Most misheard Pearl Jam lyrics

Eddie is notorious for mumbling and/or screaming lyrics, so its no surprise that PJs lyrics can be a bit hard to decipher sometimes. The last few albums, we have been blessed with having lyrics to all the songs published in the liner notes, but on the earlier albums we did not have this luxury. So, I'm pretty straight on the words to riot act and avacado, but i just recently came across one misheard lyric that made me laugh out loud.

There's a line in "No Way" that goes "Of my need to not disappear."

For years, I thought this line was "All I need tonight is a beer."

Personally, I like my interpretation better :)

Anyway, ever felt like an idiot when you were singing a Pearl Jam song out loud and got corrected for singing the wrong lyrics? Post your favorite misheard lyrics here.
Post edited by Unknown User on
«134

Comments

  • gobrowns19
    gobrowns19 Posts: 1,447
    I always used to think in Alive "I'm glad we talked" was "I'm playing guitar." Lol.

    There's soooo many I used to have, the only one that comes to mind at the moment was "pissed on my plate" in RVM instead of "fist on my plate." Haha.
    Happiness is only real when shared
  • markymark550
    markymark550 Columbia, SC Posts: 5,254
    I always love these kinds of threads :D

    a few of my favs are:
    Go
    Heard: turned to my missus and pulled out my fucking cock
    Actual: turned to my nemesis, a fool not a fucking god

    Glorified G
    Heard: 4 or 5 virgins and a pelican
    Actual: glorified version of a pellet gun
    stole this one from someone here....will give credit if/when I remember (I wanna say Speedy, but not sure)

    Even Flow
    Heard: Heathen frog
    Actual: Even flow
    search youtube for "misheard lyrics Even Flow" ;)
  • I always love these kinds of threads :D

    a few of my favs are:
    Go
    Heard: turned to my missus and pulled out my fucking cock
    Actual: turned to my nemesis, a fool not a fucking god

    Glorified G
    Heard: 4 or 5 virgins and a pelican
    Actual: glorified version of a pellet gun
    stole this one from someone here....will give credit if/when I remember (I wanna say Speedy, but not sure)

    Even Flow
    Heard: Heathen frog
    Actual: Even flow
    search youtube for "misheard lyrics Even Flow" ;)

    search for Yellow Ledbetter as well...hilarious
  • One of my friends always sings "soy beans" rather than "saw things" during RVM.

    I was laughing my ass off the 1st time I heard it. Now it's a running joke amongst us
  • in_hiding79
    in_hiding79 Posts: 4,315
    Yellow ledbetter lyrics are so freakin weird, but I love it!!
    And so the lion fell in love with the lamb...,"
    "What a stupid lamb."
    "What a sick, masochistic lion."
  • markymark550
    markymark550 Columbia, SC Posts: 5,254
    search for Yellow Ledbetter as well...hilarious
    Yes, that one was funny too....
  • I can usually understand his lyrics,voice, intonations, screams, and mumbles, I just sometimes find myself on this message board having to "pick him up" a bit, put a smile on his face, erase some of those negative lyrics, and also the ones that don't quite make sense, though in the future we may encrypt them and find out some rhyme codes of his, so don't get too nosey :-
    Eddie is notorious for mumbling and/or screaming lyrics, so its no surprise that PJs lyrics can be a bit hard to decipher sometimes. The last few albums, we have been blessed with having lyrics to all the songs published in the liner notes, but on the earlier albums we did not have this luxury. So, I'm pretty straight on the words to riot act and avacado, but i just recently came across one misheard lyric that made me laugh out loud.

    There's a line in "No Way" that goes "Of my need to not disappear."

    For years, I thought this line was "All I need tonight is a beer."

    Personally, I like my interpretation better :)

    Anyway, ever felt like an idiot when you were singing a Pearl Jam song out loud and got corrected for singing the wrong lyrics? Post your favorite misheard lyrics here.
  • gobrowns19 wrote:
    I always used to think in Alive "I'm glad we talked" was "I'm playing guitar." Lol.

    I always thought it was that too
  • AndiM
    AndiM Posts: 102
    Well, instead of "Jeremy has spoken" I always heard something along the lines of "Tell me he's broken". Couldn't make it meaningful to myself, but still was surprised to find out the real lines :D.
  • For the longest time, I thought (from State of Love and Trust) it was "And I listen, from both sides of a friend", when in actuality it is "And I listen, from both sides of the bed." Well, I think the latter of the two is correct.

    But, honestly, I kinda wish it was the first. Not a big deal, though.
  • risa
    risa Posts: 42
    heard: her legs spread out before me (as her body once did)

    actual: Were laid spread out before me (as her body once did)
    i waited all day.
    you waited all day..
    but you left before sunset..

    ...should have stayed for the sunset...
    if not for me.
  • LONGRD
    LONGRD Posts: 6,036
    I always thought it as,
    "Discarded Angels"
    in
    No Way
    :p
    PJ- 04/29/2003.06/24,25,27,28,30/2008.10/27,28,30,31/2009
    EV- 08/09,10/2008.06/08,09/2009
  • My two favorite that I've come up with both have to do with names:

    Off He Goes:
    Noah, man...
    Know a man

    Of The Girl:
    Howie makes his getaway
    How he makes his getaway


    Do you think those names would work if PJ did an Across the Universe type of thing? (where the characters are named Jude, Prudence, etc)
  • RATS

    real line:
    "Lick the dirt off a larger one's feet"

    what I thought it was the first time I heard it:
    "Lick the dirt off Olajuwon's feet"
    as in Hakeem Olajuwon from the Huston Rockets
    2000: Camden 1, 2003: Philly, State College, Camden 1, MSG 2, Hershey, 2004: Reading, 2005: Philly, 2006: Camden 1, 2, East Rutherford 1, 2007: Lollapalooza, 2008: Camden 1, Washington D.C., MSG 1, 2, 2009: Philly 1, 2, 3, 4, 2010: Bristol, MSG 2, 2011: PJ20 1, 2, 2012: Made In America, 2013: Brooklyn 2, Philly 2, 2014: Denver, 2015: Global Citizen Festival, 2016: Philly 2, Fenway 1, 2018: Fenway 1, 2, 2021: Sea. Hear. Now. 2022: Camden, 2024Philly 2, 2025: Pittsburgh 1

    Pearl Jam bootlegs:
    http://wegotshit.blogspot.com
  • RATS

    real line:
    "Lick the dirt off a larger one's feet"

    what I thought it was the first time I heard it:
    "Lick the dirt off Olajuwon's feet"
    as in Hakeem Olajuwon from the Huston Rockets

    I am buzzed from some captain and coke reading this thread after reading about the nightmare stories about the EV tour and ticket sales. This post above just made me laugh my ass off and spit my drink all over my keyboard! I am a huge PJ fan and I also love sports cards. Olajuwon is one of the many players I have collected. I have always thought the same thing since the reference to Mookie Blaylock. I was so disappointed many years ago to find out there was no love for Olajuwon in RATS. Thanks for the great post and making me laugh hard!
  • I really love this thread...I was just listening to the 13 consecutive years of Pearl Jam fan club singles from 1995-2007on my new record player and I was jamming out the the live version of Smile in Barcelona I think in 1996. When I was younger I always thought Ed was singing about a bad case of the munchies at the end of Smile.

    What I thought I heard:
    "Free Cookies with nuts and swirls all around"

    What Ed actually was singing:
    "three crooked hearts and swirls all around"

    I might be the only one who thinks this is funny, but I thought I would post it....:)
  • Yellow Ledbetter does some good ones from the YouTube vid:
    "Potato Wave", "But they don't wave"
    "Make me fries", "Make me cry"
    and my fav:
    "Anna Nicole's mama said that I wont wanna see Anna fall down again."
    "And they called and I said that I want what I said And then I call out again"
    Although there are no "official" lyrics... that is the original.
  • gobrowns19 wrote:
    I always used to think in Alive "I'm glad we talked" was "I'm playing guitar." Lol.

    YES! I'm not the only one!
    thought it was strange though:

    "While you were sitting home-alone at age 13
    Your real daddy was dying
    Sorry you didn't see him
    But I'm playing guitar"

    Doesn't make sense... still I made the mistake:o
    I don't want to be the fool that's behind me but I am...

    I'll Hold The Pain... Release...

    Yourself
  • I hear "pussy dragons" in Severed Hand. :D
  • Shadow
    Shadow London, Ontario, Canada Posts: 177
    I just came across a 1992 Ten Songbook/Lyrics/tab book and it's bugging me that some of the words for Black are different in the songbook than on the PJ website...when did these changes take place? Anybody know the history? Here's an example of what's in the book:

    Sheets of empty canvas, untouched sheets of clay,
    Her legs spread out before me, as her body was there
    Woh, all five horizons, revolved around the sun
    I see earth through the sun.

    What's on the PJ Song version (on the website):

    Sheets of empty canvas, untouched sheets of clay
    Were laid spread out before me as her body once did
    All five horizons revolved around her soul
    As the earth to the sun.

    This happens all through out the song.
    Escape is never --- the safest path
    2005.09.12-London; 2006.05.09-Toronto; 2007.08.05-Lolla; 2008.08.13-EV Toronto; 2009.08.21-Toronto; 2009.10.30-Philly; 2010.05.06-Columbus; 2010.05.07-Noblesville; 2011.06.26-EV Detroit; 2011.09.11-Toronto; 2011.09.12-Toronto; 2011.09.15-Hamilton; 2013.07.16-London; 2013.07.19-Wrigley Field; 2014.10.16-Detroit; 2016.05.08 Ottawa, 2016.05.10-Toronto; 2016.05.12-Toronto; 2016.08.20 Wrigley Field; 2016.08.22 Wrigley Field; 2018.08.18-Wrigley Field; 2018.08.20-Wrigley Field; 2021.09.24/25 - EV Ohana; 2021.09.26 Ohana; 2021.10.01 Ohana; 2021.10.02 - Ohana; 2022.09.03-Ottawa; 2022.09.06-Hamilton; 2022.09.08-Toronto; 2022.09.16-Nashville; 2023.08.31; 2023.09.02 Minnesota; 2023.09.05 & 09.07 Chicago; 2024.05.04 Vancouver 1; 2024.05.06 Vancouver 2; 2024.05.10 Portland; 2024-08-29 Chigaco; 2024-08-31 Chicago; 2024-09-27 Ohana; 2024-09-29 Ohana Dana Point; 2025-05-06 Nashville; 2025-05-08 Nashville; 2025-05-16 Pittsburgh; 2025-05-18 Pittsburgh