In regards to the meaning of this song:
Before a live performance on the EP Five Stories Falling, Geoff states “It’s about the last time I went to visit my grandmother in Columbus, and I saw that she was dying and it was the last time I was going to see her. It is about realizing how young you are, but how quickly you can go.”
That’s the thing about Geoff and his sublime poetry, you think it’s about one thing, but really it’s about something entirely different. But the lyrics are still universal and omnipresent, ubiquitous, even. So relatable. That’s one thing I love about this band. I also love their live performances, raw energy and Geoff’s beautiful, imperfectly perfect vocals. His voice soothes my aching soul.
Roger:
What'd you forget?
(Mimi enters, holding a candle and looking for a match; her electricity is out, too)
Mimi:
Got a light?
Roger:
I know you? -- You're --
You're shivering
Mimi:
It's nothing
They turned off my heat
And I'm just a little
Weak on my feet
Would you light my candle?
What are you staring at?
Roger:
Nothing
Your hair in the moonlight
You look familiar
(He lights her candle. Mimi starts to leave, but stumbles)
Can you make it?
Mimi:
Just haven't eaten much today
At least the room stopped spinning.
Anyway. What?
Roger:
Nothing
Your smile reminded me of --
Mimi:
I always remind people of -- who is she?
Roger:
She died. Her name was April
(Mimi discreetly blows out the candle)
Mimi:
It's out again
Sorry about your friend
Would you light my candle?
(Roger lights the candle. They linger, awkwardly)
Roger:
Well --
Mimi:
Yeah. Ow!
Roger:
Oh, the wax -- it's --
Mimi:
Dripping! I like it -- between my --
Roger:
Fingers. I figured...
Oh, well. Goodnight.
(Rogers gestures towards the door. Mimi exits. Roger heads back toward his guitar on the table. There is another knock, which he answers)
It blew out again?
Mimi:
No -- I think that I dropped my stash
Roger:
I know I've seen you out and about
When I used to go out
Your candle's out
Mimi:
I'm illin' --
I had it when I walked in the door
It was pure --
Is it on the floor?
Roger:
The floor?
(Mimi gets down on all fours and starts searching the floor for her stash. She looks back at Roger, who is staring at her again)
Mimi:
They say I have the best ass below 14th street
Is it true?
Roger:
What?
Mimi:
You're staring again.
Roger:
Oh no.
I mean you do -- have a nice --
I mean -- You look familiar
Mimi:
Like your dead girlfriend?
Roger:
Only when you smile.
But I'm sure I've seen you somewhere else --
Mimi:
Do you go to the Cat Scratch Club?
That's where I work - I dance - help me look
Roger:
Yes!
They used to tie you up --
Mimi:
It's a living
(Mimi douses the flame again)
Roger:
I didn't recognize you
Without the handcuffs
Mimi:
We could light the candle
Oh won't you light the candle?
(Roger lights it again)
Roger:
Why don't you forget that stuff
You look like you're sixteen
Mimi:
I'm nineteen -- but I'm old for my age
I'm just born to be bad
Roger:
I once was born to be bad
I used to shiver like that
Mimi:
I have no heat -- I told you
Roger:
I used to sweat
Mimi:
I got a cold
Roger:
Uh huh
I used to be a junkie
Mimi:
But now and then I like to --
Roger:
Uh huh
Mimi:
Feel good
Roger:
Here it is -- um --
(Roger stoops and picks up a small object: Mimi's stash)
Mimi:
What's that?
Roger:
It's a candy bar wrapper
(Roger puts it behind his back and into his pocket)
Mimi:
We could light the candle
(Roger gently blows out the candle)
Mimi:
What'd you do with my candle?
Roger:
That was my last match
Mimi:
Our eyes'll adjust, thank God for the moon
Roger:
Maybe it's not the moon at all
I hear Spike Lee's shooting down the street
Mimi:
Bah humbug ... Bah humbug
(Mimi places her hand under his, pretending to do it by accident)
Roger:
Cold hands
Mimi:
Yours too.
Big. Like my father's
You wanna dance?
Roger:
With you?
Mimi:
No -- with my father
Roger:
I'm Roger
Mimi:
They call me
They call me Mimi
What'd you forget?
(Mimi enters, holding a candle and looking for a match; her electricity is out, too)
Mimi:
Got a light?
Roger:
I know you? -- You're --
You're shivering
Mimi:
It's nothing
They turned off my heat
And I'm just a little
Weak on my feet
Would you light my candle?
What are you staring at?
Roger:
Nothing
Your hair in the moonlight
You look familiar
(He lights her candle. Mimi starts to leave, but stumbles)
Can you make it?
Mimi:
Just haven't eaten much today
At least the room stopped spinning.
Anyway. What?
Roger:
Nothing
Your smile reminded me of --
Mimi:
I always remind people of -- who is she?
Roger:
She died. Her name was April
(Mimi discreetly blows out the candle)
Mimi:
It's out again
Sorry about your friend
Would you light my candle?
(Roger lights the candle. They linger, awkwardly)
Roger:
Well --
Mimi:
Yeah. Ow!
Roger:
Oh, the wax -- it's --
Mimi:
Dripping! I like it -- between my --
Roger:
Fingers. I figured...
Oh, well. Goodnight.
(Rogers gestures towards the door. Mimi exits. Roger heads back toward his guitar on the table. There is another knock, which he answers)
It blew out again?
Mimi:
No -- I think that I dropped my stash
Roger:
I know I've seen you out and about
When I used to go out
Your candle's out
Mimi:
I'm illin' --
I had it when I walked in the door
It was pure --
Is it on the floor?
Roger:
The floor?
(Mimi gets down on all fours and starts searching the floor for her stash. She looks back at Roger, who is staring at her again)
Mimi:
They say I have the best ass below 14th street
Is it true?
Roger:
What?
Mimi:
You're staring again.
Roger:
Oh no.
I mean you do -- have a nice --
I mean -- You look familiar
Mimi:
Like your dead girlfriend?
Roger:
Only when you smile.
But I'm sure I've seen you somewhere else --
Mimi:
Do you go to the Cat Scratch Club?
That's where I work - I dance - help me look
Roger:
Yes!
They used to tie you up --
Mimi:
It's a living
(Mimi douses the flame again)
Roger:
I didn't recognize you
Without the handcuffs
Mimi:
We could light the candle
Oh won't you light the candle?
(Roger lights it again)
Roger:
Why don't you forget that stuff
You look like you're sixteen
Mimi:
I'm nineteen -- but I'm old for my age
I'm just born to be bad
Roger:
I once was born to be bad
I used to shiver like that
Mimi:
I have no heat -- I told you
Roger:
I used to sweat
Mimi:
I got a cold
Roger:
Uh huh
I used to be a junkie
Mimi:
But now and then I like to --
Roger:
Uh huh
Mimi:
Feel good
Roger:
Here it is -- um --
(Roger stoops and picks up a small object: Mimi's stash)
Mimi:
What's that?
Roger:
It's a candy bar wrapper
(Roger puts it behind his back and into his pocket)
Mimi:
We could light the candle
(Roger gently blows out the candle)
Mimi:
What'd you do with my candle?
Roger:
That was my last match
Mimi:
Our eyes'll adjust, thank God for the moon
Roger:
Maybe it's not the moon at all
I hear Spike Lee's shooting down the street
Mimi:
Bah humbug ... Bah humbug
(Mimi places her hand under his, pretending to do it by accident)
Roger:
Cold hands
Mimi:
Yours too.
Big. Like my father's
You wanna dance?
Roger:
With you?
Mimi:
No -- with my father
Roger:
I'm Roger
Mimi:
They call me
They call me Mimi
Lyrics submitted by Eggos=yum
Add your thoughts
Log in now to tell us what you think this song means.
Don’t have an account? Create an account with SongMeanings to post comments, submit lyrics, and more. It’s super easy, we promise!
More Featured Meanings
Standing On The Edge Of Summer
Thursday
Thursday
Mental Istid
Ebba Grön
Ebba Grön
This is one of my favorite songs. https://fnfgo.io
Bron-Y-Aur Stomp
Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin
This is about bronies. They communicate by stomping.
Cajun Girl
Little Feat
Little Feat
Overall about difficult moments of disappointment and vulnerability. Having hope and longing, while remaining optimistic for the future. Encourages the belief that with each new morning there is a chance for things to improve.
The chorus offers a glimmer of optimism and a chance at a resolution and redemption in the future.
Captures the rollercoaster of emotions of feeling lost while loving someone who is not there for you, feeling let down and abandoned while waiting for a lover. Lost with no direction, "Now I'm up in the air with the rain in my hair, Nowhere to go, I can go anywhere"
The bridge shows signs of longing and a plea for companionship. The Lyrics express a desire for authentic connection and the importance of Loving someone just as they are. "Just in passing, I'm not asking. That you be anyone but you”
Mountain Song
Jane's Addiction
Jane's Addiction
Jane's Addiction vocalist Perry Farrell gives Adam Reader some heartfelt insight into Jane’s Addiction's hard rock manifesto "Mountain Song", which was the second single from their revolutionary album Nothing's Shocking. Mountain song was first recorded in 1986 and appeared on the soundtrack to the film Dudes starring Jon Cryer. The version on Nothing's Shocking was re-recorded in 1988.
"'Mountain Song' was actually about... I hate to say it but... drugs. Climbing this mountain and getting as high as you can, and then coming down that mountain," reveals Farrell. "What it feels to descend from the mountain top... not easy at all. The ascension is tough but exhilarating. Getting down is... it's a real bummer. Drugs is not for everybody obviously. For me, I wanted to experience the heights, and the lows come along with it."
"There's a part - 'Cash in now honey, cash in Miss Smith.' Miss Smith is my Mother; our last name was Smith. Cashing in when she cashed in her life. So... she decided that, to her... at that time, she was desperate. Life wasn't worth it for her, that was her opinion. Some people think, never take your life, and some people find that their life isn't worth living. She was in love with my Dad, and my Dad was not faithful to her, and it broke her heart. She was very desperate and she did something that I know she regrets."
The truth is that there are numerous layers to this particular song; several have been mentioned already.
First, Mimi is a heroin user. Heroin is typically cooked in a spoon over an open flame - a candle, for instance. So the top layer, literal, and obvious meaning of the song is that Mimi is looking for a light for her candle so that she can do her drugs.
However, watching the scene again you'll find that this can't account for all of it, because before entering we can see Mimi standing outside Roger and Mark's flat (during One Song Glory), and her candle is lit. She blows it out intentionally.
Why? She finds Roger attractive and is looking for a reason to introduce herself for companionship. So in this case, "light my candle" refers to Mimi's search for love.
On a more blunt level, the theme of many of Mimi's lyrics here are sexual in nature, so "light my candle" could also refer to Mimi looking for a sex partner - in this case, "light my candle" would be to have an orgasm.
From Roger's perspective, it seems like his heart has been somewhat "frozen" of love since the loss of April. Lighting a candle would allow that to be thawed out, so despite his awkwardness, Roger is looking for someone to be with as well.
And unknown to Mimi, Roger was a former heroin-user as well; to him, the candle symbolizes his addiction, which he has "blown out" - so his hesitation toward the end of the song to give Mimi her stash back is an indication that he worries that being with her might relight the candle of his own addiction.