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."
There's no beginning to the story
A bookshelf sinks into the sand
And a language learned and forgot in turn
Is studied once again
It's a shocking bit of footage
Viewed from a shitty TV screen
You can squint at it
Just snowy static
To make out the meaning
And keep on stretching the antenna
Hoping that it will come clear
We need some reception
A higher message
Just tell us what to fear
'Cause I don't know what tomorrow brings
It's alive with such possibilities
All I know is I feel better when I sing
Burdens are lifted from me
That's my voice rising
So Michael, please keep the tape rolling
Boys keep strumming those guitars
We need a record of our failures
Yes, we must document our love
I have sat too long in my silence
I have grown too old in my pain
To shed this skin, be born again
Oh, it starts with an ending
So thank you friends for the time we shared
My love stays with you like sunlight and air
And though I truly wish I could keep hanging around here
My joy is covering me, soon I will disappear
It's not a movie
No private screening
This method acting
Well, I call it living, yeah
It's like a fountain
A door has opened
We have a problem
With no solution but to love
And to be loved
So I've made peace with the fallen leaves
I see their same fate in my own body
But I won't be frightened when I'm awoken from this dream
And return to that which gave birth to me
Gave birth to me, gave birth to me, gave birth to me
And the story goes, and the story goes
And it goes on and on and on and on
It's going on and on and on and on
It's going on and on and on and on
It's going on and on and on and on
It's going on and on and on and on
It's going on and on and on and on
It's going on and on and on and on and
On and on and on and on and on
A bookshelf sinks into the sand
And a language learned and forgot in turn
Is studied once again
It's a shocking bit of footage
Viewed from a shitty TV screen
You can squint at it
Just snowy static
To make out the meaning
And keep on stretching the antenna
Hoping that it will come clear
We need some reception
A higher message
Just tell us what to fear
'Cause I don't know what tomorrow brings
It's alive with such possibilities
All I know is I feel better when I sing
Burdens are lifted from me
That's my voice rising
So Michael, please keep the tape rolling
Boys keep strumming those guitars
We need a record of our failures
Yes, we must document our love
I have sat too long in my silence
I have grown too old in my pain
To shed this skin, be born again
Oh, it starts with an ending
So thank you friends for the time we shared
My love stays with you like sunlight and air
And though I truly wish I could keep hanging around here
My joy is covering me, soon I will disappear
It's not a movie
No private screening
This method acting
Well, I call it living, yeah
It's like a fountain
A door has opened
We have a problem
With no solution but to love
And to be loved
So I've made peace with the fallen leaves
I see their same fate in my own body
But I won't be frightened when I'm awoken from this dream
And return to that which gave birth to me
Gave birth to me, gave birth to me, gave birth to me
And the story goes, and the story goes
And it goes on and on and on and on
It's going on and on and on and on
It's going on and on and on and on
It's going on and on and on and on
It's going on and on and on and on
It's going on and on and on and on
It's going on and on and on and on and
On and on and on and on and on
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Mountain Song
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This song is written as the perspective of the boys in the street, as a whole, and what path they are going to choose as they get older and grow into men. (This is why the music video takes place in an orphanage.) The seen, and unseen collective suffering is imbedded in the boys’ mind, consciously or subconsciously, and is haunting them. Which path will the boys choose? Issac Hayes is the voice of reason, maybe God, the angel on his shoulder, or the voice of his forefathers from beyond the grave who can see the big picture and are pleading with the boys not to continue the violence and pattern of killing their brothers, but to rise above. The most beautiful song and has so many levels. Racism towards African Americans in America would not exist if everyone sat down and listened to this song and understood the history behind the words. The power, fear, pleading in RZA and Ghostface voices are genuine and powerful. Issac Hayes’ strong voice makes the perfect strong father figure, who is possibly from beyond the grave.
Blue
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
“Blue” is a song about a love that is persisting in the discomfort of the person experiencing the emotion. Ed Sheeran reflects on love lost, and although he wishes his former partner find happiness, he cannot but admit his feelings are still very much there. He expresses the realization that he might never find another on this stringed instrumental by Aaron Dessner.
Punchline
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran sings about missing his former partner and learning important life lessons in the process on “Punchline.” This track tells a story of battling to get rid of emotions for a former lover, whom he now realized might not have loved him the same way. He’s now caught between accepting that fact and learning life lessons from it and going back to beg her for another chance.
Plastic Bag
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
“Plastic Bag” is a song about searching for an escape from personal problems and hoping to find it in the lively atmosphere of a Saturday night party. Ed Sheeran tells the story of his friend and the myriad of troubles he is going through. Unable to find any solutions, this friend seeks a last resort in a party and the vanity that comes with it.
“I overthink and have trouble sleepin’ / All purpose gone and don’t have a reason / And there’s no doctor to stop this bleedin’ / So I left home and jumped in the deep end,” Ed Sheeran sings in verse one. He continues by adding that this person is feeling the weight of having disappointed his father and doesn’t have any friends to rely on in this difficult moment. In the second verse, Ed sings about the role of grief in his friend’s plight and his dwindling faith in prayer. “Saturday night is givin’ me a reason to rely on the strobe lights / The lifeline of a promise in a shot glass, and I’ll take that / If you’re givin’ out love from a plastic bag,” Ed sings on the chorus, as his friend turns to new vices in hopes of feeling better.
Listen to Dave Rawlings and Gillian Welch do this Song. It has a completely different feel. I think the lyric meanings come out more sublimely in their voice inflections.
daytrotter.com/dt/dave-rawlings-machine-concert/20031009-37382195.html npr.org/templates/story/story.php
I agree with some of what colston03 said. This is possibly my favourite bright eyes song. I didn't know Bright Eyes very well and a few years ago a friend couldn't go to an REM concert where they were supporting so I grabbed them for 20 bucks. They blew me away and were way better than REM.
I want this song played at my funeral because it sums up quite a lot about my personal philosophies on behaviour, love, spirituality and death.
For me it means: There's no beginning to the story A bookshelf sinks into the sand And a language learned and forgot in turn Is studied once again
---For me this is a bit of history, unfortunately the Spanish Inquisition burned most of the mystic and spiritual books of the ancients so any knowledge that we might have had about how to connect with a higher being in the heavens or at least within ourselves is now gone, therefore we have to start from the start and figure it all out again.
t's a shocking bit of footage Viewed from a shitty TV screen You can squint at it Just snow and static To make out the meaning
---This might be a reference to how universal truths are difficult to figure out when every religion and spiritual guru is telling you what you need to do to ascend, and every tellevision set is telling you what you need to buy to be happy.
And keep on stretching the antenna Hoping that it will come clear We need some reception A higher message Just tell us what to fear
---This is about stretching the boundries of that searching, looking for truth in the urban underground, maybe while fucked up at a rave party on acid, maybe at your local yoga class but basically it's about searching for something else because you're terrified of what you have, just a measley little mortal life.
Because I don't know what tomorrow brings It's alive with such possibilities All I know is I feel better when I sing Burdens are lifted from me That's my voice rising
---This is about that little thing that many of us have that brings us piece. For Connor it's singing, for me juggling, maybe for someone else dancing or acting. I'm helping with a coporate stress management course at the moment and my job is to talk about the importance of a hobby away from your busy life to give you time to "switch off" or more likely to "switch on" to your natural state of being which isn't to be constantly stressed out about interest rates.
So Michael please keep the tape rolling Boys keep strumming those guitars We need a record of our failures Yes we must document our love
---I think this bit is probably about the need to share is much as we can about how to be happy in a world that's so edgy. Passing on examples of when we've fucked up and how we got past it and sharing the beauty of those times when somethings touched our heart.
I have sat too long in my silence I have grown too old in my pain To shed this skin Be born again Oh, it starts with an ending
---This part is about acting on everything that I just wrote about. To get on with it and live a happy life you usually have to shake loose some baggage. It reminds me of when I stopped smoking bongs when I was young and stopped hanging out with half of my friends and finished school so I could go to uni.
Oh, it starts with an ending So thank you friends for the time we shared My love stays with you like sunlight and air No, I truly wish I could keep hanging around here My joy is covering me Soon I will disappear
---This bit is basically saying to those people that you may have to leave behind whenever you head off to pursue your dreams, "thankyou for being a great friend but I need to move on now, my loves with you but I need to be some place else."
It's not a movie No private screening This method acting Well, I call it living It's like a fountain A door has opened We have a problem With no solution but to love And to be loved
---I think this bit kindof broadens the concept, in the sense that he's pointing out these concepts are universal, "we" have a problem and there isn't a solution except to learn how to love and be loved.
So I've made peace with the fallen leaves I see their same fate in my own body But I won't be frightened when I'm awoken from this dream And return to that which gave birth to me
---This is one of my favourite bits, for me it was the clincher in this being one of my favourite songs. Obviously it's about comming to terms with your own mortality, eg. Seeing the same fate in a decaying leaf as your own organic body. But for me the extra beauty of it is the last line, it's absolute genius. It is universally applicable, no matter what you believe about death. If you believe in a god, in almost every religion in the world you have to face that god when you do, He watched over your entry into the world and He will see you at the exit door. If you're an athiest, you believe that people come from a fusion of two gametes consisting of atoms that will go on to become part of the global cycle of matter again after your concsiousness ceases.
However the last bit takes that one step further. That "story" that had no beginning is us. Our story as a sentient species trying to find our place in the world, the mystics of ancient time, the renaissance men, the pope, charles darwin, and you.... and me. And the story will still be going on long after we're gone.
"When you are dead, seek for your resting place not in the earth, but in the hearts of men." -Rumi
The answer is the same no matter what you think about death, learn to love and be loved.
Am I the only one who thinks the title of this song comes from King's Crossing by Elliott Smith? "The method acting That pays my bills Keeps a fat man feeding In Beverly Hills. I got a heavy metal mouth That yells obscenities, And get my check From a trash treasury Because I took my own insides out." The part after "In Beverly Hills." has nothing to do with my comment, but they're good lyrics :)
This is a song about mortality, inadequacy and the passage of time. Quite a big umbrella..
The "Method Acting" of the title is about how you will forever try to be someone you're not.
I like the "soon I will disappear" and "returned to that which gave birth to me". They are definately about mortality.
i can not believe noone said anything about this song yet. it's brilliant and beautiful. the lyrics really hit home.
Wow, how could only one person talk about this song? It is a wonderful song, i really like the second verse were he goes "We need a record of our failures Yes we must document our love" it's such a great song!
Yes, I feel this song is amazing. Connor Oberst is quite simply a genius.
i adore this song off the new album.....
just something about it, makes it stand out to me out of the whole album..
xxx
it might be the tempo,but regardless, it's a great song.
i especially like the lines: "This method acting,Well I call it living" and "We need a record of our failures, Yes we must document our love"; it's precisely how i feel- illusion, and the triviality of love. i get attached to any song that evaluates ideas exactly how i do.
This song became my new Conor favorite just today (it changes daily)