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“Music is a higher revelation than all wisdom and philosophy.” Ludwig van Beethoven

What’s your mondegreen? A mixed bag of musical instruments

A mondegreen is the mishearing or misinterpretation of a phrase as a result of near-homophony, in a way that gives it a new meaning. It most commonly is applied to a line in a poem or a lyric in a song Wikipedia

What is your mondegreen? Have you ever misinterpreted the lyrics of a favorite song? Do you remember anyone else who has? Recently, I was listening to an NPR (National Public Radio) show on music and the topic was about Mondegreens. If you’ve never heard the term before, it is used to describe what happens when we listen to a song and hear some of the lyrics differently from what the artist is singing/saying. For instance, instead of “Pretty little things” we might hear “Ditsy little finks.” It happens to a lot of us and often with songs we enjoy singing out loud. As I listened to the show, which was quite funny, it took me back to songs I enjoyed in my teen days and how I butchered some of the lyrics because what I heard was different from what the artist was singing.

“Music can change the world because it can change people.” Bono

“Blinded by the Light,” cover of a Bruce Springsteen song by the Manfred Mann’s Earth Band  The line “revved up like a deuce” becomes “wrapped up like a douche”

“Dreams” by Fleetwood Mac  The line “Well, who am I to keep you down?” becomes “Well, whoever will kick you down?” “Thunder only happens when it’s raining” becomes “Thunder only helps us when we’re praying.”   ”Have you any dreams you’d like to sell” becomes “Holds you and it dreams you like yourself.”

“Diamond in the Back” by Curtis Mayfield. The line “Gangster whitewalls TV antenna in the back” becomes “Against the white world, To be answered, sit in the back.”

Do you have any examples of a Mondegreen to share? Above are some examples of popular songs we’ve butchered (some are mine and some from Wiki).  I remember when Fleetwood Mac’s huge hit came out. I fell in love with the album and would listen to the song “Dreams” on the radio or on TV and sing along loudly. In classic mondegreen fashion,”Well, who am I to keep you down?” became “Well, whoever will kick you down?” and it stuck in my head like an earworm. On the NPR show, they invited a Mondegreen expert and he pointed out that when we mishear the words of a song, we hold on to the incorrect lyrics because we truly believe we have the correct information and everyone else is goofing off. And, like an earworm, which is a song that won’t leave your brain, a mondegreen lingers too. Checkout the poll below and add your vote. Thank you! More below

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