The Mudcat Café TM
Thread #165839   Message #3983992
Posted By: PHJim
22-Mar-19 - 08:34 PM
Thread Name: Misheard folk song lyrics
Subject: RE: Misheard folk song lyrics
*> The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band recorded Jerry Jeff' "Mr. Bojangles" on their Uncle Charlie. . . album. Where Jerry wrote, "And he spoe right out," they sang, "And the smoke ran out."
I saw them a few years later and they were singing Jerry's words. I guess someone told them.

*> A while back I was playing in a band and one of the singers introduced Daniel Lanois' "Under The Stormy Sky". She sang a line that went,

"I hear the teenage appeal
The diesel turning
Calling you and me".

Since this made no sense, I listened to the record and Daniel sang,
"I hear the T, H & B,
The diesel turning,
Calling you and me."

I just googled the lyrics and found most sites list the lyrics as,

"I hear them changing gears
The diesel turning, calling you and me
To the city of steel, smokestack spinning wheel
Come with me, eh under a stormy sky."

This is also a mondegreen. Daniel was a Hamilton boy, as was I, and it seemed obvious that he was singing about the "T, H & B" or Toronto, Hamilton & Buffalo" railroad.

Thinking that I might be wrong, I listened to a couple of YouTube videos and I'm surer than ever that he sings "T, H & B"