Favorite misheard song lyrics

Because that novel isn't going to delay itself
PatriceFitz
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Re: Favorite misheard song lyrics

Post by PatriceFitz » November 29th, 2010, 2:37 pm

These, of course, are called mondegreens -- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mondegreen -- developed from this old song:

Ye Highlands and ye Lowlands,
Oh, where hae ye been?
They hae slain the Earl O' Moray,
And Lady Mondegreen.

But the last line is really "and laid him on the green."

One of my favorites is from the Michael Jackson song "Enjoy Yourself" (with me), which I always heard as "Joy of sex (with me)" -- it must have been the book by that title that confused me!

And then there's the unappetizing

"Blinded by the light,
wrapped up like a douche,
you know you want it in the night."

which is really

"Blinded by the light,
revved up like a deuce,
another runner in the night."

I sense a theme here. I think it's my mind and not my ears, though...

Christine London
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Re: Favorite misheard song lyrics

Post by Christine London » November 29th, 2010, 7:39 pm

'Pay for that Chrysler'--'Paperback Writer' (the Beatles)

Oh..and does this count??

Pledge of Allegiance (USA)

..'and to the republic for which it stands'---'and to the republic where whitches stand'.

Great topic.

Thanks for the chuckles (and last ditch NaNoWriMo escape)

Christine London
www.christinelondon.com

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abc
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Re: Favorite misheard song lyrics

Post by abc » November 30th, 2010, 2:16 pm

"Donkey Butt, you still have friends" made me laugh out loud. I will always remember this. And love it.

Mine was from the Fine Young Cannibal's song She Drives Me Crazy: she drives me crazy, like no one else. But I always heard: she drives me crazy, like long white hair.

Long white hair?

At the time it was popular I asked my friend Tim why on earth anyone would sing that (I heard it SO CLEARLY) and he just shook his head.

I still always hear "wrapped up like a douche" from the Manfred Mann song. Damn.

bcomet
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Re: Favorite misheard song lyrics

Post by bcomet » December 1st, 2010, 12:38 am

not a lyric, but... when you are tired...
All Things Procrastination seemed to slip into
All Things Procreation

just sayin' a lot of NaNoWriMo warp goin' on...

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Re: Favorite misheard song lyrics

Post by dios4vida » December 2nd, 2010, 7:49 pm

Remember that song in the 80's "Everybody Plays the Fool?" Well, I always thought it was "Everybody Plays with Food."

(I was only 10 or so at the time. My older sister didn't let me forget it for years and years.)
Brenda :)

Inspiration isn't about the muse. Inspiration is working until something clicks. ~Brandon Sanderson

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Re: Favorite misheard song lyrics

Post by bcomet » April 11th, 2011, 4:08 pm

Okay, it wasn't a song lyric, but....

Today, I turned on the news and I thought the headlines were:

Plot Fatigue

and for a moment, I felt someone really understood us writers after all...

After a moment of drifting, I realized my error. The headline was about Pilot Fatigue.

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sarahdee
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Re: Favorite misheard song lyrics

Post by sarahdee » April 12th, 2011, 10:53 pm

'I wanna be a dog' instead of 'I wanna be adored'
Stone Roses

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Re: Favorite misheard song lyrics

Post by JohnDurvin » April 14th, 2011, 3:06 pm

"Secret Asian Man", which is now the title of a webcomic. (There's also been some kids books about Gladly the Cross-Eyed Bear.)
Everybody loves using things as other things, right? Check out my blog at the Cromulent Bricoleur and see one hipster's approach to recycling, upcycling, and alterna-cycling (which is a word I just made up).

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aspiring_x
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Re: Favorite misheard song lyrics

Post by aspiring_x » May 13th, 2011, 8:11 am

i do this ALL the time! (my hearing isn't so good, though)
only one coming to me...

mine: She's gobbling up kittens
I don't know what to do!
theirs: She's got whatever it it
I don't know what to do!

zac brown band: whatever it is

i still like mine better.

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Beethovenfan
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Re: Favorite misheard song lyrics

Post by Beethovenfan » May 28th, 2011, 9:12 pm

These are so funny! I needed a good laugh right now.
The only one I could think of was something my 7-year-old came home from school singing back in December:
♪Feliz naughty dog♪♪
♫Feliz naughty dog♫
We still sing this at him from time to time!
"Don't only practice your art, but force your way into its secrets, for it and knowledge can raise men to the divine."
~ Ludwig van Beethoven

Rachel Ventura
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Re: Favorite misheard song lyrics

Post by Rachel Ventura » October 2nd, 2011, 7:50 pm

Lol, I hope this doesn't violate any profanity rules here, but it is "epic lulzy."

William Hung, the wannabe Asian-American Idol (in)famous for his rendition of Ricky Martin's "She Bangs," once sang "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" at a Chicago Cubs game. Now, the Cubs' 7th-inning stretch has made a tradition out of horrible singers (*ahem* Ozzy *ahem*), but IMHO nothing tops Hung's version...while he was "hung" over:

"Buy me some penis and Cracker Jack." :lol:

Sorry, no sale, but there are plenty of ballpark wieners from what I understand. :lol: :lol: :lol:

EDIT: @dios4vida "Everybody Plays the Fool" is from the '60s, not the '80s, although FWIW there could've been a re-release then. Useless trivia: The lead singer is Cuba Gooding Sr., of the band Main Ingredient. He, of course, is the father of actor Cuba Gooding Jr.

Useless trivia 2: @Nathan Phoebe sang "Hold Me Closer, Tony Danza" on an episode of Friends.

EDIT 2: I didn't see that someone had beat me to it with the Mondegreen definition. :P

Even useless-er trivia: I'm writing a story myself in which one of the supporting characters is profoundly deaf in both ears, and had cochlear implants as a child. Problem is, the surgeon put them in upside down, and as a result he hears a lot of things incorrectly or backwards -- like song lyrics. And he was once part of a folk-rock band called Mondegreen. (It's kind of a play on how people used to think there were hidden messages in rock songs but you had to play the record backwards.) ;)

Is it revealing any trade secrets if I include some of his that he hears wrong?

EDIT 3: I just couldn't wait. Some of these I actually know people who sing them, while others I just kind of came up with on my own:

"It's Morgan Freeman!" Boston, "More Than a Feeling"
"I want a piece of Danish!" The Ramones, "I Wanna Be Sedated"

"Some weirdo gonna break it / Lock the cash box, Lock the cash box." The Clash, "Rock the Casbah"
(The other line goes "Sharif don't like it" but I've also heard people say "Shari'a don't like it," referring to the controversial Muslim doctrine of Shari'a law)

https://secure.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/wiki/Sharia

"Olly oxen free, Take a Chance on Me..." ABBA, "Take a Chance on Me" ("honey, I'm still free")
"Hold on, Lucy, don't let go..." .38 Special, "Hold On Loosely"
"Hey, ol' Snoopy, Snoopy hello..." The McCoys, "Hang On, Sloopy"
"Iraqi Hot Potatoes" Falco, "Rock Me Amadeus"

"Eee my God it's Danny DeVito" and "I'm the goddess of Good and Evil" Iron Butterfly, "In-a-Gadda-Da-Vida" (A word about that last one: The lead singer's intended words were "in the garden of Eden," but he was actually too high to pronounce them correctly on stage!)

"She's got pretty dangerous eyes" Kim Carnes, "Bette Davis Eyes"
"Amstel Light, Amstel Light" Metallica, "Enter Sandman" ("exit light, enter night")

And finally...
"I can see a pair of dice by the dashboard light!" Meat Loaf, "Paradise By The Dashboard Light"

Image

:lol: :lol: :lol:

Of course, nothing tops Al Yankovic's version of Nirvana's "Smells Like Teen Spirit," called "Sounds Like Nirvana" or something like that. He basically mumbles a bunch of incoherent words all the way through (like Cobain did in the real one), and the video even has Weird Al "losing his marbles" (spitting them up) while singing "got all these marbles in my mouth." :mrgreen: <-Mr. Mondegreen approves.

Emily J
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Re: Favorite misheard song lyrics

Post by Emily J » October 4th, 2011, 8:17 pm

I have a misheard song lyric that I only found out about last week.

I really enjoy "Lisztomania" by Phoenix.

I was absolutely convinced that the lyrics were:

"Like a rhino, not easily offended"

Which to me, made sense in a weird way, since Rhino's have very thick skin.

BUT, the lyrics are actually:

"Like a riot, I'm not easily offended"

And now I'm sad, 'cause I thought, why, how often does a song mention a rhino. Now I need another song that has a rhinoceros reference.

Rachel Ventura
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Re: Favorite misheard song lyrics

Post by Rachel Ventura » October 8th, 2011, 2:06 am

@ Emily J

About the only one I can think of:

YouTube: Gayla Peevey - Hippopotamus for Christmas
No crocodiles,
No rhinocerossesses,
I only like
Hippopotamussesses,
And hippopotamussesses like me too!
:lol: :lol: :lol:

Emily J
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Re: Favorite misheard song lyrics

Post by Emily J » October 16th, 2011, 11:48 pm

Rachel Ventura wrote:@ Emily J

About the only one I can think of:

YouTube: Gayla Peevey - Hippopotamus for Christmas
No crocodiles,
No rhinocerossesses,
I only like
Hippopotamussesses,
And hippopotamussesses like me too!
:lol: :lol: :lol:
LOL Thanks now I have fulfilled by rhino quota for songs haha

proser
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Re: Favorite misheard song lyrics

Post by proser » June 23rd, 2012, 11:13 am

My misheard gems:

When Gwen Stefani belts out "It's my lifeeee", I hear "Waste my lifeeee"!!

When the Pussycat Dolls sing "I wanna have groupies" in their song When I Grow Up, I hear "I wanna have boobies"!

I must have issues, because it also sounds like boobies to me in RuPaul's Jealous Of My Boogie.

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