BY MIKEY MIGO
You may like to think you're smarter than most of the famous musicians out there. Their grasp on the "real world" isn't as strong as yours. You have a higher education. They party all day while you bust your ass to better yourself and family. The way they dress is over the top and damn it… they can't even spell their own names right!
Some of the biggest and most beloved bands in modern history have misspelled names. Rock and roll has always been about rebellion. What better way than to rebel against your English teacher? Sometimes a band will have no choice but to alter the spelling. Other times, it's just about being "different". Regardless of reason, if you think about it there are quite a few bands that could have used a spell check. Instead, they've branded our brains to acknowledge their misspellings as correct.
Band: The Beatles
Proper Spelling: The Beetles
Inspired by "Buddy Holly and The Crickets", one name the band came across was "Long John and The Beetles". They'd later shorten it and change it to "The Beatles" to remind everyone of the "beat" of their music. I'm not a fan of their music so much and to be honest, the name sorta sucks if you take away what's behind it. You can't say "The Beatles" without getting the impression of the band in your mind so in that aspect it's a successful naming. Would they'd of had any less success if they'd of spelt their name correctly? Very doubtful. The music of John, Paul, George, and Ringo is classic under any name, misspelling or not.
Band: Led Zeppelin
Proper Spelling: Lead Zeppelin
They story goes that Jimmy Page was getting "tipsy" with The Who's Keith Moon and John Entwhistle. They were complaining about band mates Daltrey and Townshend and joked about forming a band with Page. Moon remarks "Yeah, that will go over like a lead zeppelin". This stuck with Page as he formed his own band. The spelling change came when they dropped the "a" so Americans wouldn't mispronounce it. I appreciate Page's consideration for us dimwitted Americans, but the spelling change was really not THAT needed. Still, when you look at the words "Lead Zeppelin" you can't help but notice it doesn't feel right. The proper spelling has taken a backseat to one of the greatest rock bands of all time.
Band: KoRn
Proper Spelling: Corn
I kid you not; I was once told that the name "KoRn" came via Jonathan Davis performing a messy rim job that involved undigested pieces of corn. I heard so many stories about the origin of the name "KoRn" that until just recently I didn't really know the truth behind it. Jonathan Davis and the boys chose the name KoRn because it would be hard to forget. Simple as that. It's a common word and it stands out. The "K" and the "backwards R" just make it that much more "edgy". Their manager hated the name and said they'd never get signed with it. Davis threatened to name the band after the manager so he busted ass and got them signed within a few months. It would have been really sad if their manager was named "Chuck Norris".
Band: Aerosmith
Proper Spelling: Arrowsmith
Joey Kramer is the root of this one as he wrote the word over and over again in his books while in high school. There's also the belief that it comes from the book "Arrowsmith" by Sinclair Lewis. I know the mythical mumbo-jumbo about the term "aero". But still, it's "Arrowsmith". Maybe the band just doesn't like the letter "W". Outside of the "W" in Whitford, there are no other "W's" represented in any of their names. Sure you can say it's a coincidence, and you'd probably be right, but it's something to think about.
Band: Limp Bizkit
Proper Spelling: Limp Biscuit
The band insists that they just wanted to name themselves something as stupid as possible. This would explain their music, personalities, and fan base pretty well. Everyone knows that when you replace a letter with "Z" that you're a bad ass. With the pending reunion album, I'm sure we'll be in for a whole new generation of douche bag fans wearing backwards hats while denying their date rape charges. I can picture it now, in my best Will Sasso impression of Fred Durst… "Ay Girl, lemme holla atchyou! Take a sip on this Michelob Light! It'll make ya feel reeeeeeal good!"
Band: The Monkees
Proper Spelling: The Monkeys
The band was formed to fill out a cast for a TV show inspired by The Beatles film success. So inspired by The Beatles, they stole the "lets name ourselves after a bug or animal and spell it wrong" idea. It's almost as if they stole the extra "E" left after the "Beetles" went to the "Beatles". Luckily, the extra "Y" from "Monkeys" would be used in good faith with our next pick.
Band: Lynyrd Skynyrd
Proper Spelling: Apparently, Leonard Skinner.
The name comes from a gym teacher named Leonard Skinner who was known for being adamant about the school's rule for boys having long hair. They then changed the name by craftily adding the letter "Y" at their own leisure. A half dozen or so hits and a million years later Skynyrd is still held at high regards by those who wear camouflage on a casual basis. For me they put the "Why" in "Southern Rock".
Band: Phish
Proper Spelling: Fish
The drummer of the band is named "Jon Fishman". So with a play on that, they got "Fish". Then, like The Monkees, they got on the Beatle train and altered the spelling to "Phish". I'll be the first to admit that I couldn't even list one song by Phish. Not even one. But still, I know what their about and I know their fans are a bit on the smelly hippy side (gotta love em) and I do like the spelling of their name. Maybe it's just my eyes, but it looks "cool". I guess, mission accomplished.
Band: Megadeth
Proper Spelling: Megadeath
So Dave Mustaine was kicked out of Metallica and on a bus ride home. During this trip, he starts writing lyrics on a handbill to pass the time. It was quoted as "The arsenal of megadeath can't be rid no matter what the peace treaties come to". He liked "Megadeath" and ran with it until he found out that "The Megadeaths" was the former band name for Pink Floyd. Go figure. Poor Dave can't catch a break. So obviously, he dropped the "A" from "death" and the rest is history. It would have been cool if the handbill was for the Broadway production of "Cats" or something. It definitely would of made "Symphony of Destruction" seem a lot cooler.
I know I didn't include any hip hop acts. That's on purpose. I like to keep my columns at a reasonable length. If I had to cover every misspelling in the history of hip hop, I'd have to write a book… or at least a REALLY long column. So yeah, no Outkast, Ludacris, or Ginuwine in this one.
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