Do You Hear What I Hear?
Mondegreens Make Music More Interesting
I was listening to the 70s station on Sirius XM last spring when a misunderstood music lyric suddenly became clear.
In "I’d Really Love to See You Tonight," England Dan and John Ford Coley sang, “I’m not talking ‘bout moving in and I don’t want to change your life.” For 50 years I heard, “I’m not talking about the linen,” and I couldn’t figure out why household goods were relevant.
This is a mondegreen, a misinterpretation of a lyric or phrase that may or may not make sense. The word itself comes from a misunderstanding.
When author Sylvia Wright was a child listening to her mother read an 18th century ballad, she misinterpreted the line “and laid him on the green” as “Lady Mondegreen.” She wrote about the experience in a 1954 essay, and a new word was born.
My mondegreens are many. I belted out "Secret Asian Man" "Secret Agent Man" along with Johnny Rivers, crooned “Don’t Feel the Reaper” 'Don’t Fear the Reaper' with Blue Oyster Cult and falsettoed my way through “He-e’s a woman” [Evil Woman] with Electric Light Orchestra.
I’m not the only one who misinterprets lyrics. Here’s a great one: Some people thought The Beatles sang “the girl with colitis goes by” in Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds. The lyric is “the girl with kaleidoscope eyes.”
When I posted my mondegreen revelation on Facebook, I learned I wasn’t the only one to hear “linen.” Others shared their own mondegreens. Here’s my favorite: In Elton John’s 1974 "Benny and the Jets," instead of correctly interpreting “She’s got electric boots, a mohair suit,” some children mistook the lyrics for “She’s got electric boobs, and I saw ‘em too!”
Perhaps there was no misunderstanding, and the children were just being children. Terry Jacks’ "Seasons in the Sun" was among the top five songs in the same year, rating higher than Elton John’s song. My 8-year-old brother loved to sing, “We had joy, we had fun, we had seasons in the sun, but the cops had their guns and they shot us in the buns.” I admit, I joined him. This isn’t a mondegreen; it’s mischief.
In unscientifically analyzing my mondegreens, I realized most mix-ups occurred in the mid to late ‘70s, when I was in the early double-digit years. Perhaps my youth was the reason. However, my theory was blown when I had a flashback of my dad singing “The Wizard of O’s” on the way home from the theater after seeing Grease. I think he was the only person on the planet who thought You’re the One That I Want sounded like a box of children’s cereal. When I shared this with my husband, he told me his mother thought The Eagles sang "Take It to the Ribbit" "Take It to the Limit". It’s not an age thing.
The most misunderstood lyric probably is the first line of "Blinded by the Light" sung by Mannfred Mann’s Earth Band. Since the song became a No. 1 hit in 1977, people have been wondering what “Wrapped up like a douche in the middle of the night” means. The actual lyric is “Revved up like a deuce, another runner in the night.” A deuce is a hot rod car.
Despite the explanation, I still hear the mondegreen.
Opposite of the mondegreen is the reverse mondegreen – the deliberate use of nonsense words. The most-notable reverse mondegreen may be Iron Butterfly’s "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida." That’s the actual title and lyric from the 1968 acid rock song. After writing it, percussionist Doug Ingle was so drunk when he sang “in the garden of Eden” that his bandmates misinterpreted the words. The lyric stuck, and the song became a hit.
New mondegreens continue popping up but I’m unfamiliar with them because I continue listening to music from the ‘70s and ‘80s. My quest is to unhear what I’ve heard for most of my life.
Gina is currently a correspondent for the Community News Brief. She has worked in healthcare marketing and communications for 34 years. Gina is a graduate of Western Illinois University, where she was editor-in-chief of the Western Courier.
The Community News Brief is proud to have Gina on staff and we hope you enjoy her "Everyday Thoughts" column.
