What are some commonly misheard lyrics in rock 'n' roll songs?

[Loren Booda]

What lyrics have you previously attributed to songs which you later learned were otherwise?

For instance, I heard: "They proceeded to tear the whole town down." (Actually "...hotel..." from We're an American Band, by Grand Funk Railroad.)

For instance, I heard (the most famous tuneout?): "'scuse me while I kiss this guy." You fill in the rest...

 

[lisab]

...b-b-b-bangin' on you head... (...b-b-b-Bennie and the Jets...)

But there are a lot of Elton John lyrics that I just can't understand!


This one isn't mine, but someone I know...

Ducks in the wind, all we are is ducks in the wind...

 

[Evo]

Ducks in the wind, all we are is ducks in the wind...

There was a website that had all of the "misheard" lyrics. It was hysterical.

One that always made the Evo Child cringe and is still a joke between us is my "blackeyed sis is growing up?!"

 

[Kurdt]

I always misinterpreted the "On A Plain" lyric as "The finest day that I've ever had, was when I learned to cry on a man.".

I don't tend to listen to lyrics too much.

 

[Loren Booda]

Elton John is one of my great offenders - I can't even misunderstand his singing.

 

[rcgldr]

"I buried Paul" misinterpreted for what is claimed to be "cranberry sauce" or "I'm very bored" (Strawberry Fields Forever).

 

[Jimmy Snyder]

"There's a Bathroom on the Right" by CCR.

 

[Dadface]

I always wondered what a mushacup was until it was pointed out that Elvis was singing I'm all shook up.

 

[fuzzyfelt]

A bit immature, but the kids and I do this accidentally/on purpose quite a bit, e.g.
MGMT 'kids' or 'A family of cheese vomit' song -


More in line with the OP, I made the same mistake as mentioned in this-
'lays me down with my mancherons'(a french heraldic term for little capped sleeves)
http://www.bebo.com/BlogView.jsp?MemberId=3690546651&BlogId=4108967207

 

[Loren Booda]

As song quality on the air improves, my lyrical preconceptions are rearranged.

 

[DavidSnider]

"I got my head checked... by a jumbo Czech"

 

[hypatia]

Ain't no woman like the "One eyed gott".

 

[Chi Meson]

The Police, "Canary in a Coalmine"

No one ever knew what the first line said until "the internet" came.

"First the paloma in the atmosphere is less than perfect..."

"When the faloma in the atmosphere is less than perfect..."

"It's the palova when the atmosphere is less than perfect..."

What the hell...?

 

[Evo]

Canadian National Anthem

"Oh Canada, we stand on cars and freeze"

The archive of misheard lyrics - http://www.kissthisguy.com/

 

[Andre]

Ken lee,

Hilarious

_RgL2MKfWTo[/youtube] [MEDIA=youtube]_RgL2MKfWTo[/MEDIA]

 

[lisab]

Ken lee,

Hilarious

_RgL2MKfWTo[/youtube] [MEDIA=youtube]_RgL2MKfWTo[/MEDIA][/QUOTE] ...omg...:rofl:

 

[jtbell]

Of course, this sort of thing isn't limited to songs. I once read about a kid who thought the Lord's Prayer contains the phrase, "and lead us not into Penn Station, but deliver us from evil."

 

[WhoWee]

Of course, this sort of thing isn't limited to songs. I once read about a kid who thought the Lord's Prayer contains the phrase, "and lead us not into Penn Station, but deliver us from evil."

Now that's funny.

 

[Jimmy Snyder]

How about 'the republic for Richard Stands'?

 

[WhoWee]

I don't know anyone who ever got this one right...Manfred Mann.

http://www.stlyrics.com/lyrics/blow/blindedbythelight.htm

Blinded by the light,
revved up like a deuce,
another runner in the night
Blinded by the light,
revved up like a deuce,
another runner in the night
Blinded by the light,
revved up like a deuce,
another runner in the night
Madman drummers bummers,
Indians in the summer with a teenage diplomat
In the dumps with the mumps as the adolescent pumps his way into his hat
With a boulder on my shoulder, feelin' kinda older,
I tripped the merry-go-round
With this very unpleasin', sneezin' and wheezin,
the calliope crashed to the ground
The calliope crashed to the ground
But she was...
Blinded by the light,
revved up like a deuce,
runner in the night
Blinded by the light,
revved up like a deuce,
another runner in the night
Blinded by the light,
revved up like a deuce,
another runner in the night
Blinded by the light,
revved up like a deuce,
another runner in the night
Some silicone sister with a manager mister told me I go what it takes
She said "I'll turn you on sonny to something strong,
play the song with the funky break"
And go-cart Mozart was checkin' out the weather chart to see if it was safe outside
And little Early-Pearly came by in his curly-wurly and asked me if I needed a ride
Asked me if I needed a ride
But she was...
Blinded by the light,
revved up like a deuce,
another runner in the night
Blinded by the light
She got down but she never got tired
She's going to make it through the night
She's going to make it through the night
But mama, that's where the fun is
But mama, that's where the fun is
Mama always told me not to look into the eye's of the sun
But mama, that's where the fun is
Some brimstone baritone anticyclone rolling stone preacher from the east
Says, "Dethrone the dictaphone, hit it in it's funny bone,
that's where they expect it least"
And some new-mown chaperone was standin' in the corner,
watching the young girls dance
And some fresh-sown moonstone was messin' with his frozen zone, reminding him of romance
The calliope crashed to the ground
But she was...
Blinded by the light,
revved up like a deuce,
another runner in the night
Blinded by the light,
revved up like a deuce,
another runner in the night
Blinded by the light,
revved up like a deuce,
another runner in the night
Blinded by the light,
revved up like a deuce,
another runner in the night
Blinded by the light,
revved up like a deuce,
another runner in the night
Blinded by the light,
revved up like a deuce,
another runner in the night
Blinded by the light,
revved up like a deuce,
another runner in the night
Blinded by the light,
revved up like a deuce,
another runner in the night
Blinded by the light,
revved up like a deuce,
another runner in the night
Blinded by the light
Madman drummers bummers, Indians in the summer with a teenage diplomat
In the dumps with the mumps as the adolescent pumps his way into his hat
With a boulder on my shoulder, feelin' kinda older,
I tripped the merry-go-round
With this very unpleasin', sneezin' and wheezin,
the calliope crashed to the ground
Now Scott with a slingshot finially found a tender spot and throws his lover in the sand
And some bloodshot forget-me-not said daddy's within earshot save the buckshot, turn up the band
Some silicone sister with a manager mister told me I go what it takes
She said "I'll turn you on sonny to something strong"

 

[Chi Meson]

I don't know anyone who ever got this one right...Manfred Mann.

http://www.stlyrics.com/lyrics/blow/blindedbythelight.htm
...

Bruce Springsteen was the ONLY one who got that song right.

 

[binzing]

I always misinterpreted the "On A Plain" lyric as "The finest day that I've ever had, was when I learned to cry on a man.".

I don't tend to listen to lyrics too much.

Haha, Kurt mumbled a lot, but I don't know how you got that...

My misheard lyric is from "Paint It Black" where I swore it mentioned a rainbow, but its actually "red door".

 

[TheStatutoryApe]

there's a Stabbing Westward song with the line "how can I exist without you" which I always thought was "how can I have sex without you."

there's a song called "dancing in the streets" that to this day I swear they're actually singing "dancing in the sheets" and just changed the title to get past the censors.

 

[Huckleberry]

My favorite has always been 'Big Old Jed Had a Light On' by Steve Miller. (Jet Airliner)

 

[quantumdude]

"There's a Bathroom on the Right" by CCR.

I can't believe it took 7 posts for this one to come up. It's the canonical example of misheard lyrics!

 

[Chi Meson]

My favorite has always been 'Big Old Jed Had a Light On' by Steve Miller. (Jet Airliner)

Steve Miller was always big on throwing in extra syllables:

"Friday night, I got n-tears in my eyes..."

"I might get rich, you know, I might get m-busted"

 

[Danger]

Canadian National Anthem

"Oh Canada, we stand on cars and freeze"

That's actually more appropriate than the real lyrics. :grumpy:

Since I have to read lips under any noisy conditions, and stereo speakers don't have lips, I've screwed up the lyrics of most songs that I've heard. For the past few months, in fact, I've been Googling for lyrics to a lot of them. Elton John was never a problem, since they had the decency to publish the lyrics in every album cover. Steve Miller, though... yeah, I spent a couple of years trying to figure out what he meant by 'big hotel with a line-up'...