langcafe2.myfreeforum.org

Elaine · Posted: Wed Dec 06, 2006 1:54 am Post subject: Misheard Lyrics

On the radio this morning, the deejays were taking calls from listeners talking about song lyrics that they misheard and kept singing over and over again until someone clued them in on it. It relates to a commercial currently playing on US TV where one guy sings "Stop the catbox" or something like that instead of "Rock the Casbah".

Anyway, this guy calls in to say that after listening to "Smoke to Joints" (a Toyes song covered by Sublime: "I smoke to joints in the morning/I smoke two joints at night..."), his wife commented "He must really like this Joyce girl"... LOL. She heard it as "I spoke to Joyce..."

One song that I, and apparently many others, mishear is Manfred Mann's "Blinded by the Light" ("revved up like a deuce" --> "wrapped up like a douche"!).

What about you?

_________________
El mundo es como un pepino: hoy lo tienes en la mano, mañana en el culo.

Loic · Posted: Wed Dec 06, 2006 2:08 am Post subject:

I used to think for years that Ace of Base were singing "I saw the sun". It was only recently that I belatedly realised that it was "I saw the sign". What a sad git I was.
_________________
Hillary Clinton is an acquired taste which I have clearly yet to acquire.

Deborah · Posted: Wed Dec 06, 2006 2:49 am Post subject: Re: Misheard Lyrics

Elaine · Posted: Wed Dec 06, 2006 2:55 am Post subject:

LOL. Whatever we hear it as, it most certainly does not sound like "douce".
_________________
El mundo es como un pepino: hoy lo tienes en la mano, mañana en el culo.

Joanne · Moderator Joined: 23 Aug 2006 Posts: 488

I misheard a lot of lyrics when I was a kid during the eighties. Maybe because I had a lot of ear infections?

"Mickey" by Toni Basil:

I heard: It's guys like you, Mickey! I wanna do Mickey, do Mickey...
Real lyrics: It's guys like you, Mickey! Oh, what you do Mickey, do Mickey...

"Mad About You" by Belinda Carlisle:

I heard: A couple of blues, Running wild on tweed.
Real lyrics: A couple of fools, Running wild, aren't we?

"Shout" by Tears for Fears:

I heard: I'd really love to break your arm.
Real lyric: I'd really love to break your heart.

"Hungry Like the Wolf" by Duran Duran:

I heard: Center the sound, I'm lost and unfound.
Real lyric: Scent and a sound, I'm lost and I'm found.
_________________
"Politics is the art of looking for trouble, finding it everywhere, diagnosing it incorrectly and applying the wrong remedies." ---- Groucho Marx

Loic · Posted: Thu Dec 07, 2006 8:10 am Post subject:

Can we extend the interpretation of this thread to Misinterpreted Lyrics as well?

When I first listened to 'Ode to my Family' by the Cranberries many years ago, I thought that the title was incongruous as Dolores seemed to be singing about childhood abuse of a presumed sexual nature. These were the lines in particular which made me think so:

My father, my father, he liked me
O he liked me, does anyone care

But this song is supposed to be a tribute to her family, isn't it? Or is there a strong undercurrent of Irish sarcasm that I have failed to detect?
_________________
Hillary Clinton is an acquired taste which I have clearly yet to acquire.

Liz · Posted: Tue Jun 26, 2007 11:54 pm Post subject:

The list of lyrics I've misheard:

Freddy Mercury: Living On My Own

What I (and almost all the people I know) heard: pirohere (piro = a prefix in connection with "fire" + here = "testicles")

Real lyrics: dee do de de

Opus: Life is Life

What all Hungarian people hear: levelet kaptam = I've received a letter
Real lyrics: labadab dab dab

Curtis Stigers: I Wonder Why

Misheard: love is an anger
Real lyrics: love is an anchor

The Real Thing: You to me are everything

Misheard: come on and take a rest with me
Real: come on and take a rest of me

Dire Straits: Walk of Life (the only Dire Straits song I can't stand

)

Misheard: Igazi (="real" in Hungarian) action, igazi motion, Yeah, yeah the boy can blame
Real:He got the action, he got the motion, Yeah, the boy can play

Tears for Fears

Misheard title: Sewing in the Seas of Love
Real title: Sowing the Seeds of Love

Wet Wet Wet: Angel Eyes

Misheard: in July
Real: angel eyes

Misheard: people say that I'm so aromatic
Real: people say that I'm so automatic

Peter Gabriel: Sledgehammer

I didn't understand the title at all.

Status Quo: In the Army Now

Misheard title: In the Yummie Now

Dido: White Flag

Misheard: I will go down with this shit
Real: I will go down with this ship

Elvis Presley: Little Less Conversation

Misheard: Close your mouth and get your motherfucker down and baby satisfy me (I was profoundly shocked by these "obscene" lyrics

)
Real: Close your mouth and open up your heart and baby satisfy me

The Temptations: Treat Her Like a Lady

Misheard: Now I'm the kinda guy who believes that chivalry is dead,
Real: Now I'm the kinda guy who don't believe that chivalry is dead,
Misheard: A woman's like a flower, who needs a little shower
Real: A woman's like a flower, with love on her you shower
Misheard: Now boy, you should remember to be a little man
Real: Now boy, you should remember to be a gentleman

Ray Charles: I'll Be Good to You

Misheard: I'll be a good chick, good chick, good chick
Real: I'll be good to you, good to you, good to you

Hall and Oates: Baby Come Back

Misheard: Holding love, wearing a mask of farce bravado
Real: All day long, wearing a mask of false bravado

Rod Stuart: Baby Jane

Misheard: No one tell me where I've been
Real: No one tell me where or when

The Delegation: Where is the love

Misheard: it's such a sorry sight preceding
Real: it's not a sunny side to see
Misheard: I guess I'll just be bad
Real: I guess I just became

Ghost: Basic Instict

Misheard: Dos and don'ts, wills and won'ts, basic instinct make you big
Real: Dos and don'ts, wills and won'ts, basic instinct to make you think

And so on, and so on... Of course, I can't recall the funniest ones right now

_________________
Az alvástól megéhezem. Az evéstől elálmosodom. Az élet szép.

Loic · Posted: Wed Jun 27, 2007 3:58 pm Post subject:

I got a glimpse into your eclectic musical tastes, Liz!
_________________
Hillary Clinton is an acquired taste which I have clearly yet to acquire.

Liz · Posted: Wed Jun 27, 2007 4:48 pm Post subject:

Loic · Posted: Fri Jun 29, 2007 7:27 am Post subject:

Liz:

I really like Wet Wet Wet by Angel Eyes. It always makes me think fondly of my primary school days when my father would be sending me to school and I would be listening to this song over the radio.

I often listen to music in glassy-eyed silence, that is to say, I don't pay too much attention to the lyrics. It is the tune that gets me grooving.
_________________
Hillary Clinton is an acquired taste which I have clearly yet to acquire.

Loic · Posted: Fri Jun 29, 2007 7:32 am Post subject:

Here's a song whose lyrics I misheard in the past. I suppose interference in the sound transmission mangles up the words.

"I'll Be Your Everything" by Tommy Page (the sort of song you can play to a girl whilst sending her home)

Misheard Lyrics: So long I've been waiting for a girl/ To come into my life and to my will

Correct lyrics: So long I've been waiting for a girl/ To come into my life and to my world

I know it doesn't make sense for someone to come into someone's will, but I erroneously assumed that Tommy Page was singing of a gold-digger.
_________________
Hillary Clinton is an acquired taste which I have clearly yet to acquire.

Liz · Posted: Fri Jun 29, 2007 3:31 pm Post subject:

Loic · Posted: Fri Jun 29, 2007 5:42 pm Post subject:

Liz:

I am pretty au fait with songs dating from the 80s and 90s. I also listen extensively to songs from the 60s and 70s so I sometimes feel that I am able to vicariously experience the mood of a bygone era even if I was not born into it. My parents belong to the generation where they came of age in the early 80s so my musical tastes were -and remain- largely influenced by them.

Are you born in 1984? If so, you're the same age as I am. I have always felt that I was born into a very special year. George Orwell chose 1984 to write his book, didn't he?

I went to a nightclub a fortnight ago where they play disco hits from the 1980s every Wednesday night. The dance floor was packed to the capacity with clubbers from the 18 - 25 age group, swaying their hips to Love of the First Degree by Bananarama and grooving to all those hyperactive dance hits from the likes of Donna Summers, The Human League, Culture Club, etc.

PS: Sorry, you got me there. Thanks for correcting me!
_________________
Hillary Clinton is an acquired taste which I have clearly yet to acquire.

Liz · Posted: Fri Jun 29, 2007 6:20 pm Post subject:

Loic · Posted: Fri Jun 29, 2007 6:58 pm Post subject:

Liz:

Of course, I do not exclusively listen to songs from the past. Currently, I am infatuated with Lily Allen and Amy Winehouse and flirt with genres as disparate as soul, r&b, soft rock and pop. Unfortunately, I don't do classical.

Songs from the 70s have a quality of lost innocence. I like to listen to The Carpenters while I am doing my homework or revising for my exams, tapping my feet to Top of the World or Mr Postman . It is such a pity that Karen Carpenter died so early. They were an immensely talented duo.

Do you go clubbing much? I don't except on the occasional blue moon. Clubbing is prohibitively expensive as I am apt to spend too much on drinks whenever I patronise such establishments. I have two left feet, you see. Cocktails are an indispensable weapon for me to find my groove, and some say my mojo.

Some say that nightclubs are just places to innocuously 'bump' into girls on the dance floor. Two weeks ago, I was the unfortunate victim by being on the receiving end of some lusty dance moves by an inerbriated chap. Suffice to say, I just don't have that luck when I go clubbing.

Many young people do not appreciate timeless classics. When I told a girl that I do listen to Nat King Cole and Frank Sinatra, she gasped.

But it's their loss, really.
_________________
Hillary Clinton is an acquired taste which I have clearly yet to acquire.

Llatai · Expert Joined: 27 Apr 2007 Posts: 52

There's always Jimi Henrix's "Foxy Lady"
Lyric: 'scuse me while I kiss the sky
Misheard: 'scuse me while I kiss this guy

Deborah · Posted: Sat Jun 30, 2007 7:55 am Post subject:

Liz · Posted: Sat Jun 30, 2007 4:41 pm Post subject:

Loic · Posted: Sat Jun 30, 2007 5:10 pm Post subject:

I agree with what you said about how Amy Winehouse seems to be taking a turn for the worse as far as her looks are concerned. But well, I don't watch her MTV so it doesn't really matter.

The Singapore music market is largely segmented into the Chinese and English market so I dare say many people here would not have heard of her. However, amongst my circle of friends, many of us would have been acquainted with her "Rehab" single: They tried to make me to go to rehab and I said NO, NO, NO....

It's an easy song to sing to, really.

One thing about Amy Winehouse is that she sounds black. I was mildly surprised to discover that she's actually white and English as well. For some reason, the timbre of her voice reminds me of Macy Gray.

I think Lily Allen is very retro chic with her wide Alice band that harks back to the 70s and 80s. You are spot on about her wit. Listening to LDN and Alfie always make me smile.

This afternoon, I was listening to David Gates. Have you heard of him? His songs are the sort a boy would dedicate to a girl over a radio programme. He was supposed to have been one of the forerunners in the soft rock genre, but I really think he belongs to the mawkish and soppish songwriters such as Sir Cliff Richard, who is by the way, immensely popular with the forty something female crowd.

At our school graduation dinner, we organised a 70s night. We ransacked our parents' wardrobe to get into the spirit of the age and danced to ABBA for the whole night. It was really fun. Sweden does seem to have this knack for producing the sort of musical groups who have their fingers on the pulse of the world as far as musical tastes are concerned. Ace of Base and Roxette are my other two favourite Swedish musical groups.

As for clubbing, I think it is significant to mention that the anti-smoking ban in clubs kicks in on the 1st of July tomorrow. This is something lamentable, I feel. What is a club without the smell of tobacco? Furthermore, cigarette smoke does a really good job in masking the other more unpleasant odours that percolate in small confined spaces when there are so many other people around.
_________________
Hillary Clinton is an acquired taste which I have clearly yet to acquire.

Liz · Posted: Sat Jun 30, 2007 5:40 pm Post subject:

Loic, you seem to have ignored my last and most important question...