Misheard lyrics (also called mondegreens) occur when people misunderstand the lyrics in a song. These are NOT intentional rephrasing of lyrics, which is called parody.
For more information about the misheard lyrics available on this site, please read our FAQ.
This page contains a list of the songs that have stories about their misheard lyrics submitted.
Song names are sorted by first letter, excluding A and The. This is sorted by song title only, not
by song title and performer. So if two different performers preformed the same song, you'll see
misheard lyrics for both on the same page (provided the song title was spelt the same both times, and
misheard lyrics have been submitted for both!).
All the Best album at Amazon.com
Call me Al
Coming up
The Story: I swear this is what inspired Paul Simon to do the song "You Can Call Me Al". - Submitted by: Cody Finke
Nadia!
Coming up.
The Story: I always thought Paul McCartney was singing about a woman called Nadia! - Submitted by: Neil
Ebony & Ivory go together in perfect harmony,
side by side on my pillow, armadillo why don't we?
Ebony & ivory go together in perfect harmony,
side by side on my piano keyboard, tell me why dont we?
The Story: I thought this was the song lyric for years (no matter how strange it sounds) becuase that what i thought it was when I was a child. It wasnt until I sung it in the pub on my 20th birthday that I was informed I was wrong. I had the entire pub in stiches. - Submitted by: Steph
Well, figure it out for yourself, little girl
Don't go low where a doll
's nothing bother the day-glo
In a big a**h***.
Well, figure it out for yourself, little girl
Don't go nowhere at all
It's nothing more than a tape loop
In a big dance hall.
The Story: The way Paul slurs the bridge of this song, I could never make sense of most of it. The last line, though, seemed to come through loud and clear, and I always wondered why he would toss that word into an otherwise inoffensive pop song for no apparent reason. Now that I've looked up the lyrics, all has been made clear. I'm just glad I never tried to sing my version in front of anyone. - Submitted by: SC
Vote for the Liberals
Hope of Deliverance
The Story: Well, it was around the time of an election. What can I say? - Submitted by: Min
Diller & Don
Phil and Don
The Story: I thought Phyllis Diller & Don Rickles were at the door. - Submitted by: Jake
Baby, I'm amazed by the way you're pooping all the time
Maybe I'm amazed at the way you pulled me out of time
The Story: I always thought the song was "Baby I'm Amazed" and why we commonly mishear "maybe" as "baby" and vice versa. In this case, it sounded like somebody pooped all the time! - Submitted by: Cody Finke
Maybe I'm amazed, maybe I'm a lonely man
Who's in the middle of Sunday
Maybe I'm amazed, maybe I'm a lonely man
Who's in the middle of something
The Story: I once sang this song using the 'Sunday' lyric on a tape with my brother playing keyboard. I impersonated a Bob Seger-type rabble-rousing performer, who hollers stuff like 'ok, people,put your hands together', and 'get your heads out of your asses out there!'. But this was a 'studio' version with no audience at all, so it sounded kind of spooky as well as ludicrous. - Submitted by: Mike Ransom
So I sat in the attic, a cow up my nose ,
....
Sore was I from the crack of an enema hose
And the horrible sound of the butter
Ketchup, soup puree....
The saviours, the nuts, and the vanities
...
Oh, do your stuff concealed in a barrel
Sucking monkberry moon delight
So I sat in the attic, a piano up my nose
And the wind played a dreadful cantata (cantata, cantata)
Sore was I from the crack of an enemy's hose
And the horrible sound of tomato.
Catch up super fury
...
The sinews, the nerves, and the veins
...
Two youngsters concealed in a barrel
Smoking monkberry moon delight.
The Story: My wife tried to decipher them for years. We just figured Sir Paul was smoking/drinking something good I just came across the real (if they are) lyrics on Youtube. - Submitted by: Charles Watkins
For the fox is coming.
This is Morse Moose calling.
The Story: The line was not exactly clear, but I knew the song was about tragedy at sea, either a shipwreck in a storm or a submarine crushed from going too deep, or both. I was probably thinking of a previous line "the wind is like a fox", and playing with the idea of a fox hunting the Grey Goose, ie, death pursuing the ship. - Submitted by: Panda Rosa
Bollokin' tired
P***ed rolling in from a scene.
Mull of Kintyre
Mist rolling in from the sea.
The Story: My 75-year-old aunt was "appalled" at modern lyrics when she quoted this to me when first she heard it on "Top of the Pops". - Submitted by: Lawrence Green
Mull of King Tyre
Mull of Kintyre
The mist rolling in from the sea.
The Story: The mull of King Tyre, a song I liked very much - Submitted by: toni
Mull of Kintyre
O mince rolling in from the sea.
Mull of Kintyre
The mist rolling in from the sea.
The Story: This was heard being sung by a seven year old from Crinan school on the Mull of Kintyre when the song was in the charts. Macca used the Crinan pipe band on the record and accompanying film. - Submitted by: Liam Thomas
I've been living a lie
On the coastal Naziam.
I've been living a lie
Unaccustomed as I am.
The Story: I was about 6 years old, on a road trip with my parents, when I first heard this song. My mom (huge Beatles fan) played this CD several times, and soon I was singing along. Only problem was, I was singing nonsense about a "coastal Naz-i-am!" My parents had to explain not only what Paul was actually singing, but what it meant. I was embarrased, and afraid to sing along with anything for the rest of the trip. - Submitted by: SC
I light a candle to Milo
I light a candle to our love
The Story: I kept thinking that so many that say "my love" sound like "Milo", but it says "our love" instead. - Submitted by: Cody Finke
She's going to make you dinner tonight
To turn you from a playboy to a man
She's going to make you suffer tonight
To turn you from a playboy to a man
The Story: That's what the lyric sheet says. This song is on a bonus CD ('Original Demos') for a reissue of his 1989 album 'Flowers In The Dirt'. This may have been a B-side. - Submitted by: I Smoked Two Joints In Ottawa
Sleepy Alice, a wonderful Christmastime.
We're simply having a wonderful Christmas time.
The Story: You can imagine my wife's and my delight as we were driving down the road listening to Christmas songs, then my 6 year old belts this misheard lyric. I almost had to pull over. - Submitted by: Matt
I had another look and I had a cup of tea and a pot pie
Never felt so f***ing high.
I had another look and I had a cup of tea and a butter pie
The butter wouldn’t melt so we put it in the pie.
The Story: This misheard lyric is actually from my dad. He has heard this phrase since the song came out, and one day when we were listening to the song in the car he sang it and I said, “wait did you say?” He explained, and I showed him the lyric booklet in the CD sleeve but he still thinks Paul says F*** right here. He loves it and I let him be. - Submitted by: Hal
I had another look and I had a cup of tea and a butterfly.
I had another look and I had a cup of tea and butter pie.
The Story: This never really made sense to me, but I still liked the song. I guess I thought he was having another look at a butterfly. I'd never heard of a butter pie until recently when my new husband, who is also a Beatles fan, corrected me when I was singing the song one day. I still like the idea of a butterfly better. - Submitted by: M. White
Admiral Halsey horrified me
He had to have a pill or he couldn't go to sea
I had another toke and I had a cup of tea and a butterfly (A Butterfly?)
The butterfly was horrid, so I put it in the pie.
Admiral Halsey notified me
He had to have a berth or he couldn't get to sea
I had another look and I had a cup of tea and butter pie. (Butter pie?)
The butter wouldn't melt so I put it in the pie.
The Story: I was young. I didn't know the word "notify." I didn't know what a "butter pie" might be; but I knew what a butterfly was. The aside at the end was too complex to catch all the words. - Submitted by: Harbold
Admiral Halsey notified me
He had to have a bath or he couldn't get to sea
Admiral Halsey notified me
He had to have a berth or he couldn't get to sea
The Story: I was around when the song came out and I thought that "bath" was the word since the beginning. Obviously "bath" made no sense in the context, but I thought it was just for comic effect, indicating that the admiral was obsessed about cleanliness. - Submitted by: Wayne Sewell
And a pot pie (a pot pie?)
I wondered what smelt so funny in the pie.
And butter pie.(Butter pie?)
The butter wouldn't melt so I put it in the pie.
The Story: I thought the Beatles all smoked pot. - Submitted by: Edward Hopkins
I had another look and I had a cup of tea and a butterpie!
(A whattapie? She wouldn't put it in her mouth so I put it in her pie! Oh alright!)
I had another look and I had a cup of tea and a butterpie!
(Butterpie? The butter wouldn't melt so I put it in the pie. Alright!)
The Story: My mate showed me this song a while back and pointed out the explicit content of that line, and I couldn't believe it so I had to look it up! - Submitted by: Kelly
Little little gypsy girdle, get around
Live a little, be a gypsy, get around.
The Story: My little brother was sort of humming the tune to the song, and then started singing the 'little little gypsy girdle' version of it, and I was sort of surprised to hear how he was singing it, so I went to look up the *real* lyrics to it. I think his version's pretty... interesting. Gives the song a whole new meaning. - Submitted by: Jessica
Save me, Allen - a wonderful Christmastime!
Simply having a wonderful Christmastime!
The Story: I knew this wasn't right all these years, but I had no idea what he was actually saying so I sang it the way I misheard it. Nobody noticed! - Submitted by: Evelyne Rose
Sid Green Allen, a wonderful Christmas time.
Simply having a wonderful Christmas time.
The Story: This was my daughter's misheard lyric. She wanted to know who Sid Green Allen was. - Submitted by: Brenda
Simping hacking a wonderful Christmas time
Simply having a wonderful Christmas time.
The Story: I was convinced this is what it actually was for nearly 2 years when I was at a karaoke night bar, and I realized the actual lyrics were simply having lol. - Submitted by: Dave.B
Sydney's having a wonderful Christmastime.
Simply having a wonderful Christmas time.
The Story: Sydney's a city in Australia. I used to think Paul was singing about the city's Christmas Day. - Submitted by: Aaron
To lick a glass
To lift a glass
The Story: Would anyone lick a glass? - Submitted by: Cody Finke
New entries in this section are currently reviewed by Brian Kelly. Previous editors (if any) are listed on the editors page.