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."
When I was a young boy
My mama said to me
"There's only one girl in the world for you
And she probably lives in Tahiti"
I'd go the whole wide world
I'd go the whole wide world just to find her
Or maybe she's in the Bahamas
Where the Caribbean Sea is blue
Weeping in a tropical moonlit night
Because nobody's talking about you
I'd go the whole wide world
I'd go the whole wide world just to find her
I'd go the whole wide world
I'd go the whole wide world
To find out where they hide her
I'd go the whole wide world
I'd go the whole wide world just to find her
Why am I hanging around in the rain out here
Trying to pick up a girl?
Why are my eyes filling up with these lonely tears
When there's girls all over the world?
Well, is she lying on a tropical beach somewhere
Underneath a tropical sun
Pining away in a heatwave there
Hoping that I won't be long?
I should be lying on that sun soaked beach with her
Caressing her warm, brown skin
And then in a year or maybe not quite
We'll be sharing the same next of kin
I'd go the whole wide world
I'd go the whole wide world just to find her
I'd go the whole wide world
I'd go the whole wide world
To find out where they hide her
I'd go the whole wide world
I'd go the whole wide world just to find her
I'd go the whole wide world
I'd go the whole wide world
To find out where they hide her
Yeah!
Whole world
My mama said to me
"There's only one girl in the world for you
And she probably lives in Tahiti"
I'd go the whole wide world
I'd go the whole wide world just to find her
Or maybe she's in the Bahamas
Where the Caribbean Sea is blue
Weeping in a tropical moonlit night
Because nobody's talking about you
I'd go the whole wide world
I'd go the whole wide world just to find her
I'd go the whole wide world
I'd go the whole wide world
To find out where they hide her
I'd go the whole wide world
I'd go the whole wide world just to find her
Why am I hanging around in the rain out here
Trying to pick up a girl?
Why are my eyes filling up with these lonely tears
When there's girls all over the world?
Well, is she lying on a tropical beach somewhere
Underneath a tropical sun
Pining away in a heatwave there
Hoping that I won't be long?
I should be lying on that sun soaked beach with her
Caressing her warm, brown skin
And then in a year or maybe not quite
We'll be sharing the same next of kin
I'd go the whole wide world
I'd go the whole wide world just to find her
I'd go the whole wide world
I'd go the whole wide world
To find out where they hide her
I'd go the whole wide world
I'd go the whole wide world just to find her
I'd go the whole wide world
I'd go the whole wide world
To find out where they hide her
Yeah!
Whole world
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"There's only one girl in the world for me" means that there is only one, and all the ones that don't work out, don't matter. There's plenty of fish in the sea and one of them is bound to be his.
Why settle for what's around him (in his town/etc.), when he could scour the whole earth in search of the woman he loves.
Don't settle. Choose wisely. Enjoy your time in search, and when found, enjoy your time together, because you found her. Don't let go. You'll know.
for me it's about sigrid lahl...it's about not settling for cheap, crappy, sub-par love - but about that astro, super-sex make everything okay knock-out of a lady.
This is a wonderful, romantic anthem...reminds me a little bit of some Nirvana songs, in that it starts so slowly and then explodes later on. Bass work is outstanding especially. One of those unknown treasures more ppl should discover, add it to your mp3 player now!!
i love this song. NEVER SETTLE! NO REGRETS!! its fun to play too. just E and A over and over. you can really get into it =]
my boyfriend sang and played this for me after modifying the lyrics a little...it was so sweet :)
ha i love this guy - not the best singer but this song is a really good song, telling us all to look around a little harder - because she probably lives in tahiti (ive been there - and i dont think so unless she was one of those bikini babes who didn't speak my language...)
god! i wish they made music like this nowadays... :) soooo nice to listen to. it's also the ost for that movie, stranger than fiction.
this is so punk, so imperfect, so goooood
don't settle for whats in front of you good things are hard to find
but oh so much better
Me too, Eric. Me too.
Err, I meant that as a general comment on the song, not as a reply to back to your cage.
Whoops. But yeah, this is the pinnacle of awesome love punk anthems.
I see it as The Beat-esque Europunk? I don't think it matters what genre it is, I just love the song. Perfect message.
You people are amazing.