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."
Nice girls are writing in journals
Things they wish they'd done
And all their bad sisters are walking high wires
Counting the days in a month
The awful truth doesn't bear thinking
Nor does the half-baked lie
They get their hopes dirty once in a while
Wash them and hang them to dry
Everyone's down except for the clowns
And noah don't know where to go
It's hell up in heaven, there's nothing much here
And all the real men are below
What happens when dreams come true?
Will we know what to do
When our dreams come true?
So a saviour rolls in past the big sign
That says "strangers - please turn round"
The men tie him up to a feeding post
And take his credentials down
The sun beats rays on our salad days
His lips get parched and dry
The girls bring him drink with a giggle and a wink
And his moment of glory expires
What happens when dreams come true?
Will we know what to do
When our dreams come true?
Mr.sandman can't believe it
He thought he gave them what they needed
You couldn't get no higher
Than a handsome dark messiah
But he's got one more trick up his sleeve,
Before he gives up once again
A siren goes off as she walks in
As the cowboy lies dying in the dust
She walks through the room where the gentlemen gather
Surrounded by debris and rust
She smoulders and steams, straight out of their dreams
But no-one will talk to her first
Big words are just words
They're small and absurd
She leaves and we all die of thirst
What happens when dreams come true?
Will we know what to do
When our dreams come true?
Things they wish they'd done
And all their bad sisters are walking high wires
Counting the days in a month
The awful truth doesn't bear thinking
Nor does the half-baked lie
They get their hopes dirty once in a while
Wash them and hang them to dry
Everyone's down except for the clowns
And noah don't know where to go
It's hell up in heaven, there's nothing much here
And all the real men are below
What happens when dreams come true?
Will we know what to do
When our dreams come true?
So a saviour rolls in past the big sign
That says "strangers - please turn round"
The men tie him up to a feeding post
And take his credentials down
The sun beats rays on our salad days
His lips get parched and dry
The girls bring him drink with a giggle and a wink
And his moment of glory expires
What happens when dreams come true?
Will we know what to do
When our dreams come true?
Mr.sandman can't believe it
He thought he gave them what they needed
You couldn't get no higher
Than a handsome dark messiah
But he's got one more trick up his sleeve,
Before he gives up once again
A siren goes off as she walks in
As the cowboy lies dying in the dust
She walks through the room where the gentlemen gather
Surrounded by debris and rust
She smoulders and steams, straight out of their dreams
But no-one will talk to her first
Big words are just words
They're small and absurd
She leaves and we all die of thirst
What happens when dreams come true?
Will we know what to do
When our dreams come true?
Lyrics submitted by planetearth
When Dreams Come True Lyrics as written by John Wesley Harding
Lyrics © O/B/O DistroKid
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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More Featured Meanings
Mountain Song
Jane's Addiction
Jane's Addiction
No Surprises
Radiohead
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Same ideas expressed in Fitter, Happier are expressed in this song. We're told to strive for some sort of ideal life, which includes getting a good job, being kind to everyone, finding a partner, getting married, having a couple kids, living in a quiet neighborhood in a nice big house, etc. But in Fitter, Happier the narrator(?) realizes that it's incredibly robotic to live this life. People are being used by those in power "like a pig in a cage on antibiotics"--being pacified with things like new phones and cool gadgets and houses while being sucked dry. On No Surprises, the narrator is realizing how this life is killing him slowly. In the video, his helmet is slowly filling up with water, drowning him. But he's so complacent with it. This is a good summary of the song. This boring, "perfect" life foisted upon us by some higher powers (not spiritual, but political, economic, etc. politicians and businessmen, perhaps) is not the way to live. But there is seemingly no way out but death. He'd rather die peacefully right now than live in this cage. While our lives are often shielded, we're in our own protective bubbles, or protective helmets like the one Thom wears, if we look a little harder we can see all the corruption, lies, manipulation, etc. that is going on in the world, often run by huge yet nearly invisible organizations, corporations, and 'leaders'. It's a very hopeless song because it reflects real life.
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.
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.