It might be super easy to find the lyrics to a song now that we've all got the entirety of the internet in our pockets, but it didn't used to be so simple. Unless you owned the album, and it was one that actually came with the lyrics on the sleeve/in the case, you just kind of had to guess if the words were unclear.
This led to some extremely amusing, and sometimes mortifyingly embarrassing, misheard lyrics.
Redditor 23andrewb asked:
"What's the your favorite example of misheard lyrics?"
Purple Haze
"Jimi Hendix Purple Haze: ''scuse me while I kiss this guy'"
- Alone_Employment7914
"Roommate back in the day, who would have been about 18 in 1970, told me that Hendrix was aware of the alternate interpretation, and he would gesture at Noel Redding and say ''scuse me while I kiss this guy.'"
- corvid_booster
Bad Moon Rising
"CCR - bad mood rising 'There's a bathroom on the right.'"
- revs201
"That's what I thought as a kid. Still say it now because it's funny."
- br1zzle11
What A Wonderful World
"I see skies of blue And clouds of white The bright blessed day The dogs say goodnight"
- twoferrets
"I woke up my dog laughing at this one."
- UnfaithfulMilitant
"Did the dog say good night?"
- The_Orphanage_42
Why Is Everyone Singing About Lorain?
"I want to know, have you ever seen Lorain."
- Tolbitzironside
"I can see Clearly now, Lorain is gone!"
- AtheneSchmidt
"And I wonder, still I wonder. Who'll stop Lorain."
- legoman_86
"I can't stand Lorain, on my window..."
- Reindeer-Street
"As a child I used to sing 'I can see clearly now Lorraine has gone' and always wondered what poor Lorraine did that was so bad."
- PheonixKernow
Gimme The Beach Boys
"Give me The Beach Boys and free my soul, I wanna get lost in your Rock and Roll…"
- ChicagoSly
"Wait that’s not the actual lyric?"
- Guilty-Ad-2762
"Hahah. Nope! Beat Boys"
-ChicagoSly
Moves Like Jagger
"'remove my jacket' Instead of 'moves like jagger' Boy I felt dumb."
- wesleybg
"Moobs like Jagger."
- SheitelMacher
"I’ve got the moose vagina! I got that moose vagina! I got that moOose vagina"
- lilfrostgiant
Africa
"I guess it rains down in Africa?"
- walkingtalkingdread
"I’m still somewhat embarrassed to say that I thought it was 'god bless the maids down in Africa'. Thought it was some sort of weird political statement."
- StoopidTumbleweeds
"I wept the drains down in aaafrica isn't right then?"
- enava
"I always heard it as 'I miss the rains down in Africa' and thought that sounded so lovely and melancholic. I was so disappointed by the real lyric lmao"
- milkpen
Hit Me With Your Best Shot
"Hit me with a wet sock, FIRE AWAY!!!!!"
- SpaceTroutCat
Sweet Dreams
"Sweet dreams are made of cheese, who am i to disagree"
- __botulism__
"Can't argue that!"
- ATGF
Applause ... or Applesauce?
"When I was 14 my dad was driving me to my boyfriends house. On the way over “Applause” by Lady Gaga came on & my dad sang 'I live for the applesauce applesauce applesauce.' I busted out laughing and mocking him."
"Laughed so hard he turned the car around and took me home."
- Dependent_Border9912
Regulate
"Regulate - Nate Dogg + Warren G. "I can't believe, they're taking Lawrence Welk".
"I used to hear this song and wonder 'Why is a smooth Gangsta like Warren G listening to Lawrence Welk, and why are these thugs stealing his Lawrence Welk records specifically?'"
"Then someone corrected me. 'They're taking Warren's wealth.'"
- ConansMonorail
Here I Go Again
"Song: "Here I Go Again" by Whitesnake. Lyric: 'Like a drifter I was born to wear cologne'"
- Intensity_In10Cities
Tiny Dancer
"My favorite misheard lyric is 'Hold me closer, Tony Danza' instead of 'Hold me closer, tiny dancer' by Elton John."
- Queasy_Bus_9388
"Count the head lice on the highway."
- spavolka
Reelin' In The Years
"Steely Dan, instead of 'Are you reelin' in the years?', got 'Are you really into yeast?'"
- snitterisagooddog
"I always heard 'reelin' in the East' but like your version better, lol"
- FarNet2606
You Oughta Know
"'It's not fair, to deny me Of the crosseyed bear that you gave to me You, you, you oughta know' -Alanis Morissette"
"How could you take her crosseyed bear Dave Coulier"
- lindsasaurusreks
Have you ever embarrassingly misheard the lyrics to a song? How long did it take for you to realize, or for someone to correct you? Let us know in the comments.
