I thought it said:

"Hot dog, jumping frog, have a cookie"

I was terribly disappointed when I found out it was Albuquerque

Listen to it again and you'll see why I was confused.

Ha, that's a good one!

Mind the windows Tino. wrote:Prefab Sprout - 'The King of Rock and Roll'

For the best part of a decade I thought it said:

"Hot dog, jumping frog, have a cookie"

I was terribly disappointed when I found out it was Albuquerque

Listen to it again and you'll see why I was confused.

Funnily enough my sister who is something of a moron just to think the lyrics to the same song were hot dog, jumping frog Albert Kirky.

In fairness, all three versions are equally nonsensical!

Rowley wrote:

Mind the windows Tino. wrote:Prefab Sprout - 'The King of Rock and Roll'

For the best part of a decade I thought it said:

"Hot dog, jumping frog, have a cookie"

I was terribly disappointed when I found out it was Albuquerque

Listen to it again and you'll see why I was confused.

Funnily enough my sister who is something of a moron just to think the lyrics to the same song were hot dog, jumping frog Albert Kirky.

If I didn't know you better, Jeff, one could make the mistake of thinking you were suggesting I was a moron.

Perish the thought Tina.

Misheard lyrics are called mondegreens

Sidewinder sleeps Tonight threw up a few if I remember right

Well, no-one has explained to me why The Police were singing about Sue Lawley for so long.

Also Hendrix in Purple Haze: 'Excuse me while I kiss this guy' (is actually '...kiss the sky')

When I first heard it I thought the verve were singing about how the trucks dont work?! Even listening to it now it still sounds more like truck's than drugs

seanmichaels wrote:Sidewinder sleeps Tonight threw up a few if I remember right

Calling Cheryl Baker up?

cant remember which set it was but peter kay does a funny bit about this

Fun's Some Nights - I actually got most of it wrong - in fact there are some parts that would forever remain a mystery if it wasnt for Google

Stella wrote:

seanmichaels wrote:Sidewinder sleeps Tonight threw up a few if I remember right

Calling Cheryl Baker up?

Back in my teens and early 20's I sacrificed my metal principles on countless occasions by dancing to hair metal and glam rock in order to try and impress girls enough to entice them into my bed (varying degrees of sucess it has to be said)

Now whilst I occasionally misheard lyrics (see below), more often than not there were songs with lines that just didn't seem to have any basis or place in the English language and therefore when singing along on the dancefloor, instead of babbling some nonsense I would "suffer a coughing fit" that wouldn't pass until the song got to the point where I knew the words again.

I'd earlier tried to mask this inability to sing along by drinking at the point I didn't know what was being said (oooh the days when you could take a pint onto the dancefloor) but that tended to result in me being absolutely hammered by 11pm thus severely hampering my chances of scoring (as if my looks and personality were enough of a handicap)

One example is The Black Crowes version of "Hard to handle" which has the line "Come on little baby let me light your candle cos mama I'm sure hard to handle.." However, I used to hear a (and ultimately sing), "Come on little baby let me light your chemicals.."

Even now I wonder WTF was I thinking???????

Light your chemicals!!!!!!!!!!?!?!?!?!?!?!!?

DAVE667 wrote:
One example is The Black Crowes version of "Hard to handle" which has the line "Come on little baby let me light your candle cos mama I'm sure hard to handle.." However, I used to hear a (and ultimately sing), "Come on little baby let me light your chemicals.."

Even now I wonder WTF was I thinking???????

Light your chemicals!!!!!!!!!!?!?!?!?!?!?!!?

 
 
That's exactly what I used to think.  Even now when I sing along to it I do the chemical version.
 
Not sure if this is really a misheard lyric but when I was small my favourite song was "Fernando" by Abba.  For some bizarre reason I was convinced it was actually "Prunella", might be because kids are complete ret@rds.

Stella wrote:

seanmichaels wrote:Sidewinder sleeps Tonight threw up a few if I remember right

Calling Cheryl Baker up?

Or 'Call me John Major man.'

JuliusHMarx wrote:Misheard lyrics are called mondegreens

Duly noted.

Thought of another one.

I always used to think the opening line of the chorus in Beck's 'Loser' said "Oh I've got a perma door" until I googled it a few years ago and it turns out it is "Soy un perdedor" which, apparently, is Spanish for "I'm a loser". The penny dropped then and it all made sense.

I don't know what I was thinking. What is a 'perma door' anyway?

I am beginning to think Rowley might be on to something.

There is a great video on youtube that takes you through Pearl Jam's Yellow Ledbetter spelling out the misheard lyrics to that song as it goes. I'd post it but I'm at work and I'm a thorough professional. And they won't let me on youtube.

Tino, I used to think it was 'so walk out the door.'

In Bat out of Hell, Meatloaf talks about a "silver black phantom bike"

I thought it was Cilla Black phantom bike.

Luckless Pedestrian wrote:Tino, I used to think it was 'so walk out the door.'

At least your version makes some kind of sense!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xLd22ha_-VU

There you go Sod.

Right, best do some work now.

Thanks Womble

Anyone that mishears Beck lyrics can't be too hard on themselves. He is very often talking nonsense.

sodhat wrote:Thanks Womble

Anyone that mishears Beck lyrics can't be too hard on themselves. He is very often talking nonsense.

I get that, sidhat, but 'perma door'? Its not even a thing.

If I'd said 'perma tan' at least that would be something.

The term 'Mondegreen' is from :-
They hae slain the Earl O' Moray
And Lady Mondegreen.

The real line is "And laid him on the green"

This advert is a classic - still makes me laugh
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gib916jJW1o

Mind the windows Tino. wrote:

sodhat wrote:Thanks Womble

Anyone that mishears Beck lyrics can't be too hard on themselves. He is very often talking nonsense.

I get that, sidhat, but 'perma door'?  Its not even a thing.

If I'd said 'perma tan' at least that would be something.

Au contraire:

http://www.permadoor.co.uk/

Maybe Beck was just a massive fan of the UKs No. 1 composite door supplier?

sodhat wrote:

Mind the windows Tino. wrote:

sodhat wrote:Thanks Womble

Anyone that mishears Beck lyrics can't be too hard on themselves. He is very often talking nonsense.

I get that, sidhat, but 'perma door'?  Its not even a thing.

If I'd said 'perma tan' at least that would be something.

Au contraire:

http://www.permadoor.co.uk/

Maybe Beck was just a massive fan of the UKs No. 1 composite door supplier?

Now that is excellent work, Sir. You've made me a happy man this Thursday.

I've been worrying about it since 1993.

Mind the windows Tino. wrote:

sodhat wrote:

Mind the windows Tino. wrote:

sodhat wrote:Thanks Womble

Anyone that mishears Beck lyrics can't be too hard on themselves. He is very often talking nonsense.

I get that, sidhat, but 'perma door'?  Its not even a thing.

If I'd said 'perma tan' at least that would be something.

Au contraire:

http://www.permadoor.co.uk/

Maybe Beck was just a massive fan of the UKs No. 1 composite door supplier?

Now that is excellent work, Sir.   You've made me a happy man this Thursday.

I've been worrying about it since 1993.

Could also be "perm adore" which might have something to do with your obsession with old ladies.  There's a bit in the song about turkey neck as well.

Remember when Beck was on Top of the Pops with 'Loser' and his backing band was all old people? It was quality!

Mentioning "turkey necks" reminds me of a song that had not one, but two lines I misheard.
The song is The Crusher by The Cramps, I always thought that the line ""do the hammer lock you turkey necks" was "do the hammerlock and turkey dance" and that the line "do the eye gouge" was "do the argyle".

The only Cramps song I've heard is 'Ultra Twist'.

It took me years to work out that the line in the last verse of 'She Loves You' is 'pride can hurt you too.' I don't know what I thought John Lennon was singing before then.

Also, I used to think that some parts of 'Motorcycle Emptiness' by the Manics were sung in French.

Luckless Pedestrian wrote:The only Cramps song I've heard is 'Ultra Twist'.

They do a decent version of Surfin' Bird which you may have heard.  I once had a Cramps - Smell of Females t-shirt, a bit of an irony in that it was of such poor quality that it went out of shape after one wash so I never bothered having it washed again and it ended up stinking of me.

One can be forgiven for getting the odd Joe Strummer sung Clash lyric incorrect. 'White Man in Hammersmith Palais' is a perfect example.

All over people changing their votes
Along with their overcoats
If Adolf Hitler flew in today
They'd send a limousine anyway

I'm the all night drug-prowling wolf
Who looks so sick in the sun
I'm the white man in the Palais
Just lookin' for fun

My brother-in-law thought that the Strokes were singing 'New York City cops, and Agent Small' rather than 'New York City cops, they ain't too smart.'

Another brother-in-law, who likes to sing along to the radio, came up with this alternative opening line to 'He ain't Heavy, He's my Brother':

'The road is lost, with many a winding sun...'

I always thought 50 Cent was singing utter nonsense and gibberish like this;

"When I pull up out front, you see the Benz on dubs
When I roll 20 deep, it's 20 knives in the club
Niggaz heard I fu*k with Dre, now they wanna show me love
When you sell like Eminem, and the hoes, they wanna fu*k"

I later googled the lyrics and its turns out I had actually got them spot on.

I knew a guy at school that thought the opening line (perhaps the most famous opening line in pop history) of New York, New York was "Start singing the blues".

Like Tina, he is 35 and a moron.

superflyweight wrote:I knew a guy at school that thought the opening line (perhaps the most famous opening line in pop history) of New York, New York was "Start singing the blues".  

Like Tina, he is 35 and a moron.  

You "knew him at school"?

That has to be a self confession, super. You know how I know?

You, like me, are 35, and there is no-way you went to school.

I try to say good-bye and I choke
I try to walk away and I stumble
Though I try to hide it, it's clear
I blow bubbles when you are not here

"Kiss Lorraine..."

I've conducted some independent research into mondegreens and, to be a mondegreen, the misheard words must be better than the original.

On 'Too Funky' by George Michael, where it has a sample from the Graduate, I thought she was saying 'would you like me to introduce you?'

No word of a lie, I was just thinking about creating a thread about mishearing lyrics and presuming they were something else. I then saw this thread!

I have a few but the only one that springs to mind at the moment, is as a kid I always thought Elvis Presley sang "Im on sugar". I only realised at a later age that it was "Im all shook up"...

They're playing 'Born to be Wild' by Steppenwolf on Radio 6 now and I've only just realised that the opening line of the second verse is 'I like smoke and lightning.' I always thought it was 'I like smoking lightning.'

On REM's Man on the Moon, I always thought Michael Stipe was singing:

Andy did you hear about this one,
Tell me are you locked in the past...?

Only recently found it it was "locked in the punch".

REM are an absolute goldmine for mondegreens.

I always thought it was 'locked in the pines' - which makes about as much sense as 'locked in the punch'.
Maybe I thought it was 'lost in the pines' - can't remember.

I tend to get REM lyrics first time round which is gives me less confidence in my mental abilities than if I'd come up with some bizarre alternative line.