What are some lyrics you thought you knew but turned out to be wrong?

[Gardenlover]

Elton John - Bennie and the jets, I thought the words were "she has electric boobs" not "electric boots."

 

[Warrigal]

I thought this song was "Nothing but a hard egg" which didn't make any sense to me.

"nothing but a heart ache" - Search Videos

 

[CooCooforCoCoPuffs]

Am tired tonight, but honestly?
I had ZERO clue what MOST music was saying half my life. We were discouraged from listening to popular teen culture songs at all. And just recently - the last 5-10 years have I had time to go back and think about this weird anomaly.

"In a gadda da vida, honey I thought this was "In a Garden of Eden, baby"
Don't you know that I'm lovin' you
In a gadda da vida, baby
Don't you know that I'll always be true".

 

[Naturally]

Jasmine, take my blues away ... Nope ... Jazzman, take my blues away.
Only took a few decades to get it right
Never bought the album, just would hear the song on the radio now and then.

 

[HermitHogan]

In this verse from Stairway to Heaven...

And as we wind on down the road​

Our shadows taller than our soul​

There walks a lady we all know​

Who shines white light and wants to show​

... for most of my life, I thought the lyrics were:

And there's a wino down the road ​

 

[Feelslikefar]

Bob Marley's 'Jamming'

I thought he was saying 'We be Pajamas...'

 

[Capt Lightning]

These misheard lyrics are called 'Mondegreens' in UK English. This arose from the mishearing of the old balad

They hae slain the Earl Amurray,
And Lady Mondegreen.

The correct lines are, "They hae slain the Earl o' Moray / And laid him on the green."

 

[hearlady]

Plenty! I'll have to try and remember some of them.

 

[againstthegrain]

The English Beat "meet her in the bathroom" turns out to actually be "mirror In the bathroom."