mondegreen ?

Subject: RE: mondegreen ?
From: Noreen
Date: 09 Jan 03 - 10:40 AM

And hello again, Mr Plumber- don't let it get you down too much. You coming to Portaferry??? That would cheer you up....

Subject: RE: mondegreen ?
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 09 Jan 03 - 10:40 AM

Ah! Thanks!

Subject: RE: mondegreen ?
From: An Pluiméir Ceolmhar
Date: 09 Jan 03 - 10:59 AM

Can't make it to Portaferry, but hope you enjoy it. For a while I was fantasising about going via the Zeebru99e to Hull ferry but ...oops! another thread contaminated!

Stilly River Sage, you might appreciate another Dublin Catholic children's mondeveridianisation (?) of the Lourdes Hymn:

"An angel of Mercy ate [led] Bernadette's feet..."

Subject: RE: mondegreen ?
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 09 Jan 03 - 11:35 AM

translation?

Subject: RE: mondegreen ?
From: An Pluiméir Ceolmhar
Date: 09 Jan 03 - 11:46 AM

Just my mock-academic way of turning mondegreen into a verb, because among English-speakers on this side of the Atlantic the simple "verbing" of nouns is frowned upon.

Subject: RE: mondegreen ?
From: BUTTERFLY
Date: 13 Jan 03 - 08:33 AM

Nerd on 25.6.2002 more (see below) or less gave the full origin of Mondegreen. All I can usefully add is that it was someone called Sylvia Wright who thought up the term on mishearing the ballad "The Bonny Earl of Moray"; I think it may have been in the 1950s or 1960s. I suppose a Mondegreen is the musical equivalent of a malapropism (after Mrs. Malaprop). There are 1 or 2 websites devoted to Mondegreens. What surprises me is that the word does not seem to be in general use yet. I wonder if it ever came up in "Call My Bluff"?

Subject: RE: mondegreen ?
From: GUEST,Nerd - PM
Date: 25 Jun 02 - 03:26 PM

The full line comes from the ballad "The Bonny Earl O' Moray," which laments:
They have slain the Earl O' Moray And laid him on the green.

This was misheard as

The have slain the Earl O' Moray and Lady Mondegreen

Subject: RE: mondegreen ?
From: banjomad (inactive)
Date: 13 Jan 03 - 08:58 AM

who invented the word ' mondegreen ' I can't find it in any dictionary.
What does it meen?
Stupid Dave

Subject: RE: mondegreen ?
From: An Pluiméir Ceolmhar
Date: 13 Jan 03 - 09:29 AM

Regarding Mrs Malaprop's etymology, "mal à propos" is Frog for inappropriate, out of place.



Banjomad,


Read the posts from 25 June 2002 again more carefully.

If you want more detail on the coining of the word, follow the blue clickies in Stilly River Sage's post of 9 Jan 9.58.

It's all much more fun than ranting on about Bush and Thactcher, even though I do a lot of that myself.

Subject: RE: mondegreen ?
From: banjomad (inactive)
Date: 13 Jan 03 - 02:53 PM

thanks y'all I really had a good laugh, cheered me up after loosing my cool about Mrs fecking Thatcher
Cheers Dave

Subject: RE: mondegreen ?
From: banjomad (inactive)
Date: 13 Jan 03 - 03:21 PM

A dear friend of mine always misheard that great song ' The Blaydon Races ' the Bleedin Races '
And Two old ladies going into the working mens club one night,
1st old lady to doorman, " who's on tonight "
Doorman " it's some country and western "
2nd old lady " what did he say "
1st old lady " he says it's some c*** from Preston.
Cheers Dave

Subject: RE: mondegreen ?
From: GUEST,Frank Hamilton
Date: 13 Jan 03 - 03:41 PM

"Round John Virgin" from Silent Night, "One Ton Tomato, Guajira"
from Guantanamera.............kids and Mondegreens go together.

Then Stephen Sondheim wrote a song from a sci-fi version of "Night Music" called "Send in the Clones."

Frank

Subject: RE: mondegreen ?
From: Haruo
Date: 13 Jan 03 - 10:51 PM

Genie says (a few months back but I just saw it) that "Glory be to the Father and to the Son and down the hole he goes!" is not a mondegreen. Looks like one to me. Why not, Genie? ("down" for "to" may be a bit of a stretch, but no more than many other celebrated mondegreens) Or perhaps your Unitarianism hasn't provided enough exposure to the Gloria Patri to recognize the text? It is, after all, about as Trinitarian a text as you'll meet, and the spectral wording ("Ghost" for the more au courant "Spirit") is still current in many churches. Especially since changing it destroys the meter.

Haruo

Subject: RE: mondegreen ?
From: Genie
Date: 16 Jan 03 - 02:39 AM

Actually, Haruo, I stand corrected. I didn't process your quote fully.   I just saw (heard) it as a kid saying something silly and didn't recognize "... the hole he goes..." as a mondegreen of "...the holy ghost," which it, of course, is.

Genie

PS, I'm a Baptist Minister's daughter, not a life-long Unitarian, so I'm quite familar with the Trinity.

Subject: RE: mondegreen ?
From: Nigel Parsons
Date: 16 Jan 03 - 08:30 AM

As I mentioned in another thread, The campfire song "You can't put your muck in our dustbin" sounds as if its title line may be an extended Mondegreen of the normal words for the tune by which it's sung: "Ach du lieber Augustin"

Nigel

Subject: RE: mondegreen ?
From: Genie
Date: 04 Mar 03 - 01:36 PM

Mondegreen spawned by a downeaster accent:

transcription of Kendall Morse singing "Gently Down The Stream Of Time"

Subject: RE: mondegreen ?
From: Ebbie
Date: 04 Mar 03 - 02:17 PM

Genie, how funny! The hilarious thing is that I was giggling over the possibility that some might think it was 'fawns', as in Bambi. Never occurred to me that I was mishearing it. 'Fauns' kind of fit the mystical nature of the streams of time metaphor.

Thanks, Genie. (Sorry, Kendall!)

Subject: RE: mondegreen ?
From: Joe_F
Date: 04 Mar 03 - 07:14 PM

I am told that someone once asked for Edith Piaf's song about the pink airplane (l'avion rose).

Subject: RE: mondegreen ?
From: Genie
Date: 04 Mar 03 - 09:31 PM

LOL, Joe!

Yeah, Ebbie, I bought into the "fauns" idea at first, too, surreal as it seemed. Then when I finally heard it as "fawms" ("forms"), it made more sense!

Genie

Subject: RE: mondegreen ?
From: TIA
Date: 05 Mar 03 - 07:54 AM

The New England accent does wonders...saw a megaplex movie marquee in Rhode Island in the 80's advertising:

"Star Trek III, The Search for Spark"

Subject: RE: mondegreen ?
From: Dave Bryant
Date: 25 Mar 03 - 05:49 AM

Sorry messed up that link, try here.

Do any Joeclones want to sort out the first one and lose this posting for me ?

Subject: RE: mondegreen ?
From: Gurney
Date: 25 Mar 03 - 06:09 AM

In Scotland, I found, the clan Wishart are not very fond of the first line of the Lord's Prayer, but it gives them confidence....

Sorry, think Protestant, not Catholic.

Subject: RE: mondegreen ?
From: GUEST
Date: 12 Apr 03 - 11:36 AM

last night at an andy m. stewart concert he sang wi' gallant murray in the first half of the show....well during the break a couple of women were talking to him...asking why the soldiers in the song put a white rose in their bottom...he went huh? what song is this? you know the one where they put a white rose in the bottom...why did they? he went on to say that a white rose was a symbol of the jacobites...but still he was clueless on what they were on about..then it dawned...he said oh it's not bottom...it's BON-NET...the poor ladies started cracking up more...and they said they were picturing a bunch of kilted lads bending over to show white roses sticking out of they're butts waving in the wind...

Subject: RE: mondegreen ?
From: GUEST,Catfish's moustache.
Date: 12 Apr 03 - 12:47 PM

There is a book called "'Scuse Me While I Kiss This Guy" which is filled with popular song lyrics which have been Mondegreened (?).

The children's author / illustrater Robert McClosky, in one of his best stories about Homer Price, has a character who is the romantic desire of two of the men of Centerburg. Her name is the ambiguous Miss Terwilliger. (I would reccomend Homer Price as an enjoyable read for any Mudcatters, regardless of their age.)

Subject: RE: mondegreen ?
From: GUEST
Date: 24 Jun 03 - 06:21 PM

what about " i boldy steped up to her and gave her ass a prize" ??

Subject: RE: mondegreen ?
From: GUEST,Dave Hollowood
Date: 25 Jun 03 - 11:28 AM

Funny I've always regarded The Lord's Prayer as a rather "personal" benediction.

Our Father, Who art in Heaven,
Hollowood be thy name.

It's always given me comfort {LoL}

Subject: RE: mondegreen ?
From: JennyO
Date: 25 Jun 03 - 11:32 AM

Actually, it's

Our Father, Who art in Heaven,
Harold be thy name.

(after my uncle Harold, of course)

Subject: RE: mondegreen ?
From: GUEST,Dave H
Date: 25 Jun 03 - 03:34 PM

Funny, that's what my friend Harold said too. I told him to clean his ears out.

Subject: RE: mondegreen ?
From: the lemonade lady
Date: 02 Jul 03 - 06:19 AM

My daughter was singing 'Miss Miller, NO, I will not let you go...' for (I think these are the words) 'Bish Millah, no, I will not let you go...' Bo Rapsody Heman or maybe I'm confussled too!

Sal

Subject: RE: mondegreen ?
From: An Pluiméir Ceolmhar
Date: 02 Jul 03 - 07:21 AM

b'ism'Illah (my attempted transcription), more commonly spelt bismillah = "in the name of God".

Religion is a rich source of mondeverdure. Did anyone mention the pre-Vatican II Confiteor used in the Latin Mass? Every Irish altarboy converted "mea culpa, mea culpa, mea maxima culpa" into "I'm a cowboy, I'm a cowboy, I'm a Mexican cowboy".   

The switch to Mass in English gave us the more blasphemous "This is Mi-Wadi" (a foul concoction of sugar, artificial flavours and colouring agents of a broadly orange disposition) for the consecration.

Subject: RE: mondegreen ?
From: Schantieman
Date: 02 Jul 03 - 09:07 AM

And then there's the carol we sing in our school choir every Christmas which refers to 'highly flavoured gravy' for 'highly favoured lady'.

Gloria.

Subject: RE: mondegreen ?
From: GUEST,BDog
Date: 03 Jul 03 - 08:59 AM

From Sammy's Bar:-

And my real love, she was there
There was sandal in her hair.

Brian

Subject: RE: mondegreen ?
From: Snuffy
Date: 03 Jul 03 - 09:35 AM

From Sailor's Prayer

With Judy Lee all on my knee
And in my ear a lion ...

Oh Lord above, send down a dove
With beakers sharp as razors ....

Subject: RE: mondegreen ?
From: GUEST,Mr Happy
Date: 10 Feb 05 - 02:34 PM

a guy at the sessh last nite sang 'me & u & a dog name boo'

there was a line: 'another tank of gas & i'm back on the road again'

i could clearly hear an audience member singing along 'another attack of gas & i'm back on the road again'

Subject: RE: mondegreen ?
From: Cool Beans
Date: 10 Feb 05 - 03:24 PM

My daughters were very impressed with the accomplishments of Davy Crockett who "built him a bar when he was only 3."
That's what I get for livin' in the suburbs.

Subject: RE: mondegreen ?
From: GUEST
Date: 11 Feb 05 - 06:31 AM

At last, the answer to the question, what is God's full name? Answer: Aled Wishart.

Our father Wishart in Heaven
Aled be thy name

Presumably God is half Scotch and half Welsh

The Scots, who keep the Sabbath and everything else they can lay their hands on
The Welsh, who pray on their knees and their neighbours

Or possibly Harold Wishart

Subject: RE: mondegreen ?
From: Linda Goodman Zebooker
Date: 11 Feb 05 - 07:56 AM

I remember reading many years ago about a child reciting The Lord's Prayer, "and forgive them their trashbaskets..."

Subject: RE: mondegreen ?
From: Linda Goodman Zebooker
Date: 11 Feb 05 - 08:01 AM

As a kid I always heard the last line of "He's a Jolly Good Fellow" as, "Which nobody candy nigh" and I wondered WHY can't they have candy now?   (Nobody can deny)

Subject: RE: mondegreen ?
From: GUEST,Bill the Collie
Date: 11 Feb 05 - 08:32 AM

And lead us not into Temple Meads Station

Subject: RE: mondegreen ?
From: GUEST,Bill the Collie
Date: 11 Feb 05 - 08:34 AM

Last line of jolly good fellow:

"And so say all a fuss"

Subject: RE: mondegreen ?
From: Snuffy
Date: 12 Feb 05 - 07:13 AM

And her hairy tongue over her shoulder
Tied up in a black velvet band

Sing choirs of angels, sing in Exhall station

Subject: RE: mondegreen ?
From: The Fooles Troupe
Date: 12 Feb 05 - 07:26 AM

Shouldn't the last one have been submitted by Bill the Collie?

Subject: RE: mondegreen ?
From: GUEST,Bob Coltman
Date: 12 Feb 05 - 09:59 AM

Sylvia Wright was the daughter of Austin Tappan Wright, who wrote Islandia. "The Death of Lady Mondegreen" first appeared in an article in the New Yorker around 1951?. Later it was collected in her book Get Away From Me With Those Christmas Gifts, which should be available on Abe if you want to read a whoppin' funny article.

I don't have the book any more, but I still recall one of the other mondegreens:

Round John Virgin, who appears in Silent Night right next to the mother and child.
The Donzerly Light, from the second line of the National Ant Theme, illuminating all those flags, rockets, bombs and all those other bits of ordnance we Americans can't wean ourselves off.

And I don't know if anybody mentioned it yet, but my mother used to love an early animal friend, Gladly, the Crosseyed Bear. She also remembered one of the old Spoonerisms: I am not as drunk as some thinkle may peep, which also appears in other variants. Ours was a punning family, we lived by this stuff. Maybe that's why my mind is so unhinged today.

I'll have to google that mondegreen site. Yes, as someone said earlier, Lady Mondegreen didn't die alongside of Earl Amoray. She was just very, very sick.

Bob

Subject: RE: mondegreen ?
From: Celtaddict
Date: 12 Feb 05 - 01:54 PM

During a recent shantysing with Liam Clancy and the Makem Brothers, in Stan Rogers' "Barrett's Privateers" a man near me (in blonde braids) clearly sang "I was told we'd screw the cheese for American gold . . ."
I did not mis-hear, he mis-spoke, but I suspect neither of us will hear the song correctly for some time.

Subject: RE: mondegreen ?
From: The Fooles Troupe
Date: 12 Feb 05 - 08:46 PM

What's her name?

Subject: RE: mondegreen ?
From: GUEST,Bob Coltman
Date: 16 Mar 05 - 06:38 PM

Happy to correct my earlier entry...Sylvia Wright's "The Death of Lady Mondegreen" appeared in Harper's Magazine in 1954. It convulsed our house and touched off a gonzo correspondence between my mother and my aunt that lasted six months before they ran out of gas.

I've remembered one more of Sylvia Wright's originals:
"Haffely, gaffely, gaffely, gonward," the opening line of Charge of the Light Brigade.   (It was a heavy brigade when Sylvia got through with it.)

The related but separate category of Spoonerisms ought to be easier to research. One I remember supposed to be by the originator, Rev. Spooner (legend says he couldn't help it...dysverbia?) was "Kinquering congs their tatles tike."

I did a search trying to see if there was any e-text version of "The Death of Lady Mondegreen" on the web. The article's sideslittingly written (Okay, I'll let that typo stand.) and well worth reading.

The best existing Mondegreen site on the web seems to be:

http://www.sfgate.com/columnists/carroll/mondegreens.shtml

It has some of Sylvia's original mondegreens and a whole bunch more others have thought up since.

Subject: RE: mondegreen ?
From: Mr Red
Date: 16 Mar 05 - 06:48 PM

http://www.sfgate.com/columnists/carroll/mondegreens.shtml

I wonder if they have the Wurlitzer song?

Subject: RE: mondegreen ?
From: Leadfingers
Date: 16 Mar 05 - 07:04 PM

Mr Red - Consider your wrist slapped for that one !!

Subject: RE: mondegreen ?
From: GUEST,Mingulay at work
Date: 17 Mar 05 - 03:50 AM

"I'd like to teach the world to sing and furny shit with love"

Sung by the child chorus of the Stamford Pantomime in the early 70's.

Subject: RE: mondegreen ?
From: Dave Earl
Date: 17 Mar 05 - 05:53 AM

Is it or isn't it?

From the song Glorious Ale

"Some folks likes radishes, some cur like (curly) kale"

Dave Earl

Subject: RE: mondegreen ?
From: BanjoRay
Date: 17 Mar 05 - 08:22 PM

Oh let the prairie echo....
God Bless the Prince of Walesssss!!!
(with gusto)
Ray