It depends upon the singer. I can't figure out any of Elton John's songs without a lyric sheet. (I'm talking about his mid-to-late 70s material, like "Benny and the Jets.") I have a friend who has a knack for easily understanding the words and being able to sing along to almost any song on the radio after just a few listens.
If song lyrics were that easy to understand, we wouldn't have many web sites devoted to
Mondegreens.
