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.

Johnny Rivers was born on November 7, 1942 as John Henry Ramistella. His name was changed to Johnny Rivers when he began recording music. Rivers’ first hit was a remake of the Chuck Berry single “Memphis”, which climbed to #2 on the charts in 1964, amid the onslaught of the British invasion, and Beatlemania. Many of Rivers’ early hits were covers; besides “Memphis”, he also recorded Berry’s “Maybelline” and Harold Dorman’s “Mountain of Love” among others. “Secret Agent Man” was one of the first of Rivers’ hits that was written for him.