Lost in Translation Vol. 16
The "name that tune" series with a twist. Can you reconstruct the original lyric after translation through half a dozen languages and identify the song?
Lost in Translation is a weekly “name that tune” series with a twist. Every Monday I’ll present a song lyric which has been run through half a dozen languages before back translation into English. The translation process transmogrifies the lyric into something quite unlike the original and the challenge is for you, Dear Reader, to attempt to decipher the lyric and name the tune. Every weekend I’ll publish a new post with the translated lyric along with the original and a YouTube video timestamped to the start of the lyric.
It’s Monday, which can only mean one thing—it’s time for another installment of Lost in Translation! As revealed yesterday, last week’s song was “Fantasy”, from Mariah Carey’s fifth album, 1995’s Daydream. As one of the most popular songs in the entire series and from a more mainstream genre, the correct answer was returned in short order by a couple of readers. This week’s song takes us back to the second half of the 80s with a highly acclaimed single from the debut album by an influential yet relatively short-lived duo.
Are you enjoying Joy in the Journey? Why not hit the button above to automagically receive new posts in your inbox every time I publish!
Translated Lyric
Here’s the lyric for this week’s Lost in Translation:
I usually call. This is call waiting. Nothing fun.
Don't laugh, don't move, don't touch anything except the money.
But now I am learning how to make money because I am a good person.
I feel good. Maybe I will.
If nobody’s scored the correct answer by midweek then I’ll be back on Notes with some more clues and on the weekend with the solution.
Hit me with your best shot folks!
Please head to the comments and let me know whether you’ve figured out this week’s song!!
It sounds familiar… but only faintly, like a tiny bell far off in the distance 😃
The “relatively short lived” bit is key here because it excludes Erasure, Pet Shop Boys, EBTG, Tears for Fears.
Wham was relatively short lived but early 80s.
Will keep thinking…