Favorite Misheard Lyrics

LouSimon

Posted: Dec 9, 06 6:52pm

I love singing along with songs, don't you? Problem is that the radio never came with a lyric sheet and, left to our own devices, we often had to make up our own words when the ones one the record were less than intelligible.

So, let's give out some "Louie Louie" awards to the ones you've been singing incorrectly for 40 years.

I'll start. "Blinded By The Light". Most of the time, Bruce Springsteen and Michael McDonald sing like they're eating a cupcake anyway. Take "Born To Run" for example. "Girls comb their hair in rear view mirrors and the boys try to look so hard" sounds like "We're golden air rnenrnrneenon oy di ool moor don tu gulsuard". At least to me.

When Manfred Mann's Earth Band took on an early Bruce gem (can you tell I just love the guy?) called "Blinded By The Light", we learned that it's not just his delivery that is garbled but his actual lyric, even when someone else sings it.. For years, I thought they were singing "Rollup up like a douche, another molar in the night". Turns out, that's not correct.

Another? Sure. Beach Boys. "Good Vibrations". There are parts of that lyric that I could swear are Danish. ""When I look in her eyes, she goes with me to a blossom world" has always sounded like "Oh, when hear her on, she goes with me to the bottom myrrh". Certainly that can't be what they meant.

OK.. I came clean. How 'bout you?

What you doin' on your back in bed.....you should be writing!

221 Comments // 145 Members

Posted: Dec 9, 06 9:53pm

I love singing along with songs, don't you? Problem is that the radio never came with a lyric sheet and, left to our own...

I think it's a 70's classic by the Bee Gees - "Bald Headed Woman".

There is a bluegrass classic whose first line goes "I wonder, I wonder where you are tonight." I first heard it, very titillatingly as "I want to wear your underwear tonight."

Posted: Dec 24, 06 3:52pm

I think it's a 70's classic by the Bee Gees - "Bald Headed Woman".

There is a bluegrass classic whose first line goes...

Oh, listen, we could do an entire web site of Bee Gees lyric interpretations on a global basis. When they went up into that falsetto, all bets were off.

BrianneMiller
BrianneMiller
Staff

Posted: Dec 26, 06 9:08pm

I love singing along with songs, don't you? Problem is that the radio never came with a lyric sheet and, left to our own...

I love The Clash, but almost every song had that lyric that just sort of faded to "blah, blah, blah" when I sang along. Rockin' the Casbah is a favorite one to mangle...Sharif don't like it? My sheets don't like it? The beats don't like it?

And pretty much any song Janet Jackson every recorded. The woman does not believe in consonants.

Posted: Jan 18, 07 9:39am

I love singing along with songs, don't you? Problem is that the radio never came with a lyric sheet and, left to our own...

A friend of mine thought for the longest time that kd lang's song, "Constant Craving" was really "God sent gravy." That makes me laugh every time I hear that song!!

Posted: Jan 19, 07 8:30am

I love The Clash, but almost every song had that lyric that just sort of faded to "blah, blah, blah" when I sang along. ...

Have you seen the new Cingular commercial that takes it to the next level? It's an all-time favorite. Here's a link:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eOLPrdd8JvU

Posted: Jan 23, 07 4:52pm

A friend of mine thought for the longest time that kd lang's song, "Constant Craving" was really "God sent gravy." That ...

You mean she's NOT saying "God sent Gravy"?

Posted: Jan 23, 07 4:54pm

I love The Clash, but almost every song had that lyric that just sort of faded to "blah, blah, blah" when I sang along. ...

Lucky for the ad agency I wasn't on the creative team behind the Rock The Casbah commercial for Cingular. There are SO many songs they could have used for mistaken lyrics...but they chose one that, actually, doesn't work. That's because on the Cingular handset, the read out shows you the title of the song you're listening to. And the line the two guys can't get straight is the title! I could have thought of so many other songs for them to use that would have been just as hip. Oh well...I guess no one asked me....