Mondegreens

Secret Agent Man by Johnny Rivers

Poor enunciation can be the cause of misheard lyrics

Here is another oldie but goodie misheard lyric. I know I’m not the only one who hears the words to Johnny Rivers’ hit “Secret Agent Man” wrong. Admit it, you always thought he was singing about a “secret Asian man”, didn’t you?

In this case, I think it’s more a matter of enunciation, or lack there of, that causes the mishearing of the words to “Secret Agent Man”. Even knowing what Rivers says, I still hear him singing “secret Asian man” instead of agent, and “giving you a numbah, and taken way your name” instead of “giving you a number and taking away your name”.

At a time when James Bond ruled and television spy shows were popular, “Secret Agent Man” first appeared as the theme song for the CBS television program Secret Agent. “Secret Agent Man” was originally just one verse and the chorus; other verses were added later and the song was released as a single. It reached number 3 on the charts in 1966. Read more about Secret Agent Man by Johnny Rivers

American Pie by Don McLean

I was always confused by the chorus

I was listening to Pandora radio this morning while I was taking a shower. The song “American Pie” by Don McLean started playing, and I was singing at the top of my lungs. As the song went into the refrain, I was reminded of how I interpreted the lyrics to the refrain when I was younger. When I got out of the shower, I recounted the story to my husband, since I had never shared it with him before. It’s a cute story, at least in my opinion. It doesn’t involve a mondegreen in the strictest sense of the word. I didn’t mishear the lyrics, but rather interpreted them with my own definition.

I’m fairly certain that any music fan is familiar with “American Pie” and understands that it was inspired by the events of February 3, 1959, when Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens and the Big Bopper J.P. Richardson were killed in a plane crash after a concert in Clear Lake, Iowa. This day is known as “the day the music died”, which is also a line in McLean’s song. It’s one of my favorite songs. Read more about American Pie by Don McLean

"Rocket Man" Mondegreens Used in Volkswagen Commercial

The Elton John hit is used to highlight the Passat's stereo system

The 2012 VW Passat commercial “That What He Says?” uses Elton John’s “Rocket Man” and has been playing a lot lately. The commercial focuses on the Passat’s new crystal-clear Fender audio system. It shows a montage of people singing their interpretation of the lyrics “burning out his fuse up here alone.”

Misheard lyrics heard in the commercial include “burning out this useless telephone”, “burning up the room with cheap cologne”, “musty motor home”, and “all alone”. I’m not sure if these are real or made-up misheard lyrics, but I’m going to say the misheard lyrics were made up for the commercial. I checked two popular websites that list misheard lyrics, kissthisguy.com and amiright.com, and neither site includes any of the so-called mondegreens from the commercial. Read more about "Rocket Man" Mondegreens Used in Volkswagen Commercial

Olive The Other Reindeer and Other Christmas Mondegreens

Misheard lyrics in Christmas carols and songs

It’s that time of year…time to sing about Olive, the other reindeer laughing at poor Rudolph, and Round John Virgin with his margarine child.

The words to Christmas songs and carols have been misheard throughout the years, and there are some pretty funny interpretations. Olive, the other reindeer and Round John Virgin are probably the most common, or at least the most well-known of the Christmas mondegreens. Read more about Olive The Other Reindeer and Other Christmas Mondegreens

They Took Out Their What?

Misheard words can lead to funny conversations

I promised to share some of the misheard conversations between my husband and I. Some of them are pretty funny, or at least they were when they occurred.

When we go out to eat, one of our favorite things to do is to observe the other diners and try to figure out what their relationship to each other is. We usually focus on couples or a group of adults dining together. If it's a couple, we'll try to figure out if they are dating, married or just friends; and we'll make up scenarios and stories about how they met or what they are doing. It's a game, and a way to pass the time until our meal arrives.

The History of the Mondegreen

Mondegreens can occur in everyday language as well as in song lyric interpretations

According to dictionary.com, a mondegreen is a "word or phrase resulting from a misinterpretation of a word or phrase that has been heard." The word "mondegreen" was coined by writer Sylvia Wright in the 1950's.

As a young girl, she had heard the Scottish poem, "The Bonny Earl of Murray", written in the 17th century. The first verse of this ballad is:

Ye Higlands and ye Lawlands,

O where hae ye been?

The hae slain the Earl of Murray

And hae laid him on the green

"Bad Moon Rising"

Or, "There's a Bathroom on the Right"

One of the most common misheard lyrics is from "Bad Moon Rising" by Creedence Clearwater Revival. The line in the refrain "There's a bad moon on the rise" is often misheard as "There's a bathroom on the right", which makes absolutely no sense at all when you listen to the lyrics of the song. In addition, the title of the song, "Bad Moon Rising", should probably be a clue to the true lyrics.

Read more about "Bad Moon Rising"

Drift Away by Dobie Gray

Lost in a donut hole?

I was 12 years old in 1973 when Dobie Gray released his hit song "Drift Away". My older brother was 25, and he would sing this song constantly. However, little did I know then that the way he sang the refrain was not the way it actually went.

My brother's misheard version:

Oh, give me the beat boys

and free my soul

I wanna get lost

in your donut hole

and drift away

DJ Ephixa - "Lost Woods Dubstep"

Video game music has influenced a great deal of electronic artists writing today. DJ Ephixa pays direct tribute to 8-bit inspiration by mashing up music from Zelda into catchy dubstep jams. I could see a bunch of '80s video game nerds raving their faces off to this. The original Zelda themes do all right wrapped up in dense club beats. And the video ought to get you all nostalgic for a simpler time, back when forests were just clumps of green pixels and we all spent our days traversing them in order to rescue blocky princesses. Those were the days. Check out the Zelda gameplay music video below.

First Person Mario ... is Awesome

I can safely say that most people out there have wondered what it is like for Mario when he is weaving around obstacles, jumping over pipes, and smashing giant bugs (or whatever they are). Well thanks to freddiew and youtube - now we can all know! Check it out!