(now that I have your attention…)
When I’m driving alone in the car, the radio is always on. And if there’s nothing playing that I like, I have several cd’s from which to choose. 99% of my music is oldies, with a little country thrown in for good measure.
What amazes me is that it’s possible to hear a song for years and years, sing along with it for all those years, and then WHAM! All of a sudden you realize that a lyric you thought the artist had been singing all this time is actually something entirely different.
Here’s an example:
The song Penny Lane, by the Beatles. This song was released in 1967. That means I’ve been listening to it for 44 years (and that figure HAS to be wrong, just has to be). Just last week, I realized that I’d been hearing one of the song’s lyrics wrong all those many years. I always thought Paul was singing:
“And the banker-man wears a mask in the pouring rain.” (I was very young when this song was released.) The actual lyric is:
“And the banker never wears a mac in the pouring rain”. (In 1967, I had no clue that the British referred to a raincoat as a mac.)
Another example:
The song: I Wish It Would Rain, by The Temptations. This was released in 1968. So for those 43 years (again, that number can’t be right), I thought the lyric was:
“Day in, day out, my tears, they stay pressed against my window pane“. A few weeks ago, riding down the highway, singing along, I suddenly realized the actual lyric is:
“Day in, day out, my tear-stained face, pressed against my window pane”.
Without naming names, here are a couple of other lyrics that have been mis-heard by folks I know.
Song: Hazy Shade Of Winter (Simon & Garfunkel)
“Look around, Lisa Brown. And the sky is a hazy shade of winter.”
Actual lyrics:
“Look around, leaves are brown. And the sky is a hazy shade of winter.”
And
Song: Take It Easy, by The Eagles
“It’s a girl, my Lord, in a black peignoir”.
Actual lyric: “It’s a girl, my Lord, in a flatbed Ford”.
So have ever realized you’ve been singing the wrong words to a song ? Care to share?
these days of mine 
I never knew you thought the Eagles were singing about a ‘black peignoir’!! Since my hearing is going, going and sometimes I think, GONE, I’m sure I’ll
‘mis-hear’ a lot of song lyrics. And yes, since you were a TODDLER way back then, I can understand you not realizing the right lyrics!!! LOL!
No, it wasn’t ME that thought it was “a black peignoir”. It was “misheard by folks I know”!!
Oh it’s so funny when you realise what the words really are!! There are so many songs – but I can’t think of one at the moment aargh. I’ll have to get back to you on that one. Great post.
So funny! I wondered when I saw that blog title but then I so enjoyed reading about the snafus with song lyrics…..we’ve ALL had those I’m sure. The first thing that leaps into my addled (and elderly) brain is that old song “Louie, Louie” – I never understood one word of that thing. Still don’t. I’ll have to google it now and see what the lyrics actually are! HAHA
Pam (with Sam observing)
“Black peignoir” hahaha! I love it! Great visual…Still laughing here!
The only song I recognized from your list was the Eagles song and I *knew* they were saying “flatbed Ford” cause I drove a ’70 something white one (it was my dad’s) when I was in high school. I thought I was so stinkin’ cool! LOL.
Funny – you brought up some greatly mangled songs … I wrote about the same experience here and mine involved Tony Danza 🙂
MJ
I remember that post, MJ!! It was a great one. And Marshall enlightened me to the Mondegreen reference, but I didn’t think to include it in my post.
We’ve all done it and writing about is such a unifying experience! I am sure I have mangled more songs than I will ever know .. oh well 🙂 MJ
This was so funny and entertaining! I laugh with you not at you as I have done the very same thing! Unfortunately, I can’t think of examples right now but I know I’ve done it!
I still chuckle at emjay’s “400 children and a crop in the field”…instead of “4 hungry children and a crop in the field.”
Crystal Gayle – For many, many years I thought she was singing ‘Don’t take me house away’ when it was actually ‘ Don’t take me half the way.’
For years I thought that “Forever in Blue Jeans” by Neil Diamond was “Reverend Blue Jeans”.
!!! It’s not “Reverend Blue Jeans?! LOL. Too funny! Now I know.
I am a sucker for a mondegreen! I’m pretty positive I mess up at least one line from just about any song I sing. It sounds right to me, but I’m sure there are music fans walking by who cringe!
i am a rock star in the car but chuck has mentioned that i should NOT try out for american idol!!
p.s. i always thought we slept in heavenly “peas”…..for real!!!
Lisa Brown? ha ha ha!!!
Nothing specific comes to mind, but I’m guilty of making up my own lyrics when I can’t understand what they really are!
I don’t know why, but this made me think of the game, “Gossip”, and how the words get changed by the time they come to the end of the line.
These are so cool ! – great 45 rpm’s, by the way 😉 And if anybody wants to read about the original Mondegreen, just check it out on Wikipedia.
One of my faves is from a Grateful Dead song. The lyric is “Just Like New York City, just like Jericho..” but at first listening, I thought ” who is Jerry Cole??” I guess he’s one of Lisa Brown’s friends ?!?!
LOL, “one of Lisa Brown’s friends”!
Dianna, I’m really enjoying this post today 🙂
I enjoyed this post — and also the comments that have followed. 🙂 I must admit I’ve misunderstood lyrics more than a few times! Can’t think of any to share at the moment. though. Great photo of those old 45’s, too!
Oh goodness, I mess up lyrics ALL the time! Prime example I just learned of a few weeks ago…CCR’s “Bad Moon Rising” (which I didn’t know the title of until recently) – I thought they were saying “There’s a bathroom on the right” (which I thought sounded odd) instead of “There’s a bad moon on the rise.” Ooopsy! Glad I caught myself before I really embarrassed myself.
It’s crazy how you can still remember the lyrics to a song you haven’t heard in 40 or 50 years. Even if you misheard the lyrics in the first place. Loved this post!
Goodness gracious you sound like me. lol I enjoyed this post very much because there’s sooo many songs that I’ve misheard, too many to mention. Thanks for the nice giggle today. 🙂
I have miss understood many songs, more than I would like to admit.
Yes, there are quite a few songs that I naively sang along with in the 60s that I now know what the lyrics say (and mean). It must have been because I was a toddler then, too. 🙂
Can’t you get Sirius in your car? It’s worth it! They have stations dedicated to the 40’s, 50’s, 60’s, etc. As to singing the wrong lyrics, nothing is more fun that ridin’ down the road singing the wrong lyrics at the top of my voice – especially when Dan’s in the car. My great-niece sings the wrong lyrics, too, just much more subtly than I do.