Songs with lyrics that you've misinterpreted...

I'm horrible at deciphering song lyrics over the radio. I've misinterpreted so many that I can't think of right now. Everyone makes fun of me for it.

Here is a list: "Van Halen is over-rated", instead of "That heaven is over-rated" in that Train song Drops of Jupiter.

"Hush, hush, keep it down now, this is scary." instead of "hush, hush, keep it down now, voices carry." Some 80's song that I don't know the title to.

"Lovin' it in la vida" instead of "love in an elevator" by Aerosmith. Yeah. I thought this song was a Spanglish translation of "lovin it in the life." I'm a superdoosh. /images/graemlins/cool.gif

"Red-eye love" instead of "Radar love" by golden earring. Thought they were talkin about the mile-high club.

HUNDREDS MORE. I'll think of them later, but please post yours here.

[cdxx]

secret asian man. (everyone is guilty of that one, no matter what they say)

hahha yes indeed. I still get confused as to whether its secret agent man or secret asian man. haha. great choice.

All the lyrics to Elton John's "Bennie and the Jets". It all sounds like gibberish to me.

[IggyWH]

Another common one is Jimi's "Excuse me while I kiss the sky"

[istewart]

You listen to some real [censored].

[miajag81]

Mondegreens (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mondegreen)

[TeeJayORTj]

"Hold me closer Tony Danza"

Thats the first one to come to my mind.

[woodguy]

"SLOOOOOWWWW WALKING WALTER"
"THE FIRE ENGINE GUY"

Deep Purple

Regards,
Woodguy

[Onaflag]

"Hezza bezza bezza bezza on my guitar
We got vibrations comin' up from the floor"

Still can't figure that out.

Onaflag.........

[ QUOTE ]
"SLOOOOOWWWW WALKING WALTER"
"THE FIRE ENGINE GUY"

Deep Purple

Regards,
Woodguy

[/ QUOTE ]

lol. That's a very good misinterpretation! Smoke on the water...fire in the sky! Pretty close... lol.

You know that song was written about Frank Zappa's house catching fire in Montreaux, right? Maybe if Walkin Walter was in town he could have saved the house from burning too much. /images/graemlins/tongue.gif

[PoBoy321]

The misheard lyrics archive (http://www.kissthisguy.com/)

[shant]

"I love squirrels, squirrels, squirrels squirrels. Squirrels I do adore."

-Jay Z

[housenuts]

beach boys - barbara ann - i always thought they were just singing ba-ba-ba...ba-ba-baran. i never knew they were actually saying barbara ann. i guess it would have helped if i knew the name of the song at the time.

[housenuts]

ccr - bad moon rising - "there's a bad moon on the rise" i thought it was "there's a bathroom on the right"

actually i didn't, but it sounds like that

[zephed]

[ QUOTE ]
"SLOOOOOWWWW WALKING WALTER"
"THE FIRE ENGINE GUY"

Deep Purple

Regards,
Woodguy

[/ QUOTE ]
LOL...what the [censored]? That was funny.


Here's one for the Elton John song Tiny Dancer:
Hold me close and tie me down, sir

[scotty34]

[ QUOTE ]
"Hold me closer Tony Danza"

Thats the first one to come to my mind.

[/ QUOTE ]

hahaha, I didn't realize this was a common mistake. A friend of mine messed this one up many years ago, and to this date, we start singing that when we get drunk to poke fun at him.

[Mars357]

Kiss.. Duce...
"Get up and get your grandma out of here"

I was sure I was wrong...what a [censored] stupid line... sad part is, that's what it really says....

[Mars357]

[ QUOTE ]
"Hezza bezza bezza bezza on my guitar
We got vibrations comin' up from the floor"

Still can't figure that out.

Onaflag.........

[/ QUOTE ]

Heavy decibels are playing on my guitar
We got vibrations coming up from the floor

I had to look it up /images/graemlins/confused.gif

[ QUOTE ]
beach boys - barbara ann - i always thought they were just singing ba-ba-ba...ba-ba-baran. i never knew they were actually saying barbara ann. i guess it would have helped if i knew the name of the song at the time.

[/ QUOTE ]
This is my main one, I'm sure it is the same with many other people.

[peterchi]

[ QUOTE ]
"I love squirrels, squirrels, squirrels squirrels. Squirrels I do adore."

-Jay Z

[/ QUOTE ]

Big pimpin, spending G's
Big pimpin, don't be a lady
We doin big pimpin up in NYC
It's just that jigga-man, pimpsy and me, you and me

[The Don]

Manfred Mann - "Blinded by the Light"

...roll her up like a douche in the middle of the night?

[bluefeet]

Yeah, I was like 8 or something...

KennyRogers I think...."You picked a fine time to leave me Lucille, four-hundred children, the crops and the fields"

400 children? wtf?!

yeah..."four hungry" /images/graemlins/frown.gif

This is true. It does sound like bathroom on the right. And ditto for Ba-ba-ba...ba-ba-baran. I just found out last year that the song was Barbara Ann and was like "Oh, so thats what they're sayin".

Another one for me is the Who's "Who are you?" (CSI theme song). I used to think this was "Oooooooh, Artie. Ooh, Ooh...Ooh, ooh..." Yes quite gay.

[bluefeet]

[ QUOTE ]
Manfred Mann - "Blinded by the Light"

...roll her up like a douche in the middle of the night?

[/ QUOTE ]

that's NOT it? /images/graemlins/confused.gif

My favorite -
Sevendust, Waffle: "When I mow the lawn, I stare at nothing" ("When I'm all alone, I stare at nothing") I still sing it my way.

Michael Jackson, Billie Jean: "The heavy hitter with eyes that dream I am the one" ("Then every head turned with eyes that dreamed of being the one")

And most rap songs.

ScottieK

Don't fear the reefer..

[scotty34]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Manfred Mann - "Blinded by the Light"

...roll her up like a douche in the middle of the night?

[/ QUOTE ]


that's NOT it? /images/graemlins/confused.gif

[/ QUOTE ]
There is a huge debate as to what the actual lyrics are. I have not seen a definitive answer yet.

[MikeNaked]

"It's just a brief smile
Cold horse in your face."

Elliot Smith "Speed Trials"

[Dominic]

[ QUOTE ]
Another common one is Jimi's "Excuse me while I kiss the sky"

[/ QUOTE ]

i always hear, "excuse me while I kiss this guy."

[HopeydaFish]

Led Zepellin -- "If you listen very hard, a Jew will bother you a lot" (If you listen very hard, the tune will come to you at last)

[duk]

Well, from brucespringsteen.net, the line is "Cut loose like a deuce another runner in the night"

[diebitter]

[ QUOTE ]
Another common one is Jimi's "Excuse me while I kiss the sky"

[/ QUOTE ]
Eh? What the hell are the words then?

I get "I come to you on a submarine" in
The BeeGees 'How Deep is your love'

[Jack of Arcades]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Another common one is Jimi's "Excuse me while I kiss the sky"

[/ QUOTE ]

i always hear, "excuse me while I kiss this guy."

[/ QUOTE ]

Jimi definitely knew of the ambiguity and intentionally played it up in concerts.

[diebitter]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Another common one is Jimi's "Excuse me while I kiss the sky"

[/ QUOTE ]

i always hear, "excuse me while I kiss this guy."

[/ QUOTE ]

Jimi definitely knew of the ambiguity and intentionally played it up in concerts.

[/ QUOTE ]

Gah! I never heard it that way before! And now I'll always hear it that way /images/graemlins/frown.gif

[Transference]

Not one of mine but a friend goofed this memorable one:

Rusted root:
Simion the Whale

Answer in white
<font color="white">Send me on my way</font>

/images/graemlins/confused.gif but I hear this everytime I hear that song now

oh man this has me laughing so hard, what fun! Here's one of mine....

"Ground Control to Major Tong....."

[GAL]

"she's got better days aside"

Bette Davis eyes

[imported_The Vibesman]

[ QUOTE ]
Well, from brucespringsteen.net, the line is "Cut loose like a deuce another runner in the night"

[/ QUOTE ]

That's what Bruce says in the original version. I still don't know what Manfred Mann is trying to say. I recommend just not listening.

I have a million of these. One of the most common for me when I was young was the Steve Miller tune "Jet Airliner." "Big old Jed had a light on."

The Vibesgirl told me when she first heard Pop Singer by John Mellencamp, she thought he was saying, "Never wanted to be no Bob Seger, never wanted to write no pop songs." She wondered why John was dissin' on Bob. I thought that was a riot.

[NutCrackerr]

Steve Miller Band - Big ole jet airliner -"Big ole Jed had a light on"

No Doubt - Spiderwebs - "No matter who calls, I scream my balls off" (instead of "I screen my phone calls")

"jeremy's smooooking ccrraaaaaacckk Cocaaaaiiiiine."

[WDC]

lets not forget that classic Beatles Lyric:

'the girl with colitis goes by."

[WDC]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Manfred Mann - "Blinded by the Light"

...roll her up like a douche in the middle of the night?

[/ QUOTE ]

that's NOT it? /images/graemlins/confused.gif

[/ QUOTE ]
There is a huge debate as to what the actual lyrics are. I have not seen a definitive answer yet.


[/ QUOTE ]

Real Lyric: Cut loose like a deuce another runner in the night

[Aces McGee]

I'm sure I've posted this one before in a similar thread, but my friends used to think the first line of the refrain to "Would?" by Alice in Chains was "Hail to the furniture"

Instead of "Into the flood again"

-McGee

[Granite]

I caught a friend singing "I Wanna, I Wanna be a DOOR!"

She was singing along to the Stone Roses song "I Wanna be Adored"

[ QUOTE ]
I'm sure I've posted this one before in a similar thread, but my friends used to think the first line of the refrain to "Would?" by Alice in Chains was "Hail to the furniture"


[/ QUOTE ]

Wrong song. That's in "Angry Chair" /images/graemlins/wink.gif

ScottieK

[ QUOTE ]
Hold me close and tie me down, sir


[/ QUOTE ]


This seems like a reasonable Elton John lyric.

[stigmata]

[ QUOTE ]
I caught a friend singing "I Wanna, I Wanna be a DOOR!"

She was singing along to the Stone Roses song "I Wanna be Adored"

[/ QUOTE ]

I always thought it sounded like he was singing "I wanna, I Wanna be a DOG!". I think this is by far the best version of all 3 choices.

[pooh74]

"Ham on rye, don't nobody worry about me"

Kenny Logins-

[diebitter]

Kid Creole and the Coconuts - "Annie, I'm not your Daddy"

I thought the backing singers were singing

"ona,ona,onomatopoeia"

[pokerdirty]

"i saw the sign/sun" _ace of base?

i still don't know which one it is /images/graemlins/confused.gif

[MonkeeMan]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Another common one is Jimi's "Excuse me while I kiss the sky"

[/ QUOTE ]

i always hear, "excuse me while I kiss this guy."

[/ QUOTE ]

Jimi definitely knew of the ambiguity and intentionally played it up in concerts.

[/ QUOTE ]

bullsheet.

[O Doyle Rules]

[ QUOTE ]
"SLOOOOOWWWW WALKING WALTER"
"THE FIRE ENGINE GUY"

Deep Purple

Regards,
Woodguy

[/ QUOTE ]


My sister heard those lyrics this way:

"Slow Mother vulture"

"Flying in the sky"

[WSUchica]

I thought "Sittin on the Dock of the Bay" was "Sittin on the Top of the Bed" until about 2 years ago when some guy sang it on American Idol /images/graemlins/blush.gif

[Slow Play Ray]

Green Day's "When I Come Around"

I always heard "...so don't knock down my door..." as "...sell donuts at my door..."

[Soul Daddy]

n/m

[Arbogast]

Pearl Jam

"Glorified version of a pellet gun..."

I thought it was:

"Glorified Virgin on a Pellican"

You'll never listen to it the same way again.

Oh yeah, from my childhood...

"Coma-coma-coma-coma-coma comediannnnnnn
You come and go, you come and go-o-o"

ScottieK

STP- Plush

Where ya going to tomorrow
Where ya going with the mask I found.

Friend of mine interpreted it as...

Where ya going with the master frown.

[NutzyClutz]

Gee our old La Salle ran great.

Never could figure that out

[Forbin]

[ QUOTE ]
Led Zepellin -- "If you listen very hard, a Jew will bother you a lot" (If you listen very hard, the tune will come to you at last)

[/ QUOTE ]

Semi-related... I had a roommate in college who hadn't really heard any Grateful Dead before, and I listen to a fair amount (moreso then). After he had heard Franklin's Tower a number of times we had this conversation:
Him: "I though the Dead were supposed to be all peaceful and happy and stuff... why are their lyrics so angry and violent?"
Me: "Huh? what are you talking about?"
Him: "Well in that last song they keep talking about blowing away the Jews."
After thinking for a minute I realize he's talking about the repeated line of, "Roll away the dew," and I explain that to him.

Of course now about half the time when I hear that song I think about those lyrics.