As a child I remember sitting in the church pew singing in my loudest six year old voice, “Bringing in the sheep, bringing in the sheep. We shall come rejoicing, bringing in the sheep.” It was only after I learned to read that I learned the lyrics are Bringing in the Sheaves — as in sheaves of wheat. My lyrics made sense to my young brain and my biblical knowledge. I knew the parables of the good Shepherd and the lost sheep. I didn’t know much about wheat and cutting the sheaves.
Last week I learned there’s a name for such a misunderstanding. It’s called a mondegreen and is from a 17th century Scottish ballad “The Bonnie Earl o’ Moray”. The line states They hae slain the Earl o’ Moray / And laid him on the green. As a child the writer Syvlia Wright heard her mother say “They hae slain the Earl Amurray, and Lady Mondegreen.” Wright felt the need for a word to describe this misunderstanding and hence mondegreen was coined.
I remember the story of a young boy‘s Christmas drawing. When asked about the fat figure in the corner of the manger scene. He replied, “Oh, that is round John Virgin from the Silent NIght song.” The lyrics say “round yon virgin”.
“Olive, the Other Reindeer” is a 1997 children’s book by Vivian Walsh, which borrows its title from a mondegreen of the line “all of the other reindeer” in the song “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer”.
Mondegreens became common with the popularity of rock and roll music and the radio. Many examples can be found. One of the most reported examples is from CCR’s Bad Moon Rising. At the end of each verse they sing “There’s a bad moon on the rise” but commonly heard as “There’s a bathroom on the right”.
I remember my mother singing:
“Mairzy doats and dozy doats and liddle lamzy divey
A kiddley divey too, wouldn’t you.”
Of course that makes no sense but the bridge of the song brings out the meaning: “If the words sound queer and funny to your ear, a little bit jumbled and jivey, Sing ‘Mares eat oats and does eat oats and little lambs eat ivy.’ ” The final line becomes “A kid’ll eat ivy, too; wouldn’t you?” This is a reverse mondegreen and was produced in 1943.
Volkswagen used the idea of mondegreen in a 2012 advertisement using the Elton John song Rocket Man. The ad (still available on the internet) features a number of lyric variations to the line “Burning out his fuse up here alone”. Only in the Passat with its excellent sound system does the rider understand the lyrics do not include “Useless telephone, burning up the room with cheap cologne, or provolone.”
I want to keep my ears tuned to hear other examples of a mondegreen. Do you have a mondegreen you sing?
Mary Reid, a retired educator, is writing a memoir and learning bluegrass fiddle. A Bremen resident, she leads worship at CrossPointe Christian Church and volunteers with Ferst Readers and Healing Grace Clinic. She can be contacted at marycreid@gmail.com.
Mary Reid, a retired educator, is writing a memoir and learning bluegrass fiddle. A Bremen resident, she leads worship at CrossPointe Christian Church and volunteers with Ferst Readers and Healing Grace Clinic. She can be contacted at marycreid@gmail.com.
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