Misheard Lyrics (Mondegreens): There's A Bathroom On the Right

[janie jones]

I don't know how to feel about you not having heard that song before Netflix existed.

[Luckylyn]

House of Love by Amy Grant

What I heard: “When I met you, you didn’t have any money.”

Actual lyric: “Well I bet you any amount of money.”

[Annber03]

After hearing "It Must Have Been Love" on the radio recently:

Actual lyric:: "From the moment we touched, 'till the time had run out"

What I thought they were saying when I was younger: "From the moment we touched, 'till the time paramount." 

[Jaded]

4 hours ago, Luckylyn said:

House of Love by Amy Grant

What I heard: “When I met you, you didn’t have any money.”

Actual lyric: “Well I bet you any amount of money.”

I was a teen when the video for that song came out and I remember telling my Mom those two liked each other as more then just friends. 

[Taryn74]

Stumbled across this forum tonight as I was looking for something to do for a while before bed, and even though the posts are from several years ago now can I just say how glad I am to see I am not the only one who thought Taylor Swift was singing about a line of Starbucks lovers? My teenaged daughter laughed at me so hard over that one! I remember arguing with her about how it really did make sense in my head (like she was quickly going through a fast food style line of no commitment lovers or something, I don't know) but she just thought I was old and crazy.

Oh and I totally always thought it was Dirty Deeds and the Thunderchiefs as a kid. I still won't sing dirty deeds and they're done dirt cheap, because the Thunderchiefs is funnier. Heh.

We had a teacher in high school try to convince us the Eagles were singing about the warm smell of burritos rising up through the air.

[KWalkerInc]

I recently bought a song I knew from high school, "This House" by Tracie Spencer, which has a nice message about coming together to help people.  However, when she sings, "It's time for us to say goodbye / To all the homeless people's cry," I always hear the word "homeless" as "homely," even though I know that could not be what she is singing, and would not be very nice.  She clearly enunciates all the rest of the song, so this is weird.

In "If This Is It" by Huey Lewis & The News, there is a part where he clearly (now that I know) sings, "I wanna know-oh-oh!" but when I was a kid, I somehow heard this as "I'll find another love."

[KWalkerInc]

When Music Choice plays "Spend Christmas With You" by Anthony Hamilton, I should have figured out by now that he is singing "Waiting 'round for Old Saint Nick."  However, every time it plays, there is always a time when I am not fully paying attention and somehow momentarily hear it as "Waiting 'round for cocaine, yeah."

[catlover79]

On 9/3/2019 at 7:41 PM, Shannon L. said:

I can't be the only one who thought it as "Knights in White Satin".  Anyone? 

Sounds like a Monty Python sketch. 😉😂

[KWalkerInc]

MC Hammer has a song called "Gaining Momentum" that apparently wasn't released as a single but is on his greatest hits album.  There is a part of the song that sounds like he is saying (putting in spoiler space because it's nasty):

Spoiler

suck on the glass dildo and your life is gonna blow up.

Of course, that is just wrong and very confusing, and I wanted to know what he actually said, but when I looked it up, whoever transcribed the lyrics just put a bunch of question marks before the "life is gonna blow up" part.

[Jeebus Cripes]

"Crash" by Dave Matthews Band. What he says: 

Hike up your skirt a little more
And show the world to me

What I heard:

Hike up your skirt, little boy
And show the world to me

Needless to say, I was concerned. 

[TommiL]

A lot of people still sing "blue heaven is a place on earth". Of course the lyrics are "ooo heaven is a place on earth".

The ooo sounds like blue, I guess.

[Colleenna]

Someone has  probably  already mentioned it  (because it has to be one of the most misheard songs of all time) but I misheard the line from Elton John's  "Benny and The  Jets " as 

"She has electric  boobs and mohair shoes. " 

[Popples]

On 4/25/2020 at 11:23 AM, Colleenna said:

Someone has  probably  already mentioned it  (because it has to be one of the most misheard songs of all time) but I misheard the line from Elton John's  "Benny and The  Jets " as 

"She has electric  boobs and mohair shoes. " 

For a while I thought it was, "She has electric boobs, her mom has, too".

[janie jones]

On 4/25/2020 at 8:23 AM, Colleenna said:

Someone has  probably  already mentioned it  (because it has to be one of the most misheard songs of all time) but I misheard the line from Elton John's  "Benny and The  Jets " as 

"She has electric  boobs and mohair shoes. " 

 

[smittykins]

The YES Network is broadcasting Yankee wins from last year, including “God Bless America” during the seventh-inning stretch, which reminded me of this:

Stand beside her, and guide her 

Through the night with a light from a bulb

And not a song, but as a kid, I thought the Pledge of Allegiance had a line that said “One nation, Underdog.”
, 

[Colleenna]

You know  that song "Havana" by Camila  Cabelo? Well, the first  few times I  heard it, what I  heard made zero sense.  Instead of 

Havana  ooh na na, half of my heart is in Havana ooh na na

I heard

Banana  on the roof,  wearing a  cardigan,  banana on the roof...🤣🤣🤣

Thus it will  ever be for me. 

[Bill1978]

Growing up, I thought Shannon Doherty's parents named her after the river mention in John Denver's Country Road.

Almost heaven, West Virginia

Blue Ridge Mountains, Shannon Doherty River

The only excuse I can give is that I'm Australian and had no knowledge about the rivers of the US except for the Mississippi.

[Oosala]

The Lovin' Spoonful, Summer in the City

What they sing:  Despite the heat it'll be all right

What I sang:  If you start to heave it'll be all right

(She's puking because it's so damn hot in the summer, in the city, in the summer, in the city.)

Edited May 24, 2020 by Oosala

[smittykins]

Until now, I thought it was “Just like the heat...”

Which makes absolutely no sense...🤣

[Bastet]

11 minutes ago, smittykins said:

Until now, I thought it was “Just like the heat...”

Me too!

[KWalkerInc]

A few days ago, I heard "You Beat Me to the Punch" by Mary Wells on Music Choice R&B Classics and misheard the line "You must've had a hunch" as "Your mustache had a hunch."

On the same channel (but awhile ago), they played "Sweet Soul Music" by Arthur Conley, which is his tribute to all the greats of the era.  I thought he sang, "Spotlight on Sammy Day, y'all" and thought it was some legend that I just didn't know about.  The fact that the next line was about "Hold On, I'm Comin'" should have been a hint that he was saying "Sam and Dave," but I didn't pay enough attention to get it until I heard the song a few times.

When I was recently listening to some Prince, it made me think of when I was a kid and my sister would get very annoyed with me for thinking that Cyndi Lauper's cover of "When You Were Mine" began "When you were mine, I gave you half of my money" instead of "all."  She would get so frustrated over the fact that I didn't understand why this didn't make sense, although she didn't really try to explain it to me either.  I was eight, I didn't know.

Around the same age, I thought that Kenny Loggins' "Footloose" began, "Been workin' so hard, I'm punchin' my car."  I didn't know about time cards I guess, so I just thought that working too many hours had caused him to fly into a rage and punch the hood of the car.  At least my sister didn't know about that one!

[xls]

"I'm Heartless" by the Weekend I think?

What I hear: "I'm Fart-less"🤣🤣🤣

[smittykins]

Daydream Believer, The Monkees:

Wrong:  “And our good times start and end/With $1.01 to spend”

Right: “Without dollar one to spend”

[Oosala]

From The Mikado

What they sing:  Three little maids from school are we.

What my son heard:  Three inmates from school are we?!

[Annber03]

1 hour ago, Oosala said:

From The Mikado

What they sing:  Three little maids from school are we.

What my son heard:  Three inmates from school are we?!

I can't hear that song without thinking of Frasier Crane :p. 

[KWalkerInc]

My friend was having trouble understanding Lady Gaga in the chorus of her song with Ariana Grande, "Rain on Me," so I looked it up for her because her computer has been out of service for a while.  The line turned out to be "I'd rather be dry but at least I'm alive."  However, I played it and always hear "I'd rather be drunk, boy!  At least I'm alive."  I think that is more fun to sing.

ETA: I recently bought "Dynamite" by Taio Cruz after it played during a pitching change of a 2010 baseball game that was airing online.  The chorus starts, "I throw my hands into the air sometimes, saying, 'Ay-oh!  Gotta let go!"  It's pretty straightforward and easy to understand...NOW.  Unfortunately, back when the song was first released, I didn't hear it so clearly and used to sing, "I throw my hands into the air sometimes, saying, "Ay-oh!  Galileo!"

Edited June 30, 2020 by KWalkerInc
Added another song.

[smittykins]

Recently, I was listening to the Guess Who’s “Clap For The Wolfman” on my iPhone(I have an Apple Music subscription, which usually lets you see the lyrics)and saw this:

(it’s supposed to be “angles”)

 

[Annber03]

Listening to a '90s flashback show right now, and they just played Duncan Shiek's "Barely Breathing", which reminded me of my own "misheard lyric" moment regarding that song.

Actual lyric: "I am barely breathing, and I can't find the air..."

What I heard as a kid: "I am barely breathing, and I can't find Pierre..."

Who this Pierre person was supposed to be, I have no idea. 

[smittykins]

Elton John, “The Bitch Is Back”:

Wrong:  I entertain my fricking brain

Right:  I entertain by picking brains

 

[xls]

There is a song played frequently on Ryan Secrest  show & I cant make out a single word she is saying!

Goes something like rapid-fire: "Bla-da-da-da-da 'Ive said enough' or 'I set it up'? Help! its driving me crazy! 

[Anduin]

A Judas Priest song. "You don't have to be old to be white." Wait, is that racist? Ageist? Certainly feels somethingist. Wait, wait. "You don't have to be old to be wise." Okay, that's more like it.

And an Aussie classic, from Cold Chisel's Khe Sanh. "Last train out of Sydney's almost gone." Thing is, you can't actually catch a train from Australia to Vietnam. Okay, last plane out of Sydney. But let's be honest. Every true Aussie knows, deep in their hearts, it's train.

[janie jones]

On 7/5/2020 at 5:35 AM, Annber03 said:

Listening to a '90s flashback show right now, and they just played Duncan Shiek's "Barely Breathing", which reminded me of my own "misheard lyric" moment regarding that song.

Actual lyric: "I am barely breathing, and I can't find the air..."

What I heard as a kid: "I am barely breathing, and I can't find Pierre..."

Who this Pierre person was supposed to be, I have no idea. 

Maybe he's related to Mrs. Carmen, who, for unclear reasons, was going to get me, until I learned the song was called "Instant Karma."

[KWalkerInc]

On 7/5/2020 at 5:35 AM, Annber03 said:

Listening to a '90s flashback show right now, and they just played Duncan Shiek's "Barely Breathing", which reminded me of my own "misheard lyric" moment regarding that song.

Actual lyric: "I am barely breathing, and I can't find the air..."

What I heard as a kid: "I am barely breathing, and I can't find Pierre..."

Who this Pierre person was supposed to be, I have no idea. 

Maybe it's the same Pierre I thought Madonna was singing about in "Lucky Star" when she was actually just going, "Yee-ah!" in an exaggerated fashion.  He must get around.

[xls]

On 7/29/2020 at 5:14 PM, xls said:

There is a song played frequently on Ryan Secrest  show & I cant make out a single word she is saying!

Goes something like rapid-fire: "Bla-da-da-da-da 'Ive said enough' or 'I set it up'? Help! its driving me crazy! 

🤔 I like the song even though i have no idea what its about.

[KWalkerInc]

One of my favorite songs is "The Game of Love" by Santana, and early in the song, I always think that Michelle Branch is singing, "Sunshine, that set on this cold, lonely sea."  However, in the version with Tina Turner, she clearly sings, "Sunshine / Instead of this cold, lonely sea."  There's no reason they would sing different lyrics, so I probably hear Michelle wrong.  When I was looking up the lyrics, I learned that Tina actually recorded her version first, but they didn't release it as the single because she didn't want to do a video.  Before they got Michelle Branch, they tried Macy Gray.  I like a lot of stuff Macy has done, but trying to imagine this is interesting!

Yesterday I heard "Walking on Broken Glass" by Annie Lennox, and in the part that goes, "Since you've abandoned me / My whole life has crashed" I heard it as "Since you've abandoned me / My whole life is crap."  I guess that would still make sense, but it wouldn't really fit in with the part that follows about picking up the pieces.

[Bastet]

1 hour ago, KWalkerInc said:

Yesterday I heard "Walking on Broken Glass" by Annie Lennox, and in the part that goes, "Since you've abandoned me / My whole life has crashed" I heard it as "Since you've abandoned me / My whole life is crap." 

I remember this being a conversation back when it was released -- a couple of friends misheard it the same way.

[KWalkerInc]

Today I heard "Owner of a Lonely Heart" by Yes and finally looked up the lyrics.  Early in the song, the singer says, "Take your chances, win or loser."  For all this time, I thought he said, "Take your chances with a loser."  I thought they were saying that being lonely and not taking a risk was worse than being with someone you know is terrible and I would think, "You still have to have some standards."

[janie jones]

On 9/28/2020 at 10:11 PM, KWalkerInc said:

Yesterday I heard "Walking on Broken Glass" by Annie Lennox, and in the part that goes, "Since you've abandoned me / My whole life has crashed" I heard it as "Since you've abandoned me / My whole life is crap."  I guess that would still make sense, but it wouldn't really fit in with the part that follows about picking up the pieces.

When I was a kid I thought it was "My whole life is a crime." Then I got older and decided that didn't make any sense and figured I'd heard it wrong, but I never knew what it really was.

[smittykins]

Listening to Paul McCartney’s “Uncle Albert/Admiral Halsey” on my phone(I have an Apple Music subscription, so I can see the lyrics onscreen), and I discover that the line I thought went:
He had to have a bath or he couldn’t get to sleep 

is actually:

He had to have a berth or he couldn’t get to sea

Mind. Blown.

 

[Anduin]

Here's a funny one. An Iron Maiden lyric that I've always heard as 'true love my guide'. Thing is, the song name is in fact 'Judas my guide'. You'd think I'd have put it together some years ago, wouldn't you? But that's not one of my favourite tracks. I've never really paid attention or thought about it before now.

[KWalkerInc]

"Let Me Love You" by Mario is playing, and these are some lyrics:

Baby I just don't get it
Do you enjoy being hurt?
I know you smelled the perfume,
The make-up on his shirt

For some inexplicable reason, I heard it as "I know you smelled the bacon."  I thought that was strange so I looked up the lyrics.  Bacon doesn't even sound anything like perfume, so maybe it was partially drowned out because the microwave was running in the next room.  At least it's almost dinner time, but now I want bacon and there isn't any!

[Rushmoras]

This topic has got me thinking (and probably has been said somewhere earlier in here), that I keep mishearing most of the lyrics that Taria Turunen (ex-Nightwish vocalist) sings. 🙂 I mean, I decided to re-listen to all of the Nightwish discography, and I will be damned, if I do not need a lyrics sheet (I'm in to the first three albums of theirs). 

Just remembered one lyric I misheard. It was Bon Jovi "Just Older". I heard: "Hey, man, it's been a while you were memories". What he actually sang: "Hey, man, it's been a while, do you remember me?"

Edited November 29, 2020 by Rushmoras

[KWalkerInc]

I was listening to Lady Gaga's latest album, and all of a sudden, she starts repeatedly saying, "I'll be your EN-E-MA!"  It says the song is called "Enigma," so I'm pretty sure that's what she actually said (though you never know with Gaga), but that didn't stop me from laughing hard.

[madmax]

Just found this thread and I'm so glad I'm not the only one that heard so many lyrics wrong (All Along the Watchtower, Cocaine, many more)

A couple I didn't see:

Marshall Tucker Band's Heard it in a Love Song:

Lyric:  Heard it in a love song

I heard:  Purdy Little Love Song (hey, it sounded like a cowboy would sing it that way)

My husband misheard CCR's Lodi:

Lyric: Stuck in Lodi again

He heard: Suckin' on old Diane

Another he misheard was Life's Been Good by Joe Walsh

Lyric:  My Maserti does 185

He heard: My mother, Rowdy, does 185 (he said Joe Walsh looked like his mom could be named Rowdy)

A friend when Imminence Front by the Who first came out:

Lyric: Imminence Front

She heard: Dirty little slut (I can't sing it any other way now)

[Bastet]

58 minutes ago, madmax said:

Marshall Tucker Band's Heard it in a Love Song:

Lyric:  Heard it in a love song

I heard:  Purdy Little Love Song (hey, it sounded like a cowboy would sing it that way)

Well, this is how I'll be singing it from now on.  Hilarious!

[WendyCR72]

3 hours ago, madmax said:

Lyric:  Heard it in a love song

I heard:  Purdy Little Love Song (hey, it sounded like a cowboy would sing it that way)

Wait! The latter WASN'T the proper lyric? That is always how I heard it, too! Huh!

[dewelar]

15 hours ago, madmax said:

Lyric: Imminence Front

It doesn't help if you mishear "Eminence Front" as "Imminence Front" either 😄 .

[madmax]

Just remembered another one as I was updating my iPod (yes, I'm old).

Lou Reed's Walk on the Wild Side

Lyric: "And the colored girls go..."

Misheard: My son always sang it as "And the coloring girls go..."

[Popples]

20 hours ago, madmax said:

Just remembered another one as I was updating my iPod (yes, I'm old).

Lou Reed's Walk on the Wild Side

Lyric: "And the colored girls go..."

Misheard: My son always sang it as "And the coloring girls go..."

I heard "And the cover girls go".

[Anduin]

From Pink Floyd's Another Brick In The Wall - Part II. No dark star chasm in the classroom. Maybe it was my young brain, looking for SF connections everywhere. It's sarcasm, obviously.

And on the subject of SF connections, the Red Dwarf theme. Speaking French, mangled deus. No, it's drinking fresh mango juice.