Tuesday, March 2, 2010

And the answers are...

For those who care, here are the right answers to my mondegreen quiz.

1) WRONG: We were cool on Christ
RIGHT: We were cool on craze
“Dance Hall Days,” Wang Chung
Oh, the pitfalls of a heavy British accent. This made quite a few people do a double-take up at Otterbein in my day.

2) WRONG: Requesting quiet, requesting quiet
RIGHT: Big boys don’t cry, big boys don’t cry
"I’m Not in Love,” 10 c.c.
I misheard this one for decades before I saw the right lyric on a mondegreen calendar a couple of years ago.

3) WRONG: Religion is a lie in the fall
RIGHT: Religion is a light in the fog
“What I Am,” Edie Brickell and New Bohemians
If the wrong lyric were the right one, this song might be remembered as something more than a pseudo-hip anthem today. It’s Mrs. Simon’s loss.

4) WRONG: My name is Dick Cheney
RIGHT: My name is Slim Shady
“My Name Is,” Eminem
I misheard this off a recent ad for one of those faux-musical video games that’s all the rage.

5) WRONG: Wraps a dollar ‘round her
RIGHT: Wraps a towel around her
“Another Day,” Paul McCartney
Remember that I was five when the song came out. It didn’t occur to me that an Englishman probably wouldn’t be singing about dollars.

6) WRONG: Red Army girl
RIGHT: Wait on me, girl
“I Guess That’s Why They Call It the Blues,” Elton John
Come to think of it, I mishear a lot of Sir Elton’s songs. Wonder why?

7) WRONG: I got my ass wiped
RIGHT: I got my hash pipe
“Hash Pipe,” Weezer
Well...this may not be the mondegreen I thought it was. It seems that he does say "I got my ass wide." Cool video in any case.

8) WRONG: Livin’ in the swamp
RIGHT: An eminence front
“Eminence Front,” The Who
Another one it took me quite a few listenings to get right.

9) WRONG: Rivers, Connecticut
RIGHT: Well versed in etiquette
“Killer Queen,” Queen
One for the special category of mondegreens that I call “Dada.”

10) WRONG: Barmy, barmy, barmy
RIGHT: Fall on me, fall on me, fall on me
“Fall On Me,” R.E.M.
I think I must have been pretty barmy to mishear this one. Could they have made the words any clearer in the video?

11) WRONG: Break your tuck hole! Break your tuck hole!
RIGHT: Breaking the law! Breaking the law!
“Breaking the Law,” Judas Priest
After spending most of ninth grade wondering what a tuck hole was, one day the right words dawned on me. As Emily Litella would have said, “That’s different. Never mind.” Love the video. Very Spinal Tap.

12) WRONG: Hanging to the jury
RIGHT: Hanging in a chow line
The theme from the TV show “Good Times”
Had to throw one in that was a bit off the radar. Pretty cool as far as TV themes go. Or, as J.J. would say, dyn-o-mite!