I've been learning English for decades but I still don't get how its verb tenses work.
The Phineas and Ferb episode “Dude, We're Getting the Band Back Together” has the song “History of Rock”. In its second verse, Danny recounts how he started to play music.
Danny: I asked my daddy for a guitar, ah, I begged and I plead,
I said I wanted to play the blues, and he just nodded his head.
Daddy said when he was my age, "Boogie-Woogie" was the thing...
Phineas: Just take the blues, throw out your hip, and add a little swing...
Danny: Ah, music has the power, that without it, he'd a-sworn that he'd a never met my mom and I'd a-never been born...
Please explain why the lyrics say “he'd a never met my mom”. Does it stand for “he would have never met my mom”? How does that make sense in context? When did or would have Danny's dad swear?
