I thought he/she was black/male/female/white etc..

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I thought Gordon Gano was a woman, and not just b/c of his band's name.

Sym (shmuel), Saturday, 6 March 2004 13:30 (twenty years ago) link

one month passes...
A double-whammy: The first time I heard Lewis Taylor I thought he was some undiscovered rare groove afronaut genius from the late '70s.

http://massimobernardi.blogs.it/Immagini/lewistaylor.jpg

Whoops.

Nate in ST.P (natedetritus), Thursday, 8 April 2004 02:18 (twenty years ago) link

I mistook either Ann or Nancy Wilson for a guy.

jazz odysseus, Thursday, 8 April 2004 02:25 (twenty years ago) link

Is mulatto the least attractive (nonslur) ethnic term
in common use?

Squirrel_Police (Squirrel_Police), Thursday, 8 April 2004 02:30 (twenty years ago) link

Where is it commonly used (cuz I never hear it in the states)?

Alex in SF (Alex in SF), Thursday, 8 April 2004 02:31 (twenty years ago) link

When I first heard Creed I thought they were just a shitty local classic rock/sludge-bar band act that got its song played on the radio. Not long after that they went platinum.

latebloomer (latebloomer), Thursday, 8 April 2004 02:57 (twenty years ago) link

Of course my perception wasn't exactly wrong, except for the part about them being a local band.

latebloomer (latebloomer), Thursday, 8 April 2004 02:58 (twenty years ago) link

Is mulatto the least attractive (nonslur) ethnic term
in common use?

ask Larry David!

Donna Brown (Donna Brown), Thursday, 8 April 2004 03:13 (twenty years ago) link

four years pass...

wow, I thought Rick Astley was a large black man as well.

lol raceroll

velko, Monday, 10 November 2008 03:08 (fifteen years ago) link

kimya dawson

Kevin Keller, Monday, 10 November 2008 03:30 (fifteen years ago) link

well, it wasn't a race or gender thing, but i could have sworn to god that Jana Hunter was a wispy woman with long, stringy hair, her eyes always sort of sleepy.

anyway... i also thought that about rick astley. perhaps because they always used to play the single close to Luther Vandross.

the table is the table, Monday, 10 November 2008 03:56 (fifteen years ago) link

luther vandross is rather white himself

Kevin Keller, Monday, 10 November 2008 04:01 (fifteen years ago) link

i thought david sedaris was an 80 year old woman

Pantheism F. Mohair (res), Monday, 10 November 2008 04:32 (fifteen years ago) link

I thought Steve Winwood (circa 60s) was black.

I'm not even going to say how old I was when I finally determined Tracy Chapman's gender.

ILX MOD (musically), Monday, 10 November 2008 04:47 (fifteen years ago) link

I had no idea that Paul Wall was white for the first year that Still Tippin was on the radio.

that song on a freebie compilation I got when I ordered a pizza. (Display Name), Monday, 10 November 2008 04:51 (fifteen years ago) link

The first time I heard "Californication" by the Red Hot Chili Peppers I thought, "Oh, Tracy Chapman's got a comeback single!" Which is a nice yin to the yang of my -- and a lotta people's -- first Tracy Chapman exposure.

V. sorry I killed Jimmy Carl Black (the Indian of the group) (staggerlee), Monday, 10 November 2008 05:20 (fifteen years ago) link

o_O

wau

Black Seinfeld (HI DERE), Monday, 10 November 2008 16:42 (fifteen years ago) link

Geddy Lee for the win.

ablaeser, Monday, 10 November 2008 16:46 (fifteen years ago) link

awhile ago i thought bobby caldwell was black

Jordan, Monday, 10 November 2008 16:49 (fifteen years ago) link

i wonder if he speaks like an ordinary guy
xp

Kevin Keller, Monday, 10 November 2008 16:49 (fifteen years ago) link

I was sure Ali Campbell of UB40 was black for a couple of years.

Jazzbo, Monday, 10 November 2008 16:58 (fifteen years ago) link

even though the first time i heard the dude from death vessel i was watching him perform live, i was still convinced there was a woman backstage who was really singing.

mizzell, Monday, 10 November 2008 17:13 (fifteen years ago) link

i know him and he does!
xxp

fact checking cuz, Monday, 10 November 2008 18:36 (fifteen years ago) link

lol

jaymc, Monday, 10 November 2008 18:40 (fifteen years ago) link

jeff hanson owns this thread

M@tt He1ges0n, Monday, 10 November 2008 18:43 (fifteen years ago) link

I'm still not entirely convinced that Jermaine Stewart was a man.

I remember watching the video for "We Don't Have To Take Our Clothes Off", trying to figure out if he was a man or a woman.

snoball, Monday, 10 November 2008 18:44 (fifteen years ago) link

Trina. I listened to Diamond Princess on repeat for a month and assumed she was white from the get go.

Owen Pallett, Monday, 10 November 2008 22:10 (fifteen years ago) link

Funny, I always thought your violin was a flugelhorn...

V. sorry I killed Jimmy Carl Black (the Indian of the group) (staggerlee), Tuesday, 11 November 2008 02:51 (fifteen years ago) link

Wait! also, I know! Brett Dennen! That dude is a chick, and I won't hear any different.

V. sorry I killed Jimmy Carl Black (the Indian of the group) (staggerlee), Tuesday, 11 November 2008 03:12 (fifteen years ago) link

I also thought Boy George was a woman the first time I heard "Do You Really Want To Hurt Me," except in my case, I was watching the video. So I thought he was a particularly homely woman.

I may be dreaming, but I seem to remember some review of "Sign O the Times" where the reviewer didn't realize that Camille was Prince sped-up.

Hideous Lump, Tuesday, 11 November 2008 04:14 (fifteen years ago) link

i know him and he does!
xxp

― fact checking cuz, Monday, November 10, 2008 6:36 PM (Yesterday)

wow, that worked out rather nicely

Kevin Keller, Tuesday, 11 November 2008 06:13 (fifteen years ago) link

When I first heard Andy Bell I didn't just think he was a she, I thought he was Allison Moyet. (I think this mistake hinges on the particular early-ish track I heard, but I don't remember which one it was.)

I did too. On the other hand, I first thought that Alison Moyet was a guy, so go figure... :)

Geir Hongro, Tuesday, 11 November 2008 09:12 (fifteen years ago) link

The first time I heard Michael Jackson was "The Girl Is Mine", whose lyrics kind of made it obvious that he must indeed have been a guy. But I still found it a bit puzzling.. I mean, he just couldn't be...?

Listening to the "Grafitti Bridge" soundtrack by Prince I also thought this Tevin Campbell must be a girl. Of course, mixing him up was a bit more logical as, at 14, he did indeed sound like a woman although it wouldn't last. :)

Geir Hongro, Tuesday, 11 November 2008 09:17 (fifteen years ago) link

When I heard Milli Vanilli's "Girl I'm gonna miss you" I thought it was a girl.

Years later, found out I was right!

Mark G, Tuesday, 11 November 2008 09:51 (fifteen years ago) link

do you know how long fact checking cuz has been waiting for someone, anyone, to make that Geddy Lee joke???

I CRIED (G00blar), Tuesday, 11 November 2008 10:12 (fifteen years ago) link

tracy chapman yeah

Funky Buddha Lounge (Curt1s Stephens), Tuesday, 11 November 2008 10:24 (fifteen years ago) link

think I've seen fcc feedline before

you made my mum eat Pick Only One (sic), Tuesday, 11 November 2008 11:12 (fifteen years ago) link

Keith Jarrett to thread

Ich Ber ein Binliner (Tom D.), Tuesday, 11 November 2008 11:14 (fifteen years ago) link

i thought beethoven was black for the longest time. turns out i was mixing him up with jesus christ.

Shacknasty (Frogman Henry), Tuesday, 11 November 2008 11:21 (fifteen years ago) link

Nah, Haydn was the brother

Ich Ber ein Binliner (Tom D.), Tuesday, 11 November 2008 11:22 (fifteen years ago) link

Listening to the "Grafitti Bridge" soundtrack by Prince I also thought this Tevin Campbell must be a girl. Of course, mixing him up was a bit more logical as, at 14, he did indeed sound like a woman although it wouldn't last. :)

I thought this too for a long time. His voice is (obviously) quite high, there's no picture of him in the record sleeve, and I had no idea "Tevin" is a male name.

Tuomas, Tuesday, 11 November 2008 11:47 (fifteen years ago) link

tracy chapman yeah

― Funky Buddha Lounge (Curt1s Stephens), Tuesday, 11 November 2008 10:24

came on to say this (though she was a fella), somebody already did, ah well.

unless curt1s thought she was white, of course, in which case...

Background Zombie (CharlieNo4), Tuesday, 11 November 2008 11:48 (fifteen years ago) link

Dominique Leone's "Uncover yourself", I thought he'd got a female to sing, even though I can (just about) sing along to it myself...

Mark G, Tuesday, 11 November 2008 11:49 (fifteen years ago) link

turns out arthur russell was a white guy.

m the g, Tuesday, 11 November 2008 11:50 (fifteen years ago) link

lol, of course, Dominque Leone!

Ich Ber ein Binliner (Tom D.), Tuesday, 11 November 2008 11:52 (fifteen years ago) link

Before I came across her solo album, I thought Rah Digga of The Flipmode Squad was a somewhat high-voiced man. I think this is because The Flipmode Squad had some male member with a similar voice to hers.

Tuomas, Tuesday, 11 November 2008 11:53 (fifteen years ago) link

My wife thought Insane Clown Posse was black. (She also thought B Real from Cypress Hill was black.)

Maybe this is because B Real uses the word "nigga" quite often? (Is it okay for Latinos to use it?)

Tuomas, Tuesday, 11 November 2008 11:56 (fifteen years ago) link

My friend thought Nina Simone was a man

When I first heard Antony and the Johnsons I thought he was Nina Simone.

Tuomas, Tuesday, 11 November 2008 12:00 (fifteen years ago) link

Final, definitive word on Frank Zappa's heritage: "My ancestry is Sicilian, Greek, Arabic and French."

Weird, I thought he had some roots in Lithuania, because there's a statue of him in Vilnius.

I can't remember why, but up until Everything Is Wrong came out I used to think Moby was a bald woman.

Tuomas, Tuesday, 11 November 2008 12:05 (fifteen years ago) link

When I first heard "Praise You", I thought it was The Eels, (i.e. Mark Edwards singing, not Cammille Yarbrough.)

Mark G, Tuesday, 11 November 2008 12:07 (fifteen years ago) link


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