I have been humming along with Tori Amos' latest single, a typically diffuse and lyrical number about a relationship between Tori and someone, maybe her husband, maybe a past lover, it's not been clear to me. Since Tori sings somewhat diffusely as well as lyrically, particularly on the choruses of her songs, I have been under the impression that this is a bittersweet commentary on an unhealthy relationship called "A Sordid Fairytale".
I wandered past the list of songs on the new CD in cyberspace at a purveyor of music's website. The song's title is actually "A Sorta Fairytale." Oh. The lyrics immediately lost all their ironic subtext and soulful angst.
You'll know about Mondegreens if you're a fan of Dave Barry and Jon Carroll, as I am. In fact, they're my humor writer heros. I have shamelessly imitated both of them in the past in hopes of learning to how to pace a humorous essay. They have taught me well.
From Dave I have learned to hear potential band names in every unlikely word combination. From Jon (I'm on a first name basis with them, of course, since I feel they are my best friends due to our natural affinities and psychic connections which I foster through the use of this aluminum foil hat I made) I've learned that an extremely fine writer can devote entire columns to his cats' behavior and not get fired. From both of them I have learned to appreciate the universal mishearing of song lyrics, officially known as Mondegreens.
But this is the first one in years, nay, decades, that I have experienced myself. Not since I was deeply confused by Manfred Mann's Earth Band's 1976 hit Blinded by the Light in which the singer was "wrapped up like a douche, another runner in the night" have I been so mistaken. I wasn't all that sure what a douche was, having only seen diffuse and lyrical ads for them on television but I was pretty sure a person couldn't be wrapped up in one. Even when I finally found out the runner was wrapped up like a deuce I still didn't understand the lyrics but that's a different issue. At any rate, with the onset of completely indecipherable punk rock lyrics in 1977 I stopped trying to figure out what anyone was singing about and the problem went away until Tori and her new song got me trying to sing along in the car on the way to class twice a week.
Personally, I think "Sordid Fairytale" would make an excellent band name.
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