The other day Dale and I were riding in the car and Helen Wheels came on the radio. As we were unpacking the groceries we had purchased Dale was singing (as he so often does, it’s lovely) and I noticed that he wasn’t saying Helen Wheels, he was saying L.A. . . . something. So I asked him – do you know the name of that song? And he said, sure, L.A. Wheels. Ummmm. Nope.
And that conversation got me thinking about misheard song lyrics. There are whole websites devoted to the topic and it’s so easy to get accurate lyrics now anyway. Not like when I was a kid and I would record from the radio on my tape player and then play it and pause, play it and pause, as I wrote down all the lyrics until I had them memorized. Ahhhh yes.
Anyway.
Today I will share with you three stories of misheard song lyrics from our family archives.
1. Kyrie by Mr. Mister. I loved loved loved this song when it came out in 1985. I listened and listened but couldn’t figure out what the heck they were saying. I ultimately decided it was give me a laser which was, of course, ridiculously incorrect. Still, it made for a lot of laughs and not just back then because just the other day one of my dearest college friends texted me and reminded me of this one as she had just heard it on the radio. Back in 1985 she thought they said, give me a lay, sir. At least my version was clean.
2. Surfin USA by The Beach Boys. This one is a Dale story. And, let’s face it, when it comes to Dale and misheard (or mis-sung) song lyrics, we’ve got some great ones. I mean, you don’t sing in a rock ‘n roll band for 45+ years and not blow the lyrics now and again. Surfin USA is my favorite of his, though, because, while the line is huarachi sandals, too, he sang it wear out your sandals, too. Ummmmmmm. No. It would take a lot of surfin to wear out your sandals. Just saying.
3. Hakuna Matata from The Lion King. Hannah was 2 in 1994 when this movie landed in her life and she adored it. Really really. She sang Hakuna Matata at the top of her lungs and was utterly adorable. Especially when she sang Phil lost my feet instead of philosophy for that line, it’s our problem-free philosophy. The first time she did it I cracked up and I kept cracking up every time after. We didn’t know anyone named Phil and I don’t know what might have happened to his feet but she was convinced those were the words.
Do you have any stories of misheard song lyrics? If you do I’d love to hear them!
If you wrote a post for this week’s Three Things please share it below, too.