Random Song Titles We Just Now Realized We’ve Been Getting Wrong (13 items)

(#6) Breakfast in America
- Musical Recording
“Breakfast in America” is less well known by its title than by its opening lyrics: “Take a look at my girlfriend.”
The song is about a British person who dreams of living in America - but an idealized, stereotypical America. As Supertramp band member Roger Hodgson explained,
…when I wrote “Breakfast in America,” I mean obviously, I had a lot of dreams. One of them was to go to America, and the America that we saw on the television was very different to the America that we’re very much more connected to today. I mean, it was very archetypal in a way…
(#5) You Know It As 'Sugar Pie Honey Bunch,' But It's Technically 'I Can't Help Myself'

The 1965 hit song “I Can’t Help Myself,” sung by the Four Tops, is one of the most well-known Motown songs and among the decade's biggest hits.
Co-writer of the song Lamont Dozier explained his inspiration for the song for his 2018 Reimagination:
I stayed with my grandmother when I was a kid. She owned her own home beauty shop, and when the women would come up the walkway to get their hair done, my grandfather would be pedaling around in the garden. He was a bit of a flirt and would say, “How you doin’, sugar pie? Good morning, honey bunch.” He was one of those types of guys…
(#10) Wannabe
- Musical Recording
According to one study, “Wannabe” by the Spice Girls is the catchiest song in the United Kingdom in recent history. It's been almost 27 years since this debut song was released and went to the number-one spot in many countries worldwide, including the UK, Australia, and the US.
(#7) Proud Mary
- Song
The song “Proud Mary” by Creedence Clearwater Revival is often called “Rollin’ on the River” because of its chorus and because people believe it is about weed.
In the chorus, the band sings: “Big wheel keep on turnin’… Proud Mary keep on burnin’... Rollin’, rollin’, rollin’ on the river.”
Because Mary Jane is slang for marijuana, some believe the “rollin'” is referencing rolling joints. In actuality, the song is about a riverboat named Proud Mary, and like all riverboats, she is powered by a huge water wheel that “rolls” the boat up the river. Additionally, according to John Fogerty (who wrote the song), the song is “a metaphor about leaving painful, stressful things behind for a more tranquil and meaningful life."
(#2) It's Actually Just 'Over the Rainbow,' Not 'Somewhere Over the Rainbow'

"Over the Rainbow" by Judy Garland is often mistakenly called “Somewhere Over the Rainbow.” Not surprising, given that the song begins with the lyrics “Somewhere over the rainbow.”
This song was written for the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz by composers Harold Arlen and Yip Harburg and has remained immensely popular despite being released half a century ago.
(#1) Escape (The Pina Colada Song)
- Musical Recording
Yep, the “Pina Colada” song is titled “Escape.” And if this comes as a surprise, it may gratify you to know that the word “escape” only appears in the song four times.
Of course, the much more prominent “pina coladas” only appear in the song five times, so…
Rupert Holmes has expressed some disdain for the song, believing it has overshadowed the rest of his songwriting career:
I have a feeling that if I saved an entire orphanage from a fire and carried the last child out on my shoulders, as I stood there charred and smoking, they’d say, "Aren’t you the guy who wrote the piña colada song?"