Mistaken song meanings

[srblue5]

I used to think Billy Joel’s “Captain Jack” was about drinking Jack Daniels. It’s a heavier substance than that.

 

[Dan Estock]

King Harvest’s Dancing in the Moonlight has a truly awful origin story.

 

[Lynxtrap]

Although not really open to interpretation, Tom Jones hit "Delilah" is probably widely misunderstood.

Funny story: When he performed it on the Ed Sullivan Show they tried to make him change the line "At break of day when the man drove away", because it implied that the guy had spent the night with Delilah. They didn't mind that the storyteller stabbed her to death two lines later.

 

[suthol]

I suspect that this may not fall into the misunderstood lyrics ( or I've just got a filthy mind )

 

[green_henry]

Although not really open to interpretation, Tom Jones hit "Delilah" is probably widely misunderstood.

Funny story: When he performed it on the Ed Sullivan Show they tried to make him change the line "At break of day when the man drove away", because it implied that the guy had spent the night with Delilah. They didn't mind that the storyteller stabbed her to death two lines later.

Wow, I focus on the melody and largely ignore the lyrics. Missed that, lol!

 

[Wildeman]

My wife thought Tom Petty sang Running down a drain

 

[Recce]

I used to think Billy Joel’s “Captain Jack” was about drinking Jack Daniels. It’s a heavier substance than that.

Just a little push and you’ll be flying.

 

[ravindave_3600]

there are no "mistaken meanings"-
that's like telling someone they are wrong in seeing a teddy bear in that cloud

art is always open to personal interpretation, original intent of the artist notwithstanding

always

(some people are dumb, yeah)

Of course there are mistaken meanings. Sometimes a composer might write or perform with such ambiguity any impression is as good as another but "Blinded by the Light" is about a Deuce, no matter how incorrectly it's heard.

And heaven help the construction crew who reads the architect's plans upside down and calls it their "impression".

 

[oldunc]

There's "Turn Me On" (not about sex).

 

[pippoman]

Low Blow!

Did y’all see what TwoBear did?

 

[pippoman]

King Harvest’s Dancing in the Moonlight has a truly awful origin story.

Please enlighten us

 

[blowtorch]

Of course there are mistaken meanings. Sometimes a composer might write or perform with such ambiguity any impression is as good as another but "Blinded by the Light" is about a Deuce, no matter how incorrectly it's heard.

And heaven help the construction crew who reads the architect's plans upside down and calls it their "impression".

I contend that art is open to interpretation always

unlike blueprints

although we can certainly dance about architecture, should you so wish

 

[BrazHog]

On reading this thread, it looks like the "mistaken meanings" of rock songs boil down to 1) America bad; 2) heroin good; 3) sordid shenanigans with groupies. Yet another another reason to go back to the classics.

 

[studio]

There's at least one guy that got John's lyrics wrong!



Don't really see how you can read anything sinister in this song!

 

[ravindave_3600]

I contend that art is open to interpretation always

unlike blueprints

although we can certainly dance about architecture, should you so wish

Dancing is nice. Architecture is nice
Just don't tell Wright his architecture wasn't art! Or Brunelleschi for that matter:

 

[Dan Estock]

If you couldn’t find it yourself,

 

[ElvisNixon]

I had a friend in high school who insisted that Huey Lewis and The New’s song I Want A New Drug was I Want A New Truck.

David Bowie/SRV’s China Girl was actually written by Iggy Pop and is Iggy’s love song to the best heroin in the 70’s known as China White.

 

[pippoman]

Thanks for sharing. Wow! What a terrible ordeal he went through. At least one of my favorite songs back then was born as a result and the lyrics were upbeat. I’ve never heard that story before.

 

[Mindovermatter62]

Some may not know that[Bobby Hebb's]Sunny is not about a girl, but his brother who died in Nam.

 

[JIMMY JAZZMAN]

"I Touch Myself", wasn't about that at all. Was it?