’70s Music Lyrics Everyone Gets Wrong
There is just something so embarrassing about realizing you’ve been singing song lyrics wrong for decades. Although it gets less embarrassing when you realize pretty much everyone sang them wrong, too. A lot of songs can be easy to misunderstand, especially ones from decades before we could simply Google the lyrics. Sometimes the incorrect version even sounds more logical, which helps it stick.
Here are some of the most common lyrics from the 1970s that people have gotten wrong for years. Feel free to debate or add more in the comments!
Creedence Clearwater Revival:
‘There’s a bad moon on the rise, not ‘There’s a bathroom on the right’
Creedence Clearwater Revival‘s 1969 hit “Bad Moon Rising” carried well into the ’70s and became one of the most famously misheard songs of all time. The line “There’s a bad moon on the rise” is often jokingly sung as “There’s a bathroom on the right.” Nor is there a “Baboon on the right.” It sounds close enough, especially with John Fogerty‘s delivery, that it stuck as a running joke for decades.
Even Fogerty himself has acknowledged the misheard version in live performances. The real lyric fits the song’s ominous tone, which is all about impending disaster and unease.
Elton John:
‘Hold me closer, tiny dancer,’ not ‘Hold me closer, Tony Danza’
Elton John‘s “Tiny Dancer,” released in 1971, has one of the most widely misheard lyrics in pop music. Many listeners swear they hear “Hold me closer, Tony Danza,” even though the lyric is “tiny dancer.” The correct lyric refers to the song’s imagery of California and the women Bernie Taupin observed there. The misheard version didn’t really take off until years later, especially with pop culture references that kept the joke alive.
Queen:
‘We are the champions… of the world,’ not always ending with ‘of the world’
Queen‘s 1977 anthem “We Are the Champions” is almost always sung with the phrase “of the world” at the end. The line does appear in the song, but not in the final chorus, the way most people remember it. The studio version actually ends without that phrase, which surprises many listeners when they revisit it.
The confusion likely comes from live performances and the way the song has been used in sports and media. Over time, the added phrase became part of the cultural memory of the song.
Electric Light Orchestra:
‘Don’t bring me down,’ not ‘Don’t bring me down, Bruce’
Electric Light Orchestra’s 1979 hit “Don’t Bring Me Down” includes a shouted word that many people hear as “Bruce.” In reality, Jeff Lynne has explained that the word was a placeholder, often interpreted as the sound “groos,” and not meant to be a name at all. Still, “Bruce” became the version many listeners locked onto. The band never formally replaced the word in the recording, which helped the confusion persist.
ABBA:
‘See that girl, watch that scene, digging the dancing queen,’ not ‘kicking the dancing queen’
ABBA‘s 1976 hit “Dancing Queen” has a line that is often misheard as “kicking the dancing queen.” The actual lyric is “digging the dancing queen,” which fits the song’s upbeat tone. The word “digging” was a common slang term at the time, meaning to enjoy or appreciate something. The misheard version changes the tone slightly and feels more aggressive than intended.
Manfred Mann’s Earth Band:
‘Revved up like a deuce,’ not what you think you hear
Manfred Mann’s Earth Band turned Bruce Springsteen‘s song “Blinded by the Light” into a No. 1 hit in 1976, and in the process created one of the most famously misheard lyrics in music history. The line “Revved up like a deuce, another runner in the night” has been widely misheard for decades as something far more inappropriate. The word “deuce” refers to a 1932 Ford hot rod, which was a common reference in car culture and appears in Springsteen’s writing.
1980s Songs Everyone Gets Wrong >>
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