Songs that have famously been misinterpreted

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As a sometime TEFL teacher I often do "Every Breath You Take" as a lesson - y'know, students fill in the words and then discuss them - and time and again I find that they thought it was a really romantic song, whereas we all know yada yada yada obsession and stalking.

What say we find some other eg's of misinterpretation - nb: I mean vaguely well-known, as opposed to 'my mate thought that Felt B-side was about this when I know it was about that' - sorry, trainspotters.

― Darren, Friday, 5 April 2002 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

"Born in the USA" springs to mind, being thought of as patriotic when it's really more of a cry of anger.

― Mark, Friday, 5 April 2002 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

The Cure's "Killing An Arab" was thought to be a racist anthem by all those unfamiliar with Camus.

― Dan Perry, Friday, 5 April 2002 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

"Born in the USA" springs to mind, being thought of as patriotic when it's really more of a cry of anger.
Likewise, Neil Young's "Rockin' in the Free World".

― Sean Carruthers, Friday, 5 April 2002 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

How about the most infamous of all -- "Louie Louie."

― Yancey, Friday, 5 April 2002 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Not sure if these count, but I was practically tarred, feathered and run out of town on a rail for playing "White Noise" by Stiff Little Fingers, "Power in the Darkness" by the Tom Robinson Band and "Wunderbar" by Tenpole Tudor on my college radio station about fifteen years ago. The ironic statements of the firs two tracks were apparenly not abundantly clear to some folks. "Wunderbar," more quizzically, was cited because "it sounds German," which I suppose rendered it "Nazi" to their ears. People are dumb.

― Alex in NYC, Friday, 5 April 2002 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

on the other hand they are all terrible songs: RAISE YOUR STANDARDS ALEX!! (actually i totally can't remember the SLF song, that might be OK)

― mark s, Friday, 5 April 2002 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Every Breath You Take
Born In The USA
Rockin' In The Free World
Killing An Arab. Various others that don't spring immediately to mind.

― Brave Ulysses, Friday, 5 April 2002 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

http://www.mike.lawton.clara.net/Homersweb/doh.jpg

― Brave Ulysses, Friday, 5 April 2002 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Mark chided: "on the other hand they are all terrible songs: RAISE YOUR STANDARDS ALEX!! (actually i totally can't remember the SLF song, that might be OK)"

Well, I did say it was fifteen years ago (not that my taste has really changed that drastically since then). "Wunderbar" isn't so much a terrible song as merely a dumb, inconsequential song. That someone would take the time to be offended by it (when it is thoroughly inoffensive) is what struck me. I still think "Power in the Darkness" is okay. "White Noise" (from INFLAMMABLE MATERIAL) is just a typical bracing blast of SLF. If you've heard "Wasted Life," imagine that played twice as fast and you've pretty much got "White Noise."

― Alex in NYC, Friday, 5 April 2002 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Maybe not misinterpreted per se, but I like the irony behind Eric Clapton's "Wonderful Tonight": Thought to be this ultimate slow- dance/romantic lurv ballad, when (IIRC) the origins of the song are that he and his wife were late for a party, she was taking too damn long and getting obsessive about her make up, and so Clapton said whatever the hell she wanted to hear ("You look wonderful tonight") in order to get the ball moving along...

― Joe, Friday, 5 April 2002 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Soundgarden's "Big Dumb Sex" from LOUDER THAN LOVE was meant to be a send-up of priapic moron metal ("I'm gonna FUCK, FUCK, FUCK YOOOOOOOOOOOOUUUUUU"),....but Axl Rose missed the joke and had G'N'R cover it in earnest on THE SPAGHETTI INCIDENT.

― Alex in NYC, Friday, 5 April 2002 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

REM's The One I Love. All those reports of couples getting it on to '...a simple prop to occupy my time...'

― Daniel, Saturday, 6 April 2002 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

I Will Survive - inspired by Gloria Gaynor having a bad back, not a bad boyfriend.

― Damian, Saturday, 6 April 2002 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

I'd say thatPerfect Day can't really be included, as it was supposed to be misinterpreted.

― Jez, Saturday, 6 April 2002 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

What's the story behind Perfect Day?

― Joe, Saturday, 6 April 2002 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

an Ode to smack I always thought...

speaking of misinterpretations, the green icing on the cake in Macarthur park as LSD experience - discuss.

― Queen G, Saturday, 6 April 2002 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

War Pigs/Suffer Little Children

I never knew that about MacArthur Park.

― vantasma, Saturday, 6 April 2002 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

TV ads and shows clumsily program songs for a single, apparently pertinent lyrical line despite song's contradictory message. Example: Sports profiles of marathon runners or famously iron-willed athletes use alternative rock hit "The Distance" for its chorus of "He's going the distance", despite its depiction of a loser who can't let go in his pursuit of a girl who rejected him.

― Curt, Saturday, 6 April 2002 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

The Guess Who's very anti-American 'American Woman' used as patriot- American rock anthem.

― Kim, Saturday, 6 April 2002 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Apparently the Split Enz tune "Six months in a leaky boat" wasnt released in the UK as it was thought to be an anti-war song (Falklands War). This may be bollocks though as I wouldnt have a clue if it was banned, can anyone confirm?

― kiwi, Sunday, 7 April 2002 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

well, was 'I'm coming out' about coming out? no, it was just about heterosexual love. but then it became associated with gay pride. that's not a misinterpretation, but now there's a hip-hop song that samples it. it's just the normal misogynistic type of thing so i wonder, why are they sampling the gay pride song? or am i mistaken here at every step? i am honestly curious about everybody's line of reasoning in this historical progression.

I thought it was kind of a misinterpretation when Nike used 'Search and Destroy' for their advertisements. Like i would have liked to have seen an olympic athlete staggering along the 100m track with a needle hanging out of their arm and puking when they reached the finish. Maybe Nike wants everyone to use more heroin. I think Nike should be made illegal.

― maryann, Sunday, 7 April 2002 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

When they used "Why'd Ya Do It" for a bikini-waxing commercial

― dave q, Sunday, 7 April 2002 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

"Six Months.." by Split Enz must have been released in the UK, cos a) I remember hearing it on the radio and b) I've got the 7" of it.

On a slightly trivial bent ... "Turning Japanese" was a song about wanking, a la 'Pictures of Lily', that no-one got and so it went top 3.

― Darren, Sunday, 7 April 2002 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

'Blank Generation', which of course should be '_____ (fill in name of your choice here) Generation'. Sometimes Hell sang the word, sometimes he didn't though.

― Snotty Moore, Monday, 8 April 2002 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

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