There are many songs out there with many words, so it’s easy to understand how so many lyrics can end up being misquoted. I thought I’d cover some of the more famously misquoted songs (along with my favorite misquote ever). I’ll leave it to you bloggers to write about some of your favorite examples.
1. “Blinded by the Light” by Bruce Springsteen - On Bruce’s version you can clearly understand the lyrics “revved up like a deuce”, but in the remake recorded by Manfred Mann’s Earth Band everyone heard something entirely different. I won’t put it in my blog, because you all know about the feminine product that is often referenced in this version.
2. “Jet Airliner” by the Steve Miller Band - This song has been misquoted in several different ways. The phrase in question is “Big old jet airliner”. Some of the wrong versions are “we gonna tear that a light out”, “They don’t chat at a line-up”, and “We gonna chat at a lighthouse”.
3. “Land Down Under” by Men at Work - There are two spots in this song that are often misunderstood. The first is “He just smiled and gave me a vegemite sandwich”, which I always thought was “He just smiled and gave me a betyoumight sandwich”. The second is “Where women glow and men plunder” which is often sung as “Where women roar and men thunder”
4. “Loser” by Beck - “Soy un perdedor” (which, in my defense, is not even english) is a line that I always sang and still sing as “slide open the door”.
5. “Karma Cameleon” by Boy George - My favorite misheard lyric belongs to my mother-in-law, who owned up to thinking the lyrics to this song were “come-a come-a come-a to me Leon” instead of “Karma karma karma chameleon”.
Now it’s your turn to fill me in on some of your favorite mis sung lyrics.
Submitted by writers bloc on September 23, 2008 - 12:42pm.
"Material Girl" provides my best memory of a missung lyric.
In probably 6th grade or so, I was in a van full of guys coming back from a basketball trip. Madonna's hit was on the radio, and when it came to the vocal-only breakdown, where she sings, "A material ... A material ... A material ..." we all heard one of the goofier guys on the team singing, "I'm a Cheerio ... I'm a Cheerio ..."
Of course we all erupted with laughter, thinking it was one of the funniest jokes of the entire three-hour ride. Pretty soon our friend asked, "Why are you all laughing?" He actually thought the Material Girl was singing about America's favorite breakfast cereal.
Submitted by Nickers (not verified) on September 24, 2008 - 10:34am.
Well, I'm afraid that I may be partly responsible for this blog. I am the sister of the writer and also a heinous offender of missung lyrics. The most pathetic example, would probably be that Enya song "sail away" which is actually the title, and yet I seriously thought the lyrics were "silhouette, silhouette, silhouette". I will never live that one down. Just another way to get on big sis's nerves.
Submitted by jennyjean4 on September 24, 2008 - 11:24am.
Hey Nickers good to see you're owning up to this one, but I remember when you were 5 years old and knew every word to "Here Comes the Rain Again" by the Eurythmics. That has always amazed me. Good on ya sis.
Submitted by jennyjean4 on September 24, 2008 - 11:26am.
For some reason my last comment got posted twice, so I'll just write a new one. Nickers, how's the wedding coming - did you want me to sing "Silhouette" for your ceremony? Just kidding! Take care sis.
Submitted by Renee (not verified) on September 24, 2008 - 10:36am.
A friend's dad provided us girls with years of amusement when he wondered aloud why someone would write a song about "hot potatoes, hot potatoes, oh oh oh hot potatoes" (Amadeus).
Another classic is "There's a bathroom on the right" (There's a bad moon on the rise) and "Excuse me while I kiss this guy" (Excuse me while I kiss the sky). My interpretation of big old jet airliner was "big old jet left its lights on."
There is s technical term for this phenomenon, can anyone think of it?
Submitted by jennyjean4 on September 24, 2008 - 10:46am.
I have sung the wrong words to "Satisfaction" by the Rolling Stones all my life. I recently found out that the line I had always sung as "I can't get no GIRLY ACTION" is actually "I can't get no girl reaction".
Submitted by my2cents (not verified) on September 24, 2008 - 3:39pm.
My sister still teases me about singing the wrong words to "Our Lips Our Sealed." For the longest time I thought the Go-Go's were singing about Anna Cecile.
Submitted by Ruth Anne Maddox on September 25, 2008 - 10:25am.
Then there are the spoofs of songs that introduce alternate lyrics that I can't get out of my head. One Christmas as we were driving to Florida, such a song came on the radio and I find myself singing it even when it's not the holiday season.
Instead of "Walking in a Winter Wonderland," the lyrics speak about "Walking 'round in women's underwear."
Submitted by Melissa Gilman on September 25, 2008 - 1:38pm.
I'm sometimes disappointed when I read song lyrics and discover they're really mundane. That's how I felt when I read all of Beth Orton's lyrics from her Trailer Park album. I was just unenthused. I think listeners come up with much more interesting lines, like come-a to me Leon! Also, reading the actual lyrics destroys the story I've created in my mind about a song. Radiohead's Karma Police song is one I really like and I'm afraid to ruin it by knowing what exactly the artists were trying to say.
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"Material Girl" provides my
"Material Girl" provides my best memory of a missung lyric.
In probably 6th grade or so, I was in a van full of guys coming back from a basketball trip. Madonna's hit was on the radio, and when it came to the vocal-only breakdown, where she sings, "A material ... A material ... A material ..." we all heard one of the goofier guys on the team singing, "I'm a Cheerio ... I'm a Cheerio ..."
Of course we all erupted with laughter, thinking it was one of the funniest jokes of the entire three-hour ride. Pretty soon our friend asked, "Why are you all laughing?" He actually thought the Material Girl was singing about America's favorite breakfast cereal.
Well, I'm afraid that I may
Well, I'm afraid that I may be partly responsible for this blog. I am the sister of the writer and also a heinous offender of missung lyrics. The most pathetic example, would probably be that Enya song "sail away" which is actually the title, and yet I seriously thought the lyrics were "silhouette, silhouette, silhouette". I will never live that one down. Just another way to get on big sis's nerves.
Hey Nickers good to see
Hey Nickers good to see you're owning up to this one, but I remember when you were 5 years old and knew every word to "Here Comes the Rain Again" by the Eurythmics. That has always amazed me. Good on ya sis.
For some reason my last
For some reason my last comment got posted twice, so I'll just write a new one. Nickers, how's the wedding coming - did you want me to sing "Silhouette" for your ceremony? Just kidding! Take care sis.
A friend's dad provided us
A friend's dad provided us girls with years of amusement when he wondered aloud why someone would write a song about "hot potatoes, hot potatoes, oh oh oh hot potatoes" (Amadeus).
Another classic is "There's a bathroom on the right" (There's a bad moon on the rise) and "Excuse me while I kiss this guy" (Excuse me while I kiss the sky). My interpretation of big old jet airliner was "big old jet left its lights on."
There is s technical term for this phenomenon, can anyone think of it?
I have sung the wrong words
I have sung the wrong words to "Satisfaction" by the Rolling Stones all my life. I recently found out that the line I had always sung as "I can't get no GIRLY ACTION" is actually "I can't get no girl reaction".
My sister still teases me
My sister still teases me about singing the wrong words to "Our Lips Our Sealed." For the longest time I thought the Go-Go's were singing about Anna Cecile.
Then there are the spoofs of
Then there are the spoofs of songs that introduce alternate lyrics that I can't get out of my head. One Christmas as we were driving to Florida, such a song came on the radio and I find myself singing it even when it's not the holiday season.
Instead of "Walking in a Winter Wonderland," the lyrics speak about "Walking 'round in women's underwear."
Here's a link to the lyrics: http://www.links2love.com/christmas_songs_womens_underwear.htm
I'm sometimes disappointed
I'm sometimes disappointed when I read song lyrics and discover they're really mundane. That's how I felt when I read all of Beth Orton's lyrics from her Trailer Park album. I was just unenthused. I think listeners come up with much more interesting lines, like come-a to me Leon! Also, reading the actual lyrics destroys the story I've created in my mind about a song. Radiohead's Karma Police song is one I really like and I'm afraid to ruin it by knowing what exactly the artists were trying to say.
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