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."
Get down
I'll sleep it off
You don't have to believe no more
Only got four hours
To learn your manners
Never felt so close to you before
Don't you
Don't get it wrong
I'll have someone to get it done
Only got four hours
To learn your manners
Never felt so close to you before
Long shot
In the name of God
Need a McCartney song
All I want you to know
Is that I won't be here for long
And my heart
Oh! my heart is getting sore
I'll sleep it off
You don't have to believe no more
Only got four hours
To learn your manners
Never felt so close to you before
Don't you
Don't get it wrong
I'll have someone to get it done
Only got four hours
To learn your manners
Never felt so close to you before
Long shot
In the name of God
Need a McCartney song
All I want you to know
Is that I won't be here for long
And my heart
Oh! my heart is getting sore
Lyrics submitted by holyzarquon
King George Lyrics as written by Cristina Llanos Fayos Amparo Llanos Fayos
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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More Featured Meanings
Mountain Song
Jane's Addiction
Jane's Addiction
Gentle Hour
Yo La Tengo
Yo La Tengo
This song was originally written by a guy called Peter Gutteridge. He was one of the founders of the "Dunedin Sound" a musical scene in the south of New Zealand in the early 80s. From there it was covered by "The Clean" one of the early bands of that scene (he had originally been a member of in it's early days, writing a couple of their best early songs). The Dunedin sound, and the Clean became popular on american college radio in the mid to late 80s. I guess Yo La Tengo heard that version.
Great version of a great song,
When We Were Young
Blink-182
Blink-182
This is a sequel to 2001's "Reckless Abandon", and features the band looking back on their clumsy youth fondly.
Amazing
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran tells a story of unsuccessfully trying to feel “Amazing.” This track is about the being weighed down by emotional stress despite valiant attempts to find some positivity in the situation. This track was written by Ed Sheeran from the perspective of his friend. From the track, we see this person fall deeper into the negative thoughts and slide further down the path of mental torment with every lyric.
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.
Again, not an American song.
This song is about a child named George who is dying...so for his last day of living, he is king for a day, but only has four hours to live..so people have four hours to be nice to him for once; and at that point, he feels closer to people he has known his whole life than ever before.
So his odds of surviving are a "long shot, by the name of god." And at the point of his heart "getting sore" is the point the child will not live any longer. The "McCartney song" may be a wish???
If anybody else has any other thoughts? That's just my interpretation. This is a great song.
Good job, mate.
this band is not american, they're from Spain and but their lyrics are in english, btw this was one of the best grunge/hard rock bands ever, sadly they were little known in the US.
now on to the song meaning i think is about a meeting with some sort of "king" and that she feels nervous about it.
IMO they're talking about George Harrison... Dover always cited The Beatles as one of their biggest influences (therefore the reference "need a McCartney song"). Though Dover's lyrics are always confusing or obscure, so it could be other way.
Also, @hamusatto this band is Spanish, not American. And it's sad this band is not known outside Spain, because they used to be awesome before they switched to electro-pop.
IMO this song is about a king's last words to his young firstborn. Maybe he was in battle, and he was mortally wounded by a "long shot by the name of god". Back in the castle, the king knows he is dying, and he spends his last four hours making his son realize that now he has to be the king ("only got four hours to learn your manners... never felt so close to you before"). It may not be the true meaning, but it's an interpretation I like, and I find it beautiful in its simplicity.
*in the name of god
I believe this song to be about King George VI and the fact that he stammers with his speech. Lionel Logue was his adviser, or speech therapist, and knew that this would be no ordinary task. They went through many days together, practicing and working on clearing up the stammer. "Never felt so close to you before" relates to the fact that Lionel was no more than a commoner and that George was royalty. Even though there was a huge status gap, they were good friends, especially around the time of King George VI's war speech. "Long shot in the name of God" says that Lionel knew that there was a small chance of this working and needed a lot of effort. He knew that this would be difficult and it was a very long shot-- that he would be able to help the King in time for his War speeches, inauguration speech, etc. "I'll have someone to get it done" relates to the fact that Lionel was adamant about King George VI getting help and, that if he wouldn't be able to do so, he would have someone get the job done. In all, this is about the relationship between Lionel and the King of England. For this to make more sense, I recommend that research is preformed upon this, and that the film "The Kings Speech" is seen.
I think it's a love song. A couple have known each other for not much time and it's the last time they met and have little time to talk and know each other more cause one of them is leaving, dying or whatever. They don't have more time to be together so her heart is getting sore. "I'll have someone to get it done..."To me it means she'll find a boyfriend or maybe she has already one that will make forget her sored heart.
I read about the king jorge story, it makes sense but let me think it's a song about a love story that's not gonna have a real begining not a happy ending.
Typish ameriCan song. america never got the kings and they dream bout other kings and stuff. all movies about foreign royals