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."
I can't start wishing that I went for something more
but I can dream between my losing faith and now
I've got plans
of stay proud
with every single scream
I'll find my place in every city.
No, never lose my voice
I stood there counting all the days 'til I was free
I can't sleep, I'll drive the 30 miles home
but I can't breathe
but I'm still proud
of every single day
Is something killing me again?
I need to get away
from all the things that made me lose my mind before,
and I know
this time everything (this time everything)
is gonna be alright (is gonna be alright)
take it slow, so you know
that it's real more than just tonight (tonight, tonight)
and what if every word (and what if every word)
escaped my mouth tonight (escaped my mouth tonight)
and I watch as the world
took its toll on my lips and my lips told my voice
that to let my mouth make prize
So what if my house is just a van
and I'm in love
Would I drive without the miles out west
to disconnect
I know I've got this in my head
so what if music changed my life
will it ever changed my mind
this time everything (this time everything)
is gonna be alright (is gonna be alright)
take it slow, so you know
that it's real more than just tonight (tonight, tonight)
what if every word (what if every word)
escaped my mouth tonight (escaped my mouth tonight)
and i watch as the world
took its toll on my lips
and my lips told my voice
that to let my mouth make prize
With all it took apart in my head
I'll keep you singing
along for all that I can
when I'm afraid
of all the nightmares that were true
and I'm just giving
out my dreams again
I'll never wonder what I'll be
Why can't you
help me find it once again
you were never one
to give up on this town
to give up on this town
and this time everything
is gonna be alright
to give up every word
and change my life tonight
I'll change my life tonight
but I can dream between my losing faith and now
I've got plans
of stay proud
with every single scream
I'll find my place in every city.
No, never lose my voice
I stood there counting all the days 'til I was free
I can't sleep, I'll drive the 30 miles home
but I can't breathe
but I'm still proud
of every single day
Is something killing me again?
I need to get away
from all the things that made me lose my mind before,
and I know
this time everything (this time everything)
is gonna be alright (is gonna be alright)
take it slow, so you know
that it's real more than just tonight (tonight, tonight)
and what if every word (and what if every word)
escaped my mouth tonight (escaped my mouth tonight)
and I watch as the world
took its toll on my lips and my lips told my voice
that to let my mouth make prize
So what if my house is just a van
and I'm in love
Would I drive without the miles out west
to disconnect
I know I've got this in my head
so what if music changed my life
will it ever changed my mind
this time everything (this time everything)
is gonna be alright (is gonna be alright)
take it slow, so you know
that it's real more than just tonight (tonight, tonight)
what if every word (what if every word)
escaped my mouth tonight (escaped my mouth tonight)
and i watch as the world
took its toll on my lips
and my lips told my voice
that to let my mouth make prize
With all it took apart in my head
I'll keep you singing
along for all that I can
when I'm afraid
of all the nightmares that were true
and I'm just giving
out my dreams again
I'll never wonder what I'll be
Why can't you
help me find it once again
you were never one
to give up on this town
to give up on this town
and this time everything
is gonna be alright
to give up every word
and change my life tonight
I'll change my life tonight
Lyrics submitted by xvioletxkissesx
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More Featured Meanings
Mountain Song
Jane's Addiction
Jane's Addiction
No Surprises
Radiohead
Radiohead
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.
Just A Little Lovin'
Dusty Springfield
Dusty Springfield
I don't think it's necessarily about sex. It's about wanting to start the day with some love and affection. Maybe a warm cuddle. I'm not alone in interpreting it that way! For example:
"'Just a Little Lovin’ is a timeless country song originally recorded by Eddy Arnold in 1954. The song, written by Eddie Miller and Jimmy Campbell, explores the delicate nuances of love and showcases Arnold’s emotive vocals. It delves into the universal theme of love and how even the smallest gesture of affection can have a profound impact on our lives." https://oldtimemusic.com/the-meaning-behind-the-song-just-a-little-lovin-by-eddy-arnold/
Magical
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
How would you describe the feeling of being in love? For Ed Sheeran, the word is “Magical.” in HIS three-minute album opener, he makes an attempt to capture the beauty and delicacy of true love with words. He describes the magic of it all over a bright Pop song produced by Aaron Dessner.
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.
pretty sure all these are right... the only one I'm not too sure about is "let my mouth make ?" but I'm pretty sure its pride
with that being said, this is one of their best i can see where hes coming from "and i need to get away from all the things that made me lose my mind before" and "we calmly took apart my head, ill keep you singing along for all that i can" - incredible
I can't start wishing that I went for something more but I can dream between my losing faith and now though I've got plans, I'll stay proud with every single scream I'll find my place in every city and I'll never lose my voice
I stood there counting all the days 'til I was free And I can't sleep, I'll drive those 30 miles home but I can't breathe, but I'm still proud of every single day It's something killing me again
And I need to get away from all the things that made me lose my mind before, and I know
This time everything (This time everything) Is gonna be be alright (Is goinna be be alright) Take it slow, so you know that it's real More than just tonight (Tonight, tonight) And what if every word (What if every word) Escaped my mouth tonight (Escaped my mouth tonight) And I watch as the world took its toll On my lips and my lips told my voice Not to let my mouth make pride
So what if my house is just a van and I'm in love? Would I drive a thousand miles out west to disconnect? I know I've got this in my head So what if music changed my life? Would it ever change my mind?
This time everything (This time everything) Is gonna be be alright (Is gonna be be alright) Take it slow, so you know that it's real More than just tonight (Tonight, tonight) And what if every word (What if every word) Escaped my mouth tonight (Escaped my mouth tonight) And I watch as the world took its toll On my lips and my lips told my voice Not to let my mouth make pride
We calmly took apart my head I'll keep you singing along for all that I can But I'm afraid of all the nightmares that came true But I'm just living out my dreams again I'll never wonder what I'll be
Why can't you help me find it once again? You were never one to give up on his town To give up on this town
And this time everything is gonna be alright What if every word could change my life tonight? Could change my life tonight