Skip to main content

Mondegreens

Have you ever heard of a mondegreen?
It is the name given to a misheard lyric.
The phrase was coined by Sylvia Wright who, as a child, misheard the line 'I laid him on the green' as 'Lady Mondegreen'.
Cute isn't it!

We have all had a mondegreen or two in our time.
That is a definite.
This morning I read someones status update on Facebook and they had written the lyrics to "Forever in Blue Jeans".
It is a great song. 
However, for years I misheard the lyrics.
When Neil Diamond sang Forever in Blue Jeans, 
I heard him sing Reverend Eugene.
What tips this little anecdote to the pathetic side of the spectrum is that I knew the song title and wondered what that had to do with the song. 
However,
I still maintain that it was a plausible error.
Listen...


My other beauty was with Lionel Ritchie's "Hello".
You know that adorable love song,
where he sings
'I want to tell you so much I love you'
Yes, well I misheard that to be
'I want to tell you SOBER I love you.'
I didn't find out that I was wrong until I lived in Lithuania.
I was singing it one day and the guy who ran the hostel Valdas
started looking at me rather strangely.
As I kept singing he burst out laughing and simply said
'I don't think that song means what you think Louise, but that is a very Irish way of singing it.'
Confused, I looked up the lyrics and subsequently cringed.
Again, I reckon it was an easy mistake to make.
What do you think?

Apparently, there are some song titles that just lead to worldwide confusion. One of the biggest offenders is:

Bathroom on the right

 Malapropisms  can lead to funny instances too...
I saw this sketch this morning and it cracked me up


So, do you have any Mondegreens to share?

Comments

  1. DeniseNovember 30, 2012 at 3:06 PM

    I used to think the lyrics of 'Last Christmas' were... "this year, semi frontiers, I'll give it to someone special." Also used to think 'Praise You' by Fatboy Slim was..."Praise you like a sherp" Oh and a friend of mine used to think 'I'm every woman' was 'Climb every woman' HaHa!!! I never knew what the mistakes were called, that's pretty cool!

    ReplyDelete
  2. AnonymousDecember 28, 2012 at 4:11 PM

    Interpols "Rosemary" instead of "Sensitive to fate, not denial" I heard "sensitive debate night, denial" ! I would LOVE to go to a sensitive debate night!

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Missing Marguerite. 14 years later.

On this day, 14 years ago, the world lost a little bit of its magic, when at 11pm, my little sister took her final breath and life changed as we all knew it. She was only 17 years old. 17 years and 19 days to be exact. As I sat here today reading all the lovely messages written about her, my heart soared with pride in the fact that in her short time with us, she managed to have such a big impact on so many people. Marguerite Mary O'Dwyer, an ambassador for mischief, mockery and for having a marvellous time. I miss her so much.

It is funny how every year there is something different that I focus on for the anniversary. I never choose my train of thought, I think the year since the last anniversary chooses it for me. Last night, I got fairly plastered on wine and when my other half went to his bed, I sat and sang along to every sad song I could think of. I had a wee chat with Mags before I went to bed and woke up this morning well rested and ready to seize the day. 
I got quite sad a…
Post a Comment
Read more

Day 2 - 20 facts about me

I always struggle with challenges such as these, where I have to give some facts about myself. Can I think of 20 things and if so will they be any good? Pressure! Well... here goes....

1. I love letters. Not bills and what not, I mean real, news filled letters. I have a handful of people whom I write to, and they write back in return. Alas, I am not very good at replying in a timely manner! I have had penpals since I was about 11 years old. Two of which were from Belarus. Their names were Tatiana and Irena. One of the highlights of their letters were the wee boxed stationery that they used to write on. I loved it so much.
2. I dislike sheep. Immensely.
3. I have 2 tattoos. One of a fairy, and one of a fox.
4. I love ducks and foxes. And Hairy Coos.
5. I think puns are severely underrated.
6. My favourite book is Jane Eyre.
7. My favourite author is more difficult... maybe Jasper Fforde... though the compilations of Irish tales by Sinead DeValera have a special place in my heart as do …
Post a Comment
Read more

Day 3 - My favourite quote

This is a tough one because there are a number of quotes and phrases that I try to live my life by, or reflect upon. I am not sure if I have a favourite.
My life  mantra I picked up many years ago, but I don't know where it came from.
That is 'Fuck it or Fix it'.
I use it all the time. If I have a problem then fix it. If I can't fix it then fuck it. Move on.
That is sometimes easier said that done but it does help me out a lot sometimes.

I also really like a quote by Thomas Edison.
'I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that it won't work'.
It is a very comforting sentiment sometimes.

I read a book years ago called 'The Art of War' by Sun Tzu. I highly recommend it.
In that book he says 'The supreme art of war is to subdue the enemy without fighting'.
I have always like that outlook.

Post a Comment
Read more