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."
Mr. Mayor, the mission burns
The zombies are marching
They close on the square
Families are cold, look down at their souls
Huddled in camps on the old marble steps of city hall
Faith in their God is all that they've got
Across the room, beyond the pane
The whole world is churning,
Bleeding and burning, hailstorms and ash,
The moon is as blood over the soldiers who sag in the mud
Save our city
Keep our souls, Lord
Through the rapture of this world
Little boy, I'm just a man, a mere civil servant,
Against this tyrant God
I've allied with our king, salvation he brings,
Protecting the city against all the troops Heaven sent but the dead walk again
This is the end
"Oh I'm just a man, my time has come,
Long live King Simius!
May he deliver us
From this nightmare!"
And with a blast like the sun, his lips are unwrapped from the barrel of his gun.
Save our city
Keep our souls, Lord
Through the rapture of this world
Fought and fell for our great king
We burned alive and boiled
The dragon red and wrathful calls
We rise and march once more
Cursed in death, we starve for flesh
Our skin is cooked and curled
We'll eat our kin and smash them in
In Hell we'll grind their bones
Save our city
(Fought and fell for our great king)
Keep our souls, Lord God
(We burned alive and boiled)
Through [the mayor's ruined head, the boy steps through the window] the
rapture
(The dragon, red and wrathful calls)
of this world. [and cries out from the ledge to the people below.]
(We rise and march once more.)
Save our city [There's a time to pray and there's a time to fight]
(Cursed in death, we starve for flesh)
Keep our souls, Lord God [Anything can be a weapon if you're holding it
right]
(Our skin is cooked and curled)
Through the rapture [Defend what is yours, they will not take our souls]
(We'll eat our skin and smash them in)
and so we [it's time now to] rise and fight!
The zombies are marching
They close on the square
Families are cold, look down at their souls
Huddled in camps on the old marble steps of city hall
Faith in their God is all that they've got
Across the room, beyond the pane
The whole world is churning,
Bleeding and burning, hailstorms and ash,
The moon is as blood over the soldiers who sag in the mud
Save our city
Keep our souls, Lord
Through the rapture of this world
Little boy, I'm just a man, a mere civil servant,
Against this tyrant God
I've allied with our king, salvation he brings,
Protecting the city against all the troops Heaven sent but the dead walk again
This is the end
"Oh I'm just a man, my time has come,
Long live King Simius!
May he deliver us
From this nightmare!"
And with a blast like the sun, his lips are unwrapped from the barrel of his gun.
Save our city
Keep our souls, Lord
Through the rapture of this world
Fought and fell for our great king
We burned alive and boiled
The dragon red and wrathful calls
We rise and march once more
Cursed in death, we starve for flesh
Our skin is cooked and curled
We'll eat our kin and smash them in
In Hell we'll grind their bones
Save our city
(Fought and fell for our great king)
Keep our souls, Lord God
(We burned alive and boiled)
Through [the mayor's ruined head, the boy steps through the window] the
rapture
(The dragon, red and wrathful calls)
of this world. [and cries out from the ledge to the people below.]
(We rise and march once more.)
Save our city [There's a time to pray and there's a time to fight]
(Cursed in death, we starve for flesh)
Keep our souls, Lord God [Anything can be a weapon if you're holding it
right]
(Our skin is cooked and curled)
Through the rapture [Defend what is yours, they will not take our souls]
(We'll eat our skin and smash them in)
and so we [it's time now to] rise and fight!
Lyrics submitted by Ghost33
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