On That Note: Say Say Say

[cytor]

It's interesting to think about how the pronunciation affects the style of the performance as well.
If someone sang most of the songs in this thread with the standard pronunciation it would sound nerdy as hell. Brenton Wood especially just has that style and swagger in his delivery that makes his odd pronunciation sound right.

Just a thought I had. I can picture people singing some of these songs in a karaoke bar and sounding like complete dweebs with their proper pronunciation.

I love REO Speedwagon.... and they sing very much in the standard pronunciation in most of their songs.

 

[MeanDean]

I actually had no idea he said Abraham. That makes me feel better.

What did you think it was? Hopefully not David Niven. Or was it just - I don't know but never thought enough about it to find out?

 

[cyhiphopp]

What did you think it was? Hopefully not David Niven. Or was it just - I don't know but never thought enough about it to find out?

I just had no clue. It makes complete sense now that you point it out though.

 

[JP4CY]

To me Idol's version sounds like "moh-nay."
Tommy James has said it stands for Mutual of New York Insurance Company.

My submission probably doesn't count. But I'll submit:

 

[madguy30]

Not sure if it counts but to me Billy Joe from Green Day sounds like he's got a British accent in early songs.

 

[madguy30]

I can never understsnd hardly a word of the studio recording of Yellow Ledbetter.

Sounds like super drunk but talented guy at open mic night.

Was like ten years later when I heard a live acoustic recording and realized it's a very poignant song.

 

[cyclones500]

A classic: Witch-ay woman, anyone?



Bonus:

 

[cyclones500]

Transpositional!

“I beat a biter down with an alunimum bat.”

 

[drlove]

I always assumed there were several examples of this in REMs Murmur album. Problem was the lyrics weren't published with the album and seemed hard to figure out. As it turns our, Michael Stipe just has a bigger vocabulary than I do. Seems unpossible.

 

[drlove]

How do people in Iowa pronounce the town in Iowa called Madrid? I've been gone too long and never actually visited. sounds like if you are from Missouri, this is correct.

 

[cytor]

"Dreams of war, Dreams of liars, and of things that will bite" ..... "Dreams of war, Dreams of fires and a baked Apple pie.."

 

[MeanDean]

How do people in Iowa pronounce the town in Iowa called Madrid? I've been gone too long and never actually visited. sounds like if you are from Missouri, this is correct.

MAD-rid is what I remember from living in Ames

 

[cytor]

MAD-rid is what I remember from living in Ames

Or what about " Na- VAY da"? (Nevada, Iowa) Very strange to me.

 

[MeanDean]

Forgot about this one (mercifully)

Sounds more like "Frad-dee" than Freddie.

 

[MeanDean]

Or what about " Na- VAY da"? (Nevada, Iowa) Very strange to me.

Don't forget Truh POLE uh (Tripoli). At least that's how it was pronounced back in the days when they had the 6 on 6 girls state basketball tournament televised on TV.

 

[cyclones500]

How do people in Iowa pronounce the town in Iowa called Madrid? I've been gone too long and never actually visited. sounds like if you are from Missouri, this is correct.

According to a random site I found, Mizzurah version is "MAH-drid." (Uncle Tupelo pronunciation matches the Iowa Madrid).

You're Saying It Wrong: 20 Missouri Cities No One Knows How to Pronounce

Missouri. Missuruh. Mizurah. Standard pronunciation is hard to come by in the Show-Me State. But that's nothing compared to cities and towns in Missouri that...

www.riverfronttimes.com

 

[cyclones500]

Don't forget Truh POLE uh (Tripoli). At least that's how it was pronounced back in the days when they had the 6 on 6 girls state basketball tournament televised on TV.

Good one! Forgot about that. I thought there was at least one more example beyond Madrid/Nevada.

They should change more Iowa town pronunciations just for the heck of it.

Like, maybe Store-EYE City.

 

[matclone]

In the last verse of Run of the Mill, Harrison turns "high" into two syllables as in, "How high-ow will you leap?"

 

[ISpyCy]

Good one! Forgot about that. I thought there was at least one more example beyond Madrid/Nevada.

They should change more Iowa town pronunciations just for the heck of it.

Like, maybe Store-EYE City.

It used to make me cringe when the new weather people in Omaha would pronounce Mondamin (mon-DAY-min) as MON-duh-min.

...or, for the Nebraska side, when national media doesn't realize that "Norfolk" has an R in it.

 

[cyclones500]

“You’re not here to LIST-en” (approx 22 seconds)