Can the past change? It sounds incredible, but scientists are debating exactly this, with various theories ranging from quantum mechanics to the many-worlds interpretation. If it could, how would it appear to us? The internet is buzzing with wild ideas, so it's time to go over where they originated, and consider in detail what exactly might be causing it.
Alternate:
Jingle Bells was always meant as a Christmas song
Current:
Jingle Bells was not always meant as a Christmas song
Oh what fun
Ever noticed that the lyrics to Jingle Bells don't contain any mention of Christmas?
There is dispute over precisely when it was written, but it's generally accepted it was in Massachusetts. The first claim is it was written for a thanksgiving service, first performed in Boston on September 15, 1857. The second is in a bar in Medford in a tavern, by none other than the uncle of JP Morgan, James Lord Pierpont.
Whichever it is, the idea it was initially written as a Christmas song is incorrect. It only became associated with Christmas many years later.
Alternate:
Lamb Chops sang "This is the song that never ends."
Current:
Lamb Chops sang "This is the song that doesn't end."
It's only funny up to a point...
How many times have kids piped up on long (or otherwise) car journeys with the famous Lamb Chops song that just, well, goes on and on for ever?
Whilst it may be amusing for a a while, it quite rightly becomes very annoying very quickly. Which is understandable, given that's literally the whole purpose of the damn thing. However, there's something else going on here. Is it "The song that never ends" or "The song that doesn't end"?
Most people remember it as the "never" version, but all references today show it as the "doesn't" one.
How annoying is that?
Alternate:
First moonwalk dance was in the 1980s
Current:
First moonwalk dance was the 1930s
When was the first Moonwalk dance recorded?
Michael Jackson and the Moonwalk dance go together like Laurel and Hardy, Burgers and Coke or even Steve Jobs and Apple. Almost everyone assumes Jackson invented the dance, just because they'd never heard of or seen it before he brought it to the mainstream. In fact, it turns out this is wrong by quite a margin, since all he did was give an old move a new name.
So technically Jackson was the first if you ask "who first did the moonwalk?" and you strictly mean the dance with that name. There's even a date for that: 25th March, 1983 at the Pasadena Civic Auditorium, but he wasn't the first to perform the actual move itself.
Alternate:
If I had words to paint a day for you
Current:
If I had words to make a day for you
A special day
The song 'If I had words' was already well-known before it featured heavily in the 1995 movie 'Babe'. It was a catchy reggae vibe sung as a duet by Scott Fitzgerald and Yvonne Keeley, and was a UK hit in 1978.
The tune was taken from and organ piece, Saint-Saëns' Symphony No.3 in C minor which, ironically, did not have any words.
People are reporting the lyric they remember have changed, and are calling this a Mandela Effect. They remember the line "if I had words to make a day for you" as "if I had words to paint a day for you".
A personal Mandela Effect years before the term arose?
Did Robert Smith experience a personal Mandela Effect when he wrote 'Friday I'm in love' without realising it? The story is he was certain the tune was copied from somewhere, so played it to everyone he knew who all told him it wasn't. Only when convinced he really was the first person to write it was it released as a single, and it became one of his band, The Cure's, biggest hits.
This isn't being classed as a Mandela Effect because it's clear only one person was affected by it, if at all, but this pattern regarding music isn't actually unique.
There are crazy stories of band members hearing a track on the radio and thinking someone "ripped them off", i.e. copied their style, only to be told it was them all along. I'm looking at you, Steven Tyler of Aerosmith. Some go even further, with David Bowie allegedly forgetting he recorded an entire album. Both later put these episodes down do health and medicinal related issues.
Anyone remember this song?
Here's the story of a mysterious record from the late 1990's which was certainly a hit with one person who could remember every detail of it, including the words and melody, yet could find no trace of it today.
If a group of people were to remember the song too, it would be classed as a regular Mandela Effect, but it seems only one man, who was called Tyler Gillett, had the memory.
The quest for how he tried to remove this "earworm" was reported in The Guardian and documented on the podcast Reply All from Gimlet. It's episode #159: The Case Of The Missing Hit, which can be heard on Spotify or all quality podcast sources.
It's unusual in that because he could remember the details so well, it was possible to put together a band to record it. Then things got really interesting, but beware if you prefer to find out by listening to the podcast, which is strongly recommended by the way ... spoilers follow!
Alternate:
The Beatles split up in the late 1960s
Current:
The Beatles split up in the early 1970s
The long and winding road came to an end
When exactly did The Beatles split up?
Most people say the late 1960's, and some say the early 1970's. It turns out the truth is a little more complicated than either of those. For a start, if we're talking officially then it's 1975. That's because there was a long and drawn out court battle which wasn't settled until that date - January 9th, 1975.
The generally accepted break-up date isn't so clear either, because it wasn't a single event but more of a series of separate acts. The last time they played live together was from the rooftop of the Apple building in Saville Row, London, in January 1969, the last time they recorded together was in August 1969, and the last time they were all in the same room together was September 1969. By then the cracks in the band had become too wide to repair, and they were involved in solo projects as well as already gearing up with their lawyers over contracts and recording rights. In April 1970 various press releases were issued which, whilst strongly hinting at the break up of the band, did not explicitly make it clear it had happened.
