Martin Barre
First saw his name and heard him on Aqualung.
Assumed his name was pronounced BAR-RAY – is this correct?
He’s a guitar player and I know what a barre chord is but have never had to say the word out loud!
Anybody have any other names you’ve seen/read but don’t exactly know how to pronounce?
Master masterer (?) Bob Ludwig…. The American equivalent of Porky, I suppose. I always want to say “Ludvig”, but of course that’ll be wrong.
It’s pronounced Bar as in where I you get a drink, though Ian Anderson would pronounce it Barré on occasion just for a laugh.
Is he related to comedy racist Roseanne Barre? If so, this changes everything.
No, but he’s married to Pamela Des Barres. They considered double-barrelling but thought better of it
Martin Lancelot Barre on Bursting Out
David Bowie – I’m never sure whether the first syllable of his surname is pronounced “Bow” or “Bow”.
It’s “Bow”
As in archery or as in Pino Paladino?
I know two people whose surname is Bowie (Scottish in origin, I think, although I know it’s not David Bowie’s real name), and it’s pronounced ‘Bow’-ie as in ‘bow’-and-arrow, not as in take a ‘bow’.
For a long time, my rule of thumb was that you could always spot a wanker by their mispronunciation of the name ( misused by alleged comedian Rhod Gilbert…or, should I say, ‘Row’ Gilbert). However, that was until I realised there were several words I was mispronouncing on a regular basis.
There’s a clip of Graham Nash pronouncing it Boooi or something like that.
That’s how Gene Wilder pronounced it in The Lady In Red, as I’m sure we all remember.
Kurt C announces the next song on Nirvana unplugged: “This is a song by David Booey”
Jim Bowie, of Alamo and knife fame, in pronounced like that which is probably why.
He was a bow not a bough when he came out and had stayed that way for me. See also Adeedas.
I initially had Run DMC’s Raisin’ Hell on a cassette with no track list, and had no idea that My Adidas was about, er, Adidas.
“My deedah!”
I had the same problem with Ice Cold’s first single-
Disagree. It’s “Bow”.
“You say tomato and I say tomato. You say potato and I say potato.”
Can’t find the Pete and Dud version.
Try this (sound quality’s iffy, but Eleanor just nails it)
I’ve never heard it pronounced as anything other than as in ‘take a bow’, rather than as in ‘ribbon bow’. This is pretty much a Scottish phenomenon though, as he himself acknowledged. Boo-ee also an acceptable Scottish pronunciation (in the north east).
John Dowie. It’s only just occurred to me that nobody would ever say John Doughy. Would they?
Personally I think that anyone who uses the Booey version is quoting the pronunciation used by a member of Parliament in the classic track P-Funk (Wants to get Funked Up) Fast forward to 3.11 on this to check it out…
For years I had no idea that he was saying Bowie. Pre-Internet I always assumed that some otherwise unheard of guy called David Booey was part of a hidden world of received knowledge about music that I was too young to understand. Like people saying things in a weird way.
I spent some of the 70s enjoying the singing of Jeddy Lee.
Is he Jedward’s dad?
And isn’t it Gillian Welch with a hard G as well?
Yep.
Similar to ‘Killian’ rather than ‘Sillian’ Murphy, I was the silly ‘un using the latter pronunciation for years.
Is Neil Peart, ‘Neil Pee-urt’, ‘Neil Pair-t’ or Neil Purt’?
(waits until 21:12 to post…)
The first of those
Well, every single member of Tuareg hitmakers Tinariwen.
Abdallah Ag Alhousseyni is one of them.
Bob Mould.
For years i said “Mold” (to rhyme with cold)
Then a friend of mine said that the Hüsker Dü mainman’s surname should be pronounced “Moold” (to rhyme with cooled). So that’s what I said for years.
Then I saw a YouTube interview with Bob, and he confirmed that it’s pronounced MOLD. So it turns out I was right first time.
Whereas Robert Moog, whose surname I would have guessed started with the sound a cow makes, is Robert MOE_g, starting with a sound like Moe Tucker.
I spent many blissful years labouring under the false assumption that Husker Du was pronounced Husker (to rhyme with busker). Then I saw an MTV interview with Bob Mooold in which he referred to former band Hoooosker Dooo.
Blimey, imagine how many times that would be magnified oooooop on thaaa Tyne yaboogaman!
HOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOSKAH DOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOYABOOGA
What about Carmen Appice?
I’ve heard it pronounced as ‘app piss’ but based on my limited knowledge of Italian I think it must be ‘appy chay’. No?
What about Madonna’s surname? I assume it to be ‘chi cone ay’.
Appice is another one I dithered over. Reckon you are right on pronunciation Tahir.
Bill Szymczyk producer of the Hotel California hit makers et al, always always had me tangled
Shim-chick, would be my guess, having once worked with a Mrs Fedczyszyn.
Laura Nyro. I always pronounced it Nyro to rhyme with lilo, but apparently it’s pronounced Nero.
me too
“Laura Me-too”? Nah that cant be right. 🙂
John Maus, BKA John Walker.
Closer to code than rodent.
That’s how you identify Canadians – they say ‘oat and aboat’ for ‘out and about’. Carry on.
Are you sure that’s not just an American talking about seafaring porridge?
Prison ships?
Norman Stanley Birdseye, you have pleaded guilty to the charges brought by this court and it is now my duty to pass sentence….
Boo Hewerdine.
It’s Huw-ur-deen not Hoo-ar-dyn
Really? You’ll know better than me of course, but it was only when I heard his name pronounced ‘Hoo’ rather than ‘Hue’ as I had always assumed that I understood it (as in Boo Hoo).
Yep, really.
Boo is a joke nickname given by his big sister (Boo Hoo), but it doesn’t really work given how their surname is pronounced. Bew Hew would at least rhyme…
There’s a fantastic promo LP of acoustic performances introduced by perplexed American DJs who come up with all kinds of variations. “And your group’s called The Bible?”
Glenn Frey is Frai.
Frey Bentos!
CAREFUL NOW
Well, I don’t get it.
Shellac = ‘shh-lack’
Vinyl is pronounced record
My dad still says vinile after all these years…. Of never hearing anybody else say it like that. I grew up thinking it was an alternative pronunciation… It isn’t.
My dad pronounces it “vinn-ill” rather than “vie-nil.”
I thought it was a TV show.
A friend interviewed JD Souther a year or two back. Apparently he was very grumpy about my friend (and presumably everyone in the world for 50 years previously) pronouncing it Sow-ther. Seemingly, to him, it’s ‘Suth-er’. Frankly, if I were him, I’d be grateful for anyone being interested enough to interview him.
Jim Moray. Surname pronounced like Murry.
David Fiuczynski. Pronounced Fuse-insky.
Neu!. Pronounced Noy!.
Terje Rypdal. Pronounced Terr-yay Reep-dahl.
Eivind Aarset. Pronounced Ay-vind Orsett.
Salif Keita, Ludovico Einaudi, Värttinä and Pekka Pohjola are a few of those whose names I don’t know how to pronounce properly.
Mrs Moose’s union recently changed from being the National Union of Teachers to the National Education Union. Thus, as far as my pronunciation routinely has it, I’m now married to a member of Neu!
So far she has not taken up motorik drumming. Which is a shame, as I can tell you that she’s certainly got the wrists for it. (hur)
Einstürzende Neubauten = eye-n-stirch-sender noy-bout-n
FSK = Fry Fill Eager Sell Psst Con Troll Uh
For years one of many bands, usually German or Welsh, whose names I knew by sound from John Peel, but I wouldn’t have recognised as written words.
Who were Chloober Chlithug?
I once worked in a room with someone who listened to a podcast where they talked about a certain Eamon Tull (nephew of Jethro?), and wondered why I hadn’t heard about this (Irish?) artist living in Germany.
Took me half an hour to work out that they were mispronouncing Amon Düül (“aamonne dylle”).
That’s how it’s pronounced by whoever brings them on on the Live in London album. I imagine all the people in the band looking at each other and shrugging… “Who? I thought we were on next” etc
I’m guessing that no-one is going to help me with my extensive Breton folk collection.
It’s a load of old crepe.
One thing that irks me is Swedes pronouncing The Beatles (Bitäääls) and Monthy Python (Månte Pytån) as if they were Swedish. I understand why, but find it annoying. It probably makes more sense than the who-do-I-think-I-am way I say it, though.
The most recent one for me was The Delines. These days when you ‘discover’ stuff purely online and not after radio airplay you just never heard it said. I could think of at least 3 ways to pronounce it. I saw them live and nobody said it, another album came out and still no clue. This year at a gig they finally said it… Its the Dee Lines.
I got Devon Sproule wrong for a while too – that’s pronounced as if there’s no U.
The manufacturer of Gibson pattern guitars.
Eppy-phone
Or
Epiphany
It’s Eppy-phone.
Riddle me this; is Ibanez ‘Eye-ban-ezz’, ‘Ee-ban-ay’, ‘Ee-ban-ezz’ or ‘Eye-ban-ay”?
Clue: think Spanish
Que?
The first one (I think).
Probably has a Spanish root, so it is probably pronounced
Ee-ban-yeth
(eth eth eth?)
Eye ban ezzz. I’ve had an Artist since 1978 and it has always been so.
And Takamine is tak-a-meenie
As a kid one of my first records was Abba’s Arrival. Those names on the back cover were black magic. Ola Brunkert! Lasse Wellander! Michael “B” Tretow.
We didn’t have those names in Sunbury
Josh Homme – should it sound like ‘gone’ or ‘bonny’.
Hom- eah?
Yngwie J Malmsteen
Ingy?
Yingy?
Ingvy?
Ingwee?
Whinging J Marmite?
Ing-vey I think.
I use to think the Cocteaus (Cocteaux?) were referring to some obscure brass instrument with the song title Persephone..
Or a hotline to the singer of Led Zeppelin?
I’m unsure of how to pronounce the first name of harpist Skaila Kanga, who has played on a couple of Roy Harper albums.
Is it Ska (as in the music) ee-la or more like Scale-Ah or something else altogether?
I’m assuming the surname is straightforward.
That depends on how you pronounce Ska, the Jamaican way or the British way.
Yeah. It’s more iskya than the English scarr.
My completely uninformed wild guess is Sky-la.
Walter White’s missus?
If only he had been Walter King
Popal Voo?, Popal Vho?, Popal …. oh I give up.
Holger Chookay. Chuckay. Chucky…. er…
….Him wit’ tache ont’ bass, anyroad.
Guessing Popple-Vuh and Holger Zoo-kay
Po-pull Voo.
Holger Choock-eye.
Have been informed by Germans that the way I pronounce Kraftwerk is one of the funniest things in the history of funny things. I’m not sure how difficult it could be, but there it is.
I only found out last week that anime is not, in fact, pronounced ‘a-neem’. Fortunately I’ve never had occasion to say it out loud.
If in doubt about pronunciation, it can be worth visiting http://www.forvo.com
And then there’s this guy
George Chkiantz
A recording engineer whose name I recall from several Led Zeppelin albums and I now discover engineered the first Small faces album.
Any ideas how to pronounce that mouthful?
He worked with Family too. The ending of his first name doesn’t help, any attempt at saying the whole thing makes you sound pissed.
Candi Staton is “Stay-ton”. Also much enjoyed Tony Blackburn on TOTP announcing new band “Durr-en Durr-en”.
Top US film critic, the late Roger Ebert.
I always pronounced it with a really exotic French touch: É-bair.
It turns out it was simply Ee-Bert.
Bah!
It’s safe to assume that any French-sounding names in the US, outside of Louisiana, are not pronounced with any concession to Frenchness.
If in doubt, ask the Mayder-Dee.
…and yet it’s “fil-ay” of fish in the States rather than the Anglicized “fil-it”
Can any of our American crew tell me why the ‘h’ in herbs is never sounded when across the pond?
‘Erb.
Me watching Frasier sometime in the mid-90s: “What’s urble tea?”
“You say erb, but we say herb, because there’s a fucking h in it”
– Eddie Izzard on the difference between British and American English.
Don’t start me on American pronunciation, and how they stress the wrong syllables…
This might help:
https://grammarpartyblog.com/2013/01/04/erbs-and-herbs/
Well, I’ll be hornswoggled. Ask and you shall receive!
Thanks @Billybob Dylan
I’ve always thought that, given his ubiquity, anyone calling the sausage-fingered U2 frontman “Bone-o” was being deliberately obtuse. Similarly, by now, who hasn’t seen footage of David Bowie pronouncing it Bowie as in dough-y.
I can pronounce recording engineer Victor Van Vugt easily enough, but not without exaggeration and not with a straight face.
More worrying are groups like Chvrches, Alvvays, Bad Dreems///
And of course !!! (which I believe is rendered chk-chk-chk. Tossers.
And PVRIS
Which I continue to pronounce Pee Vee Riss, just to annoy my daughter.
I had an uncle who always talked about stereo records being in ‘steer-eo’. This was particularly weird as he was both a musician and an electrical engineer, mending TVs and record players etc.
On a similar theme, mono Pye records used to have ‘Monaural’ on the sleeve – is that even a word?
….and at what drink-sodden meeting was it decided that oral and aural should be homophones? “You’re not putting that in my ear” etc
steer-eo sounds fine to me and, according to the pronunciation rules that I was taught*, is the correct way. My father pronounced it thus but I go with the crowd.
*If there are two vowels with a single consonant between them, the first vowel is sounded as you would say it as an individual letter.
There would have so many ‘exceptions’ to this rule that it would be meaningless.
And there are no pronunciations of individual vowel letters, at least not for English, just because they are letters and not sounds.
Compare: lonely, lovely, lofty. Which one is the “individual letter” sound?
Its remarkably useful a lot of the time and is only a rule in the way most English language rules are (The fact that i before e falls over a lot doesn’t stop it being useful). My point is that once you know of such a rule is reasonable to apply it in the absence of any other info. Ultimately if there’s only apparently one correct way, you have to be told what it is and no amount of rules or examples will help.
The famous example is ghoti, it even had it’s own Wikipedia entry!
So did Holly Johnson!
June Tabor: Tay-bor or Ta-bor?
This I must know, lest I offend the Servalan of folk, and have to take my punishment in the dungeon.
Again.
Arf! Never noticed the resemblance before.
It’s the cover of Airs and Graces. In deference to the album title she looks haughty, imperious, terrifying… and the proverbial on-a-stick.
The first, I’ve always thought. Tay-bor
>>>> @mousey It’s pronounced haum-pear.
Really? I’ve been pronouncing like the French all these years – ‘”ahm’pay”.
Marge, the spread, sounds like the diminutive for Margery.
Margarine, the spread, has a hard G, like the fat boy in the film of Dahl’s the Witches said it, not like Marjorine, the song by Joe Cocker.
It is all to do with the e’s.
Not about an artist name but I made a fool of myself at the age of 15 in front of Sharon Webb by referring to the Rush album with the title of “ Two thousand, one hundred and twelve.”
I know, a 15 year girl liking Rush🎸🎸
I’d take part in this conversation but I’m too busy getting my tickets for the tour by the reformed Soul Eleven Soul.
Rubbish – go and see Sun Ohhh instead.
I’ve only just (in the last year) found out they are just Sun. I think.
Ohhhh!
I am confuse!
@barry-blue
Supporting BOB State?
Yep, almost as good a double bill as Rio Speedwagon and Zed Zed Top.
I’ve always pronounced the first syllable of John Fogerty’s surname as Fog, as on the Tyne. Turns out he says it Fog to rhyme with vogue. But what does he know?
He’s just an old foggy.
Kinglsey Amis told a story of meeting Evelyn Waugh.
‘Ah, Ames,’ said the Great Man.
‘It’s Amis, actually.’
‘Nonsense, it’s Ames.’
Waugh, huh…what was he good for?
Up!
Paul Kriwaczek inventor of the string organ.
Spoke to Andy Roberts who’d used said instrument after Paul Kriwaczek’s death.
I pronounced the name incorrectly, corrected as Kriwa check.
Chvrchs……chu ver ches?, Wooden Shjips….Wooden Shu jips?
Always liked that in “Help” Leo McKern approaches John with “Hey, you…Bee-attle”
Christopher Strauli in Victoria Wood As Seen On TV: “They were the Be-Atles!”
Try singing these words along to a popular and well known tune:
“Lon-dubh a’ seinn ann an dubhar na h-oidhche
tog do sgiathan brist’ is èirigh suas
fad do rè, bha thu a’ feitheamh airson an tìd’ gu togail rithe.
Lon-dubh a’ seinn ann an dubhar na h-oidhche,
tog an sgàil bho d’ shùil is seall gu geur
fad do rè, bha thu a’ feitheamh airson an tioc a bhios tu saor.
Lon-dubh sgèith, lon-dubh sgèith,
Steach dhan t-sòlas dubh na h-oidhche.”
Here’s a clue –
A big fan of Microdisney and Cathal Couglan. Still can’t pronounce his name. But neither can anyone else it appears. Apart from lyrically referenced on Town to Town, the RTE radio documentary points out that all the members of the band seem to call him something different ranging from Karl to Cah-hol. He appears to have mellowed about it (a bit).
The parents will have been going for ca-hill (Irish for Charles), or cattle with an h, the surname with a bit of throat (coch as in loch/lough, not cock, then linn).
Interesting. It’s always “cock” round these parts..
Mark Brzezzkszzki – or as I call him, the Polish drummer aff Big Country
Mark Unpronouncablename
(c) Smash Hits
Or sometimes
Mark Unpronounceablenameoutofbigcountry
I still shudder about the time I first saw the name Siobhan written down and had to call the name in a busy A&E waiting room. Gave everyone a laugh at least.
I can’t remember where or when it was, but I distinctly remember it once being pronounced as Shoo-von.
Electric bassist Alex Dmochowski.
Frank Zappa renamed him “Erroneous” while he was in The Mothers.
Ha! Thanks, didn’t know that