# Songs whose titles almost, but don't quite, appear in the lyrics **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [March 18, 2015, 1:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-whose-titles-almost-but-dont-quite-appear-in-the-lyrics/715283 "2015-03-18T13:22:52Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Ponch8](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ponch8/32/9883_2.png) [@Ponch8](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ponch8)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2015, 1:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-whose-titles-almost-but-dont-quite-appear-in-the-lyrics/715283/1 "2015-03-18T13:22:52Z")
There have been plenty of threads about songs whose titles do not appear in the lyrics, but I’m not sure I’ve seen this variant. I can think of two examples right now: “She’s a Rainbow” by the Rolling Stones - Mick sings “she’s like a rainbow,” but he never actually sings “she’s a rainbow.” “Mary Jane’s Last Dance” by Tom Petty - the song goes “last dance with Mary Jane.” ---
**Author:** ![Arcite](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/67e7ee/32.png) [@Arcite](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arcite)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2015, 1:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-whose-titles-almost-but-dont-quite-appear-in-the-lyrics/715283/2 "2015-03-18T13:27:39Z")
[Previous thread on the topic](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=557587) ---
**Author:** ![Ponch8](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ponch8/32/9883_2.png) [@Ponch8](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ponch8)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2015, 1:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-whose-titles-almost-but-dont-quite-appear-in-the-lyrics/715283/3 "2015-03-18T13:51:07Z")
> [@Arcite](#): > > [Previous thread on the topic](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=557587) Thanks…I even posted in that thread! (Post #29.) ---
**Author:** ![Kimble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kimble/32/19185_2.png) [@Kimble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimble)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2015, 2:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-whose-titles-almost-but-dont-quite-appear-in-the-lyrics/715283/4 "2015-03-18T14:31:42Z")
Taylor Swift’s “We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together” repeats the title with both two and three "ever"s in the chorus. The bridge has the line “We are never getting back together / Like, ever.” However, there is never [ever ever [ever]] just one “ever.” I’m sure I’ll think of more as my day goes on, but I just woke up. (On the other hand, I’ll probably have TSwift stuck in my head all day, so…) ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2015, 2:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-whose-titles-almost-but-dont-quite-appear-in-the-lyrics/715283/5 "2015-03-18T14:41:44Z")
I keep reading this as “songs whose titties …” And Lou Reed’s just waiting for “ **my** man”, yet the song is titled “I’m Waiting for **the** Man” (The more well-known album cut, anyway) ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2015, 2:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-whose-titles-almost-but-dont-quite-appear-in-the-lyrics/715283/6 "2015-03-18T14:49:59Z")
Here’s an almost almost. The ending of “Will You Love Me Tomorrow,” the famous part, is a repetition of “will you still love me tomorrow.” However, the actual phrase “will you love me tomorrow” is used earlier in the song. ---
**Author:** ![Kimble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kimble/32/19185_2.png) [@Kimble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimble)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2015, 3:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-whose-titles-almost-but-dont-quite-appear-in-the-lyrics/715283/7 "2015-03-18T15:28:41Z")
Homophonic pedantry versions: Metallica’s “The Unforgiven” uses “So I dub thee unforgiven.” Metallica’s “The Unforgiven II” uses “Or are you unforgiven, too?” Kanye West’s “Bound 2” has the prominent sample “Bound to falling in love.” I don’t think Kanye’s using Prince-style txtspeak, but I could be convinced otherwise. ---
**Author:** ![Doug\_K](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b5ac83/32.png) [@Doug\_K](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doug_K)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2015, 3:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-whose-titles-almost-but-dont-quite-appear-in-the-lyrics/715283/8 "2015-03-18T15:40:05Z")
Not exactly the same thing, but the title of Alice Cooper’s album “Zipper Catches Skin” comes from the song “I Better Be Good”. Only the lyric in the song actually says “If zipper **grabs** skin”. Although considering the state of his health at the time (it’s one of the albums he says he has no memory of writing or recording) he may have sung it differently than it was written. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2015, 4:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-whose-titles-almost-but-dont-quite-appear-in-the-lyrics/715283/9 "2015-03-18T16:34:54Z")
The Who’s “Won’t Get Fooled Again” has only the line “We don’t get fooled again.” ---
**Author:** ![Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e47c2d/32.png) [@Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biffy_the_Elephant_Shrew)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2015, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-whose-titles-almost-but-dont-quite-appear-in-the-lyrics/715283/10 "2015-03-18T17:31:57Z")
The Beatles: “Within You Without You” - the lyrics say “within you \*and \*without you.” Jethro Tull: “Too Old to Rock ‘n’ Roll: Too Young to Die” - the lyrics say “He was too old to rock ‘n’ roll _but he was_ too young to die.” ---
**Author:** ![Peter\_Morris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peter_morris/32/359_2.png) [@Peter\_Morris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peter_Morris)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2015, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-whose-titles-almost-but-dont-quite-appear-in-the-lyrics/715283/11 "2015-03-18T19:20:23Z")
Being For The Benefit Of Mr. Kite The word _Being_ does not appear in the song. ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2015, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-whose-titles-almost-but-dont-quite-appear-in-the-lyrics/715283/12 "2015-03-18T19:22:41Z")
“Through the Fire and Flames” by Dragonforce contains the lyric “Through the fire and _the_ flames”. ---
**Author:** ![Freddy\_the\_Pig](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/a587f6/32.png) [@Freddy\_the\_Pig](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freddy_the_Pig)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2015, 7:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-whose-titles-almost-but-dont-quite-appear-in-the-lyrics/715283/13 "2015-03-18T19:26:06Z")
The Eurhythmics, Sweet Dreams (are made of this) The lyric of course, is Sweet Dreams Are Made of These. ---
**Author:** ![panamajack](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/47e85d/32.png) [@panamajack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panamajack)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2015, 10:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-whose-titles-almost-but-dont-quite-appear-in-the-lyrics/715283/14 "2015-03-18T22:33:46Z")
“The Old Man Down the Road” by John Fogerty only has the line “the old man is down the road”. ---
**Author:** ![HowSoonIsThen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e56c9b/32.png) [@HowSoonIsThen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HowSoonIsThen)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2015, 11:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-whose-titles-almost-but-dont-quite-appear-in-the-lyrics/715283/15 "2015-03-18T23:21:17Z")
Arctic Monkeys’ “I Bet You Look Good On The Dancefloor” contains the line “I bet _that_ you look good on the dance floor”. The National’s “Vanderlyle Crybaby Geeks” has “Vanderlyle Crybaby Cry” and then later “I’ll explain everything to the geeks”. It’s not as close as the Arctic Monkeys song, but when I first heard it I was of course expecting to hear “Geeks” instead of “Cry”. ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2015, 12:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-whose-titles-almost-but-dont-quite-appear-in-the-lyrics/715283/16 "2015-03-19T00:03:00Z")
> [@Freddy\_the\_Pig](#): > > The Eurhythmics, Sweet Dreams (are made of this) > > The lyric of course, is Sweet Dreams Are Made of These. 😕 All the lyrics forums have “sweet dreams are made of _this_.” Listening to the song makes it clear to me that the word is “this.” Never seen it otherwise. ---
**Author:** ![Arcite](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/67e7ee/32.png) [@Arcite](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arcite)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2015, 12:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-whose-titles-almost-but-dont-quite-appear-in-the-lyrics/715283/17 "2015-03-19T00:51:55Z")
> [@Exapno\_Mapcase](#): > > 😕 > > All the lyrics forums have “sweet dreams are made of _this_.” Listening to the song makes it clear to me that the word is “this.” Never seen it otherwise. _Whoosh_, I think. People often joke that that’s what it sounds like Annie Lennox is saying, and casual listeners sometimes really do think that’s what she’s saying, because her short i’s sound like long e’s. She also does it in “There Must Be An Angel (Playing With My Heart)” where it sounds like she sings “No-one on earth could feel like these/I’m thrown and overblown with bleeze.” ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2015, 2:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-whose-titles-almost-but-dont-quite-appear-in-the-lyrics/715283/18 "2015-03-19T02:31:20Z")
> [@Arcite](#): > > _Whoosh_, I think. People often joke They do? I did a search on Google and couldn’t find a single example, just people making the mistake. (And some using the plural for other reasons not related to the song.) You may be right and Freddy the Pig was just joking. It strikes me as weird that I’ve never heard this before re: a 31[!] year-old song. ---
**Author:** ![buddha\_david](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ee7513/32.png) [@buddha\_david](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/buddha_david)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2015, 4:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-whose-titles-almost-but-dont-quite-appear-in-the-lyrics/715283/19 "2015-03-19T04:59:57Z")
Jimi Hendrix “If 6 Was 9”: the lyric is actually “If 6 turned out to be 9.” ---
**Author:** ![Freddy\_the\_Pig](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/a587f6/32.png) [@Freddy\_the\_Pig](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freddy_the_Pig)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2015, 2:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-whose-titles-almost-but-dont-quite-appear-in-the-lyrics/715283/20 "2015-03-19T14:36:52Z")
No, I wasn’t joking. It sounds like “these” and it rhymes with seas. Why would I think it was anything else? [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-whose-titles-almost-but-dont-quite-appear-in-the-lyrics/715283.md?page=2)