Famous Misinterpreted Songs
By: Muralidharan Pc
Tags: Lyrics, Music, Songwriting, Rock And Roll, Rock

Famous Misinterpreted Songs

Image by Aliko Sunawang from Pixabay

The entire cannon of rock n’ roll, rock and pop has a number of songs that are pretty much straightforward. You don’t have to read between the lines. Neither do they come with themes that require you to break your head. Then there are other songs. Songs that were written with a particular reference, but get interpreted in wildly contrasting ways.

Here are my favourites.

1) Born In The USA — Bruce Springsteen

To think that Ronald Reagan and Bob Dole used this song in their presidential campaigns is so ironic. Possibly, their PR machinery just listened to the chorus, which of course screams ‘Viva Americana’. But the rest of the song depicts the ugliness and shame, directed at the American establishment, in the treatment of their Vietnam war veterans. So, in fact, it’s an anti-jingoistic anthem of sorts; one that gained immense popularity with its rousing chorus.

2) Jump — Van Halen

Need a rush of adrenaline? Just listen to ‘Jump’. It puts a pep in your step. A swag in your stride. But the genesis of this song was an antithesis to the gushing positivity that it postulates. In fact, it starts at a very dark place. Apparently, vocalist David Lee Roth was watching TV, and the news was showing a clip of a man trying to commit suicide from a building. And the people below were bellowing, “Don’t jump, don’t jump!” Roth’s imagination ticked away and he started writing ‘Jump’. The lyrics do reek of doom when you look at it this way.

3) Good Riddance (Time Of Your Life) — Green Day

The song would fall under the ‘well-written, romantic number’ stereotype. Guys who start strumming the guitar for the first time try practicing and singing this number to their girlfriends. Sounds obvious, right? But the truth is, this song is anything but romantic. Billie Joe Armstrong wrote this song to celebrate his breakup with his girlfriend. Hence ‘Good Riddance’ — the part of the title most listeners don’t pick up. As Armstrong himself says, “I sort of enjoy the fact that I’m misunderstood most of the time.”

4) Imagine — John Lennon

With ‘Imagine’, John Lennon’s phenomenal songwriting skills touched the level of genius. Many critics, songwriters and artists consider the 22 lines in the song as one of the best ever that’s been written to music. Why wouldn’t they? It speaks of a united world (almost utopian in flavour) imagined by people, who share everything and live happily. The truth, though, is different. According to Lennon: “‘Imagine’ is a Communist manifesto, even though I am not a Communist.” People don’t see it that way, until you know what the intention of the writer was. Now, spin that track and listen to the lyrics. You’ll agree Lennon is goddamn right.

5) Every Breath You Take — The Police

Like Green Day’s ‘Good Riddance (Time Of Your Life)’, this catchy tune by The Police was the quintessential romantic number for a generation prior. Just that, ‘Every Breath You Take’ was never meant to be a syrupy love song. It narrated the behaviour of a stalker. ‘Every breath you take / Every move you make / I’ll be watching you!’ Sting, to this day, can’t believe how a song could take a completely different shade among listeners, from what it was originally intended to be.

6) Ticket To Ride — The Beatles

This evergreen, classic ditty by The Beatles lands on the listener as a song about a girl leaving her boyfriend with a train ticket in hand. A classic split-up number, if you will. Although, according to Lennon, it has nothing to do with trains. The inspiration for the song came from their tour of Hamburg, in the early ’60s. The sex workers in the Hamburg red light district carried a card, suggesting a clean bill of health. In other words, ‘a safe ticket to ride.’ Well, none of us would have got that connection for sure.

Final Thoughts

One could always argue that lyrics, like poems, could be interpreted differently by listeners. That said, these misinterpreted songs read like a list of unintended faux pas on the part of the lyricists. And that’s a bit unfortunate.

So what are your favourite misinterpreted songs? Drop them in the comments below.