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."
Exactly how you hear it, is exactly how it all went down?
It was later in the evening
That the facts and the figures got turned around
True, there was a woman
Yes, she did advance my way
And I can't be sure exactly but I swear I saw her say my name
It was the right time
She was the real thing
I had to walk away
(See) Don't wanna be, stitched up out of my mind
Feeling strung out, laggin' behind
All trapped in, can't do a thing because I?m
Locked down
Stitched up, feeling the burn
All strung out, I finally learn that
Trapped in, can?t do a thing because I'm
Locked down
I wonder where she came from
I wonder where she's gotta go
Who's to say she's single
And who's to say she?s on her own
Girls like that don?t sleep alone
(Alright here's the thing, here's the thing)
That girl is flawless, and I know I?m not the first one to think that
And since I'm not the first, I sure won?t be the last
I'd spend my whole life looking behind my back
I just don?t think I?m up to that
Stitched up, out of my mind
Feeling strung out, laggin? behind
All trapped in, can?t do a thing because I?m
Locked down
Stitched up, feeling the burn
All strung out, I finally learn that
Trapped in you can?t do a thing because you?re
Locked down
Stitched up, out of my mind
Feeling strung out, laggin' behind
All trapped in, I can't do a thing because I'm
Locked down
Stitched up, feeling the burn
All strung out, I finally learn that
Trapped in you can?t do a thing because you're
Locked down
Locked down
Stitch me up, string me out
Trap me in, lock me down
Stitch me up, string me out
Trap me in, lock me down
I don't wanna be
Stitch me up, string me out
Trap me in, lock me down
Stitch me up, string me out
Trap me in, lock me down
Because I'm down and down and down (Ooo)
It was later in the evening
That the facts and the figures got turned around
True, there was a woman
Yes, she did advance my way
And I can't be sure exactly but I swear I saw her say my name
It was the right time
She was the real thing
I had to walk away
(See) Don't wanna be, stitched up out of my mind
Feeling strung out, laggin' behind
All trapped in, can't do a thing because I?m
Locked down
Stitched up, feeling the burn
All strung out, I finally learn that
Trapped in, can?t do a thing because I'm
Locked down
I wonder where she came from
I wonder where she's gotta go
Who's to say she's single
And who's to say she?s on her own
Girls like that don?t sleep alone
(Alright here's the thing, here's the thing)
That girl is flawless, and I know I?m not the first one to think that
And since I'm not the first, I sure won?t be the last
I'd spend my whole life looking behind my back
I just don?t think I?m up to that
Stitched up, out of my mind
Feeling strung out, laggin? behind
All trapped in, can?t do a thing because I?m
Locked down
Stitched up, feeling the burn
All strung out, I finally learn that
Trapped in you can?t do a thing because you?re
Locked down
Stitched up, out of my mind
Feeling strung out, laggin' behind
All trapped in, I can't do a thing because I'm
Locked down
Stitched up, feeling the burn
All strung out, I finally learn that
Trapped in you can?t do a thing because you're
Locked down
Locked down
Stitch me up, string me out
Trap me in, lock me down
Stitch me up, string me out
Trap me in, lock me down
I don't wanna be
Stitch me up, string me out
Trap me in, lock me down
Stitch me up, string me out
Trap me in, lock me down
Because I'm down and down and down (Ooo)
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Mountain Song
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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.
oh johnny.
he's such a smart lyricist. i don't really think this song needs an explanation, but I am surprised to see it with so few comments.
i love how he spends the whole song talking about how he's not going to pursue this girl because of this and that, but then at the end he repeats "stitch me up, string me out, trap me in, lock me down" ... cause even though he says he's too smart for her games, he still wants her. of course he does.