Do You Hear What I Hear?

Do you ever pick up the wrong lyrics to a song, and then you're stuck with those forever, instead of the right ones?

I've done it myself, more often than I’d like to admit. To this day, when I hear that song "Every time you go away..." it's "you take a piece of MEAT with you" instead of ME. It changes the whole sentiment of the song, but it turns out I like it better that way, so that's how it goes in my head.

Christmas has been a prime time for lyric mangling at our house, and especially amusing with young children. When my sons were 3 or 4, they heard a new (to them) holiday song on the radio and began singing it in earnest. Over and over every day in the car, I heard the happy sounds of "Police La-Di-Da" going in the back seat. Repeat three times and then a bunch of jibberish. Never again will I hear "Feliz Navidad" the same way. (Later when I told them this story, they insisted that could not have happened...after taking Spanish in Kindergarten, they had learned the real words!)

Then about three years ago it was a different one. At school they must have heard or talked about the "12 Days of Christmas" -- honestly, one I'm not crazy about since it goes on and on and on. One night as we finished dinner, Trey and Brett wanted to sing it for us, but as Brett explained, it would be abbreviated to the "7 days" because that was all he could remember (relief!). The first time they performed it, the only thing we remembered was how they stopped and very dramatically sang, arms flung wide and in best operatic voice, "FIVE GOLDEN RINGS!!!!" We were hysterical for several minutes.

In later renditions we realized Brett hadn't really understood the Partridge in a Pear Tree part. Even after I explained what a partridge is, what a pear tree is, and why that might be the right lyric, he continued singing "a parge in a ginnabear tree," insisting that he could not sing it the other way. He may have liked it better because it was all his, and because we smiled when he sang it. To this day, I wonder what picture he had in his head singing it!

And just today we were driving along, listening to the XM holiday station. I wasn’t paying particular attention, focused on the obstacle course that is every road in the Metroplex these days. But then I heard a voice from the backseat say, “did he just sing ‘pay for pizza people everywhere’?” – and had to listen for a second to the song, and then translate. “No, sweetie…it was ‘pray for peace, people everywhere.’”

 

Sometimes it just works best to listen to the Muppets' versions of traditional tunes. In "Ringing of the Bells," Beaker, the Swedish Chef, and Animal join forces and the words don't matter -- which is great since they don't really use words anyway! I know it's not Pentatonix, but it's fun.

Aside from carols, Trey has been playing Beatles tunes on his guitar. You know, like “Hey Dude” (Mommy, why doesn’t that song ever finish?).  I can’t wait until he starts listening to Elton John. Hmmm...does he have a Christmas album? That would be very interesting…