Children's Misheard Lyrics

Subject: Children's Misheard Lyrics
From: Azizi
Date: 15 Sep 07 - 09:03 AM

This thread is a place to share examples that children have made to the words of songs or rhymes because of their mishearing or misremembering, or because they may have learned it "wrong" from others.

I searched for, but couldn't find any other Mudcat threads on this topic which focused on children & youth. If there are such a thread or threads, I would appreciate someone posting hyperlinks.

I'm starting this thread not to make fun of children, but to share some chuckles along the way, and to further point out that out the mouth of babes may come some very creative and insightful utterances.

I'll start the ball rolling by posting some examples that I read this morning in a book that was given to my daughter who is a kindergarten teacher.

Thanks in advance for posting examples of children's misheard lyrics to this thread!

Subject: RE: Children's Misheard Lyrics
From: Azizi
Date: 15 Sep 07 - 09:08 AM

These examples come from Diane Hodges book "Laugh Lines For Educators" {Corwin Press, p. 16; 2006} :

KIDS' VERSES:

"God bless American through the
night with a light from a bulb!"

**

"Oh Susanna, O don't you cry for me, for I come from
Alabama with a band-aid on my knee!"

**

"Give us this day our deli bread. Glory be to the father,
and to the Son, and to the whole East Coast!"

**

"We shall come to Joyce's, bringing in the cheese!"

**

"Yield not to Penn Station, but deliver us from evil".

Subject: RE: Children's Misheard Lyrics
From: Jeri
Date: 15 Sep 07 - 09:11 AM

Start with Mistakes I Have Made When Listening To Songs and go through the group of threads at the top of the page. There isn't a thread specifically about children because they're not separated out, but they're in there.

Subject: RE: Children's Misheard Lyrics
From: Azizi
Date: 15 Sep 07 - 09:18 AM

In re-reading my first post and the examples that I just shared,
I realized that I need to clarify I'm that by "rhymes" I meant children's recreational rhyming verses {such as handclap rhymes} as well as any other poems or other literary work that you have read children accidentally getting wrong or that you have heard children accidently saying wrong.

I'm also interested in examples of songs or rhymes or poems or Biblical verses etc that you remember saying as a child and later found out that you were saying the "wrong" words.

Thanks for sharing!

Subject: RE: Children's Misheard Lyrics
From: Becca72
Date: 15 Sep 07 - 09:32 AM

I don't know that this is necessarily what you're looking for, but when I was a child I though CCR's "There's a bad moon on the rise" was "there's a bathroom on the right". :-)

Subject: RE: Children's Misheard Lyrics
From: Azizi
Date: 15 Sep 07 - 09:41 AM

Thanks Jeri for that thread link, and thanks Becca for that example!

Unfortunately [?], I'm off to work. But I look forward to reading through those threads whose links Jeri provided, and reading other examples that may be posted on this thread.

And could this thread be added to that list as a related thread?

Thanks!


Azizi

Subject: RE: Children's Misheard Lyrics
From: Duke
Date: 15 Sep 07 - 09:52 AM

When I was a kid, I used to sing "So Long Its Been Good To Know You" and it came out as "So Long, Its Rip Rip The Odeon". Go figure!

Subject: RE: Children's Misheard Lyrics
From: GUEST
Date: 15 Sep 07 - 03:36 PM

I remember a 6-year-old coming up for his first Christmas at school and telling me he'd learnt a song called "Three Wee Kings"!

Eddie

Subject: RE: Children's Misheard Lyrics
From: GUEST
Date: 15 Sep 07 - 07:43 PM

I myself, at the age of about 4, heard "His tooth is marching on". I didn't know the song was about God; I just imagined somebody died and one of his teeth survived. Stranger things happen in the strange world of grownups.

Subject: RE: Children's Misheard Lyrics
From: SINSULL
Date: 15 Sep 07 - 10:11 PM

From my son at Age 9:
Old man river
He don't wear cotton...

I added:
He wears polyester
And it smells rotten...

Subject: RE: Children's Misheard Lyrics
From: Irene M
Date: 16 Sep 07 - 06:12 AM

My mother went through her convent education trying to work out why a green hill would need a city wall. (There is a green hill far away without a city wall).

Subject: RE: Children's Misheard Lyrics
From: Doug Chadwick
Date: 16 Sep 07 - 06:18 AM

Yes, I wondered why as well.

DC

Subject: RE: Children's Misheard Lyrics
From: Ruth Archer
Date: 16 Sep 07 - 07:29 AM

At nursery, my daughter sang a Christmas song to the tune of "Here we go round the Mulberry Bush". Apparently, "the leopards came to Bethlehem, Bethlehem, Bethlehem, the leopards came to Bethlehem to see the baby Jesus."

I was dying to know what happened next.

My friend Patrick's dad was a vicar named Lloyd Hamilton, and as a child, Patrick thought The congregation was praying directly to him:

"Our father, who art in heaven," (well, there he was up on the altar)
"how Lloyd be thy name..."

Subject: RE: Children's Misheard Lyrics
From: Azizi
Date: 16 Sep 07 - 09:27 AM

Thanks for these examples! As Tony the Tiger says, "They're GRRRREAT!"

Given the way the world is, it's good to smile & chuckles over even small things like this.

However, it occurs to me that in order to appreciate {and have a smile as the result of} these misheard, misremembered, or misunderstood words you have to know the correctwords of the songs, or Biblical verses, or other poetic/literary product.

For instance, the only example posted thus far on this thread that I don't get is the one that Irene M posted about the green hall far away without a city wall. Doug Chadwick gets this one too. But, I can't figure out what song that line is from.

Irene, Doug, or someone else, is this from the song "On A Hill Far Away" {stood the old rugged cross?}

If no {and I think that is probably a wrong guess}, which song is it from?

Thanks again!

Subject: RE: Children's Misheard Lyrics
From: Azizi
Date: 16 Sep 07 - 09:39 AM

After I hit the submit button, it occured to me that the reference to Tony the Tiger and "That's GRRREAT!" may not be familiar to some people who live outside of the USA and perhaps some Americans who aren't in to sugary breakfast cereal or tv commercials.

Here's some information from Google:

"Sugar
Frosted Flakes

In the Sixties and Seventies, cereals were proud of their sugary content, and many cereals featured the word sugar prominently in the product name.

That practice went out with the health conscious Eighties, the word sugar was replaced by words like 'golden' or just dropped entirely. Not that the sugar CONTENT dropped any, just the wording.

Today, Sugar Frosted Flakes is known simply as Frosted Flakes and Tony the Tiger is suing the Exxon Tiger for copyright infringement.

Tony the Tiger has been a cereal pitchman since 1952, the Exxon tiger has been around since '64. They peacefully co-existed for decades, but it's a problem now because Exxon recently brought the tiger back - and they're selling food in station convenient stores."

http://www.tvparty.com/vaultcom2.html

**

Here's another website on television commercials that I found via Google:

http://www.80stvthemes.com/commercials/


"Frosted Flakes (1984, video)
"Show 'em you're a tiger." I'm not sure if this was a source of inspiration to any of today's female athletes, but that was the goal of this spot. Kellogg's stopped focusing its Frosted Flakes marketing effort on kids in the late '80s, with the 'taste adults have grown to love' campaign. They bolstered that in 1999 with a series of clever spots featuring neurotic adults obsessed with Tony the Tiger."

Subject: RE: Children's Misheard Lyrics
From: s&r
Date: 16 Sep 07 - 11:56 AM

There is a green hill far away,
Without a city wall,
Where the dear Lord was crucified,
Who died to save us all.

    Oh, dearly, dearly has He loved,
      And died our sins to bear;
    We trust in His redeeming blood,
       And life eternal share.

We may not know, we cannot tell,
What pains He had to bear;
But we believe it was for us
He hung and suffered there.

He died that we might be forgiven,
He died to make us good,
That we might from our sins be freed,
Saved by His precious blood.

There was no other good enough
To pay the price of sin,
He only could divine life give
And dwell Himself within.

Stu

Subject: RE: Children's Misheard Lyrics
From: GUEST,buspassed
Date: 16 Sep 07 - 12:35 PM

'Gladly my cross- eyed bear' always had me falling about, still does!

First appeared in mid '60's Daily Mirror cartoon strip 'The Perishers' as I remember.

Subject: RE: Children's Misheard Lyrics
From: Azizi
Date: 16 Sep 07 - 03:53 PM

Thanks, s&r for that response.

That's one church song that I didn't learn.

And now I'm wondering if any USA Mudcatters know that song {assuming that Irene, and Doug Chadwick, and s&r are all UK Mudcatter {which come to think of it, I don't know why I made that assumption just cause I live in the USA and I don't know that song}.

But, just for the record, it took me a moment, but I figured out the title of the song that GUEST,buspassed just posted "Gladly, mycross I'll bear."

Aha! Now I know why I thought about the effect living in one nation or another could have on people's knowledge of song titles and words. buspassed mentioned a cartoon strip in the Daily Mirror, and that's a British paper isn't it?

So....

That mystery is solved-I think.

Subject: RE: Children's Misheard Lyrics
From: GUEST,Bert on Kelly's machine.
Date: 17 Sep 07 - 12:50 AM

Buspassed, I first heard 'Gladly my cross- eyed bear' from my younger sister who brought it home from school around 1952.

Subject: RE: Children's Misheard Lyrics
From: Doug Chadwick
Date: 17 Sep 07 - 02:45 AM

Another in the style of "Gladly my cross-eyed bear", again almost certainly not a genuine child's slip-up:

The child who wondered who the new girl was at Sunday school, when they sang "How sweet the name of Jesus sounds in Abbie Lever's ear".

DC

Subject: RE: Children's Misheard Lyrics
From: GUEST,Boab
Date: 17 Sep 07 - 03:26 AM

"In past oor green He leadeth me---"

Subject: RE: Children's Misheard Lyrics
From: GUEST,.gargoyle
Date: 17 Sep 07 - 03:52 AM

Given the hearing loss being observed in school age children from excessive volumn in IPODS to car stereos......

MISHEARDS LYRICS

Will become a more commone thing.

Sincerely,
Gargoyle

Subject: RE: Children's Misheard Lyrics
From: JennyO
Date: 17 Sep 07 - 09:53 AM

Re "Our Father who art in heaven" - I always thought it was my Uncle Harold - "Harold be thy name" :-)

Azizi, Tony the Tiger must have got around. We had Kelloggs Sugar Frosties and Tony the Tiger saying "They're grrrrrrrreat!" here in Oz too. I think we still have the Frosties with the picture of Tony on them in fact. Come to think of it, tigers figured quite a lot in our ads - there were also ads for a brand of petrol where the slogan was "Put a tiger in your tank".

Back when I was a kid and our National Anthem was God Save the Queen (it's Advance Australia Fair now) the second last line went "Long to reign over us". I used to think it was "Long to rain oh for us".

Subject: RE: Children's Misheard Lyrics
From: GUEST,doc.tom
Date: 17 Sep 07 - 11:52 AM

The green hill 'Without a city wall' means 'outside a city wall'. Our daughter came home from school one day singing:

The farmer's in his wife,
The farmer's in his wife...

Happy days!

Tom

Subject: RE: Children's Misheard Lyrics
From: Trevor
Date: 17 Sep 07 - 11:56 AM

'And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from eagles....' as my brother was heard to say.

Subject: RE: Children's Misheard Lyrics
From: Saro
Date: 17 Sep 07 - 12:42 PM

My stepdaughters once asked me what a Sempinard was - they'd been singing about it at Brownies in a song called "An Austrian went yodelling" as follows "An Austrian went yodelling on a mountain top high, when along came a Sempinard, interrupted his cry". It was only when they mentioned that Brown Owl had told them a Sempinard was a kind of dog, that it clicked - should be a St. Bernard!! However, that type of dog is now forever known as a Sempinard in my mind...
saro

Subject: RE: Children's Misheard Lyrics
From: Mrs Banjiman
Date: 17 Sep 07 - 03:35 PM

My daughter at about 14 months or so used to love singing the nursery rhyme "See saw Marjory Daw" in the car to and from nursery, but never got beyond the first line which she sang as "See Saw me see saw". It WAS quite endearing the first dozen times...!
Mrs B

Subject: RE: Children's Misheard Lyrics
From: Zany Mouse
Date: 17 Sep 07 - 03:51 PM

When I was young and at a Catholic School the 'Hail Mary' used to confuse me.

For the words: Blesséd art thou amongst women
I used to hear: Blesséd art thou, a monk swimming.

I could never work out where a monk came into the story!

Rhiannon

Subject: RE: Children's Misheard Lyrics
From: paula t
Date: 17 Sep 07 - 03:52 PM

How about this version of The Lord's prayer:
" Our father, wee chart in heaven,
Hello be thy name..........."
This version was a very popular misunderstanding at a Church of England primary school I once worked at.

Another version of a popular children's christmas song has the line, "Leaving their flocks behind".It was sung by my daughter (then aged 4) at a school nativity as "Leaving the fox behind".

Subject: RE: Children's Misheard Lyrics
From: Zany Mouse
Date: 17 Sep 07 - 03:53 PM

When we taught Sweet Thames Flows Softly to Les Sullivan's daughter she misheard:

Freezing fog is on the river
for
Freezing froggies on the river

It conjured up wonderful pictures of shivering frogs on lily pads floating down the Thames.

Rhiannon

Subject: RE: Children's Misheard Lyrics
From: Sandra in Sydney
Date: 03 Apr 08 - 03:33 AM

I'm not sure if my example belongs here, but it's too good to keep to myself.

My neighbours at the National Folk Festival has 2 small children, approx. 2 & 4 years old. The older one came out with the following one afternoon, causing his dad to ask him what he meant by -

Oh my lord, oh my licenced finger.

but he didn't answer!

anyone here have any ideas?

sandra

Subject: RE: Children's Misheard Lyrics
From: Ross Campbell
Date: 03 Apr 08 - 04:10 AM

Wikipedia has an entry A MONK SWIMMING: Malachy McCourt
Obviously not just him, then!

Ross

Subject: RE: Children's Misheard Lyrics
From: davyr
Date: 03 Apr 08 - 04:20 AM

From "Onward, Christian Soldiers":

"Christ, the Royal Master, Leans against the 'phone".

Subject: RE: Children's Misheard Lyrics
From: Mo the caller
Date: 03 Apr 08 - 04:21 AM

Interesting that "There is a green hill" is only known in UK, it is VERY well known here (I think), maybe only amongst church-goers and ex-church-goers. It has a very sentimental tune.
How about
Gentle Jesus meek and mild
Look upon a little child
Pity mice in plicity .........(where?)
Suffer me to come to Thee

Is that one just UK as well

Subject: RE: Children's Misheard Lyrics
From: Mo the caller
Date: 03 Apr 08 - 04:28 AM

This site gives the words and 3 tunes for There is a green hill, but I only associate the one they call Horsley, with it.
Did anyone sing it to either of the others?
I wondered about the wall, too.

Subject: RE: Children's Misheard Lyrics
From: Acorn4
Date: 03 Apr 08 - 04:34 AM

Oh Christmas tree, oh Christmas tree,
How lovely are your brown chairs!

Subject: RE: Children's Misheard Lyrics
From: Black belt caterpillar wrestler
Date: 03 Apr 08 - 07:46 AM

Mis-heard at a funeral:
Unto the Father and to the Son, and into the hole he goes!

Subject: RE: Children's Misheard Lyrics
From: Grab
Date: 03 Apr 08 - 08:34 AM

Sandra, possibly "Guide me oh thou great redeemer"?

Subject: RE: Children's Misheard Lyrics
From: Escapee
Date: 04 Apr 08 - 03:07 AM

O wrap your nose up for the Litany response Ora pro nobis.

Subject: RE: Children's Misheard Lyrics
From: Mo the caller
Date: 04 Apr 08 - 09:58 AM

From: Sandra in Sydney - PM

My neighbours at the National Folk Festival has 2 small children, approx. 2 & 4 years old. The older one came out with the following one afternoon, causing his dad to ask him what he meant by -

Oh my lord, oh my licenced finger.


From: Grab - PM

Sandra, possibly "Guide me oh thou great redeemer"?

??????which line?????

Subject: RE: Children's Misheard Lyrics
From: GUEST,Maurice
Date: 05 Apr 08 - 09:18 AM

Dave Allen said that when he was brought to a funeral as a child he thought the priest said "...in the name of the Father and the Son, in the hole he goes"

Subject: RE: Children's Misheard Lyrics
From: Margo
Date: 06 Apr 08 - 01:42 PM

So, when I was little and heard the song
"Twinkle, twinkle little star,
how I wonder what you are"

I thought, "What do you mean, "how I wonder what you are"? You just said it was a star!

And Burl Ives sang "The sow took the measles and she died in the spring"
I had a visual image of a dead pig in a giant coil.....

I have been misinterpreting things ever since!

Margo

Subject: RE: Children's Misheard Lyrics
From: vectis
Date: 06 Apr 08 - 02:17 PM

My youngest always sang The Lord's Prayer as

Our Father who art in Heaven
Hello Eddy be thy name.

Subject: RE: Children's Misheard Lyrics
From: GUEST,Sheila
Date: 06 Apr 08 - 02:25 PM

I used to hear an ad for some beer..."Hey, get Jacobia". Always wondered who Jacobia was. ("Hey, get your cold beer"). Ballantine's?

Subject: RE: Children's Misheard Lyrics
From: GUEST,Miriam
Date: 28 Aug 08 - 12:35 AM

I loved singing the National Anthem every day in school because the tune was beautiful to me. My only problem was that I never figured out what in the world I was saying;
"Ooooh, say can you see by the donzerly light . . ."

Subject: RE: Children's Misheard Lyrics
From: mrdux
Date: 28 Aug 08 - 01:35 AM

when i was a wee lad, the young daughter of friends of my parents would sing "Jesus is sneaking through Humboldt Park." ("Jesus is seeking my humble heart"). i always thought it odd that Jesus would be lurking around a park on the south side of Chicago. . .

Subject: RE: Children's Misheard Lyrics
From: Ebbie
Date: 28 Aug 08 - 02:18 AM

I and my brother just older than me learned English songs just about the same time as we learned English, the language. (We spoke a dialect of German) Our family always sang English language songs.

So I and this brother lustily sang: RASku the pear ishing.

"Rescue the Perishing"

And soon after, to my devout mother's horror she heard us sing "You crazy old god"

Hey, we had never heard the word "praise".

(That's from We praise thee, oh, God, for the Son of Thy love...etc)

Subject: RE: Children's Misheard Lyrics
From: Fidjit
Date: 28 Aug 08 - 04:07 AM

Rainy day on the doorstep.

"Is your Dad in little girl?"

"He's gone to bathe the elephants!.

Mother explains that, He's gone to brave the elements!

Chas

Subject: RE: Children's Misheard Lyrics
From: Acorn4
Date: 28 Aug 08 - 08:25 AM

Oh Christmas tree, oh Christmas tree,
How lovely are your brown chairs.

Subject: RE: Children's Misheard Lyrics
From: DMcG
Date: 28 Aug 08 - 08:32 AM

I've reported this one before, but never mind. When my daughter was small, we took her to see the Nutcracker ballet, which she then thought included "The Dance of the Sugar-Lump Fairy". After this had gone on a week or two we explained it should be the "Sugar-PLUM" fairy. She listened very carefully, and from then on she was careful to say "The Sugar-PLUMP fairy".

Subject: RE: Children's Misheard Lyrics
From: GUEST,Alice
Date: 28 Aug 08 - 08:35 AM

Anyone know the famous beatles song " She's got a chicken to ride"?

Subject: RE: Children's Misheard Lyrics
From: KB in Iowa
Date: 28 Aug 08 - 11:01 AM

I got this years ago from a mis-heard lyrics site and it has stuck with me.

The writer said there was a neighborhood kid going down the street singing 'For He's a Jolly Good Fellow' only he had the words a bit garbled. Came out like this.

For he's a Charlie Cavello
For he's a Charlie Cavello
For he's a Charlie Cavello
The nobody candy guy

Subject: RE: Children's Misheard Lyrics
From: Teribus
Date: 28 Aug 08 - 11:04 AM

"Hard Time to Leave Me Lucille"

In the chorus:

"Four hundred children and a Cop in the field"

No bloody wonder she left.

Subject: RE: Children's Misheard Lyrics
From: GUEST,Valmai Goodyear
Date: 28 Aug 08 - 01:38 PM

My two-year old daughter heard me practising Staines Morris for Mayday and came up with the chorus

'Then to the maypole haste away,
Forty snails on holiday.'

(For 'tis now our holiday.)

My three-year old son asserted that his favourite song in the Disney version of The Jungle Book was 'the one about the burning sausages' (the simple burning sausages of life).

Valmai

Subject: RE: Children's Misheard Lyrics
From: Fidjit
Date: 28 Aug 08 - 03:21 PM

His Worship & The Pig have song with the line.

It fell out on a Holiday.
As it oft had done before
But he quickly put it back again
and hoped nobody saw.

Chas

Subject: RE: Children's Misheard Lyrics
From: oldhippie
Date: 28 Aug 08 - 08:50 PM

Teribus,
When Country Dick Montana and the Beat Farmers sang Lucille, the line became "Four ugly children and a crotch that won't heal"

Subject: RE: Children's Misheard Lyrics
From: Trevor
Date: 29 Aug 08 - 03:05 AM

My little brother was heard to say "And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from eagles...."

Subject: RE: Children's Misheard Lyrics
From: GUEST,quiltlady
Date: 13 Feb 09 - 09:29 PM

First offering,

Home, home on the range
Where the deer and the cantaloupe play.

Second offering,
From "Twas the Night before Christmas"

not a creature was stirring not Evan, the mouse
Enjoy

Subject: RE: Children's Misheard Lyrics
From: Black belt caterpillar wrestler
Date: 17 Dec 09 - 07:48 AM

A new wording in "Jingle Bells" from our three year old granddaughter:
"On a one horse hopeless sleigh".

Subject: RE: Children's Misheard Lyrics
From: GUEST,999
Date: 17 Dec 09 - 07:59 PM

"You picked a fine time to leave me, Lucille,
With four hungry children and crops in the field
I've had some bad times,
Lived through some sad times,
But this time your hurting won't heal
You picked a fine time to leave me, Lucille!"

My daughter heard four hundred children and said, "No wonder she left." She was about 10 at the time.

Subject: RE: Children's Misheard Lyrics
From: Suegorgeous
Date: 17 Dec 09 - 09:13 PM

My daughter, then around 8 (now 28!), heard Madonna's "Papa don't preach" as "Pappadom fridge".