Misheard song lyrics

[Mr_Northside]

On Saturday I was on my way back from the grocery store when "Drift Away" came on the radio. The first few times I heard that song way back when, I thought it sounded like "Give me the Beach Boys and free my soul ...."

Same.

[mgk920]

Also all of the nonsensical lyrics mishears that I had with Killer Queen by Queen.  After seeing a lyric list it made sense - I've heard of real-life women around here who were like that (and that I very thankfully never got wound up with).



Mike

[Ned Weasel]

This thread is back?  Okay, here are my top two:

"On A Plain" by Nirvana:  For a long time, I thought I heard, "The finest day that I ever had was when I learned to cry like a man," but it's actually "...cry on command."  I think my misinterpretation kind of makes sense, though.

When I was a kid, I thought "Everybody Plays the Fool" was "Everybody Plays the Flute."  Don't laugh.  Okay, laugh.

Neither of these make any sense but when I was a kid it's what I thought they said.

In "Africa" instead of there's nothing that a hundred men or more could ever do, I heard, there's nothing that a hundred men on board could ever do.

Africa is a terrible one.  I test the brains down in Africa.

That's kind of a "guilty pleasure" song, like "Hotel California."  Weezer didn't help, though.

[Buck87]

She's Just My Style by Gary Lewis & The Playboys

actual line: "Oh it makes me want to tell her that I care"

what I heard: "Oh it makes me want to tell her that I'm gay"

[US 89]

In Little Talks by Of Monsters and Men, I have always heard "cause though the truth may vary, this shit will carry on". Couldn't figure out why the radio stations weren't censoring it...until I found out the actual lyrics.

On Saturday I was on my way back from the grocery store when "Drift Away" came on the radio. The first few times I heard that song way back when, I thought it sounded like "Give me the Beach Boys and free my soul ...."

I always heard "give me the people..."

[texaskdog]

This thread is back?  Okay, here are my top two:

"On A Plain" by Nirvana:  For a long time, I thought I heard, "The finest day that I ever had was when I learned to cry like a man," but it's actually "...cry on command."  I think my misinterpretation kind of makes sense, though.

When I was a kid, I thought "Everybody Plays the Fool" was "Everybody Plays the Flute."  Don't laugh.  Okay, laugh.

Neither of these make any sense but when I was a kid it's what I thought they said.

In "Africa" instead of there's nothing that a hundred men or more could ever do, I heard, there's nothing that a hundred men on board could ever do.

Africa is a terrible one.  I test the brains down in Africa.

That's kind of a "guilty pleasure" song, like "Hotel California."  Weezer didn't help, though.

Weezer has become synonymous with crappy lifeless cover songs

[hbelkins]

The song "Emergency" by Girlschool, and later done by Motorhead, always threw me. I didn't know that 999 is the British equivalent of our 911. So I always thought the line was "night night night, emergency" instead of "nine nine nine."

[roadman65]

ELO at the end of the 1977 song Mr. Blue Sky in its last line as the song fades out, a vocoder appears to have the song title synthesized but in reality it is saying "Turn me over."

The turn request is to when the vinyl albums had sides and Mr. Blue Sky was the last song on side three of the double LP where side four was on the reverse side.  So the band was saying to turn the record over to listen to more songs.

Tom Petty on Full Moon Fever did that at the end of side one, but included the message that if you were listening to it on CD, you did not have to do that. 

[Buck87]

something that came in the mail recently reminded me of another one...

Annie's Song by John Denver

actual lyric: "You fill up my senses"
what I heard "You fill out my census"

[1995hoo]

ELO at the end of the 1977 song Mr. Blue Sky in its last line as the song fades out, a vocoder appears to have the song title synthesized but in reality it is saying "Turn me over."

The turn request is to when the vinyl albums had sides and Mr. Blue Sky was the last song on side three of the double LP where side four was on the reverse side.  So the band was saying to turn the record over to listen to more songs.

Tom Petty on Full Moon Fever did that at the end of side one, but included the message that if you were listening to it on CD, you did not have to do that.

"Hello, CD Listeners. We have come to the point in this album when those listening on cassette or records will have to stand up, or sit down, and turn over the record, or tape. In fairness to those listeners, we will now take a few seconds before we begin Side Two. [Brief pause] Thank you. Here's Side Two."

I once sequenced that near the end of the first side of a mixed tape, except I didn't get it right at the end of the side, so I cut it off after he said "before we begin Side Two" and then stuck the Who's "Heinz Baked Beans" fake commercial in to end the side.

[Rothman]

something that came in the mail recently reminded me of another one...

Annie's Song by John Denver

actual lyric: "You fill up my senses"
what I heard "You fill out my census"

This is awesome.

[texaskdog]

AC/DC Big Balls:  "Well I never ever class high society" is really "Well I'm rather upper class high society"

[kurumi]

Chili Peppers' "In the Burgess Shale it's a lonely view" is actually "With the birds I'll share this lonely view"

Sad 5-eyed Opabinia hanging out:

[texaskdog]

You picked a fine time to leave me Lucille. 400 children and a crock in the field.   

I was more confused by why there would be a crocodile in the field than that she had 400 children.

[texaskdog]

Very briefly when I was a kid, I heard "Jet" and they were clearly singing about someone so I thought it was "Jeff"

[spooky]

You picked a fine time to leave me Lucille. 400 children and a crock in the field.   

I was more confused by why there would be a crocodile in the field than that she had 400 children.

Not misheard, but humorous alternate lyrics:

You picked a fine time to leave me loose wheel. 400 broken bones as I crashed in the field.

[texaskdog]

You picked a fine time to leave me Lucille. 400 children and a crock in the field.   

I was more confused by why there would be a crocodile in the field than that she had 400 children.

Not misheard, but humorous alternate lyrics:

You picked a fine time to leave me loose wheel. 400 broken bones as I crashed in the field.

Thank you Weird Al

[hbelkins]

You picked a fine time to leave me Lucille. 400 children and a crock in the field.   

I was more confused by why there would be a crocodile in the field than that she had 400 children.

Not misheard, but humorous alternate lyrics:

You picked a fine time to leave me loose wheel. 400 broken bones as I crashed in the field.

Anytime a wheel came off a car during a Fox-broadcast NASCAR race from 2001 until last year, Darrell Waltrip would sing "You picked a fine time to leave me, loose wheel."

[Hwy 61 Revisited]

Chili Peppers' "In the Burgess Shale it's a lonely view" is actually "With the birds I'll share this lonely view"

I thought that it was "The trebuchet is alone with you!"

[texaskdog]

Carole King "Jazzman" I thought it was Jasmine

[TheHighwayMan3561]

Carole King "Jazzman" I thought it was Jasmine

On this tangent, when I would hear Seals and Croft's "Summer Breeze"  I thought it was "jazz club in my mind" , not "jasmine" .

[texaskdog]

Carole King "Jazzman" I thought it was Jasmine

On this tangent, when I would hear Seals and Croft’s “Summer Breeze” I thought it was “jazz club in my mind”, not “jasmine”.

good one

[GaryV]

Carole King "Jazzman" I thought it was Jasmine

On this tangent, when I would hear Seals and Croft's "Summer Breeze"  I thought it was "jazz club in my mind" , not "jasmine" .

In HS when this came out, we heard "Jazz man in my mind" because no one knew what jasmine was.  We played with the car radio to try to make it come out clearer.  It only made sense when someone knew that jasmine was a flower.

[hbelkins]

I heard it as "jazz band," which was something I could identify with, as I played in a high school ensemble we called the "Stage Band," which was at its heart, a jazz band.

[TravelingBethelite]

Not a song... But during an NPR station's report the other day about educational materials for kids stuck at home, I misheard "resources" as "race horses", lmao.