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."
'Cause he's still coming around like an injured bird needing a nest
A place to rest his head in a song you'll regret
Still you take him, Lord knows I don't want to compete
Still I sleep in the very sheets he's been in
Swallow him whole like a pill that makes you choke, it steals your soul
You have the nerve to look me in the eyes and lie
Send him back, I won't share the trap that you have me in
Is he still coming around like an injured bird needing a nest?
A place to rest his head in a song you'll regret
Still you take him, Lord knows I don't want to compete
Still I sleep in the very sheets he's been in
Swallow him whole like a pill that makes you choke, steals your soul
You have the nerve to look me in the eyes and lie
Send him back, I won't share the trap that you have me in
(Still I sleep in the very sheets he's been in)
A place to rest his head in a song you'll regret
Still you take him, Lord knows I don't want to compete
Still I sleep in the very sheets he's been in
Swallow him whole like a pill that makes you choke, it steals your soul
You have the nerve to look me in the eyes and lie
Send him back, I won't share the trap that you have me in
Is he still coming around like an injured bird needing a nest?
A place to rest his head in a song you'll regret
Still you take him, Lord knows I don't want to compete
Still I sleep in the very sheets he's been in
Swallow him whole like a pill that makes you choke, steals your soul
You have the nerve to look me in the eyes and lie
Send him back, I won't share the trap that you have me in
(Still I sleep in the very sheets he's been in)
Lyrics submitted by tbc, edited by RavenclawAthenaGirl, dctucker, sir7713027, twpercy
Sheets Lyrics as written by Damien Jurado
Lyrics © SC PUBLISHING DBA SECRETLY CANADIAN PUB.
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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.
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.
Page
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
There aren’t many things that’ll hurt more than giving love a chance against your better judgement only to have your heart crushed yet again. Ed Sheeran tells such a story on “Page.” On this track, he is devastated to have lost his lover and even more saddened by the feeling that he may never move on from this.
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.
It's not "I'll share the trap that you have me in". It's "I won't share the trap you have me in". Listen closely, and think about the meaning!
Agreed! She's like a fisherman that's caught these two fish (the guys) in a trap, and he's telling her to send the one back to the water so he doesn't have to share the trap with this other guy.
His lover is lying to him by claiming to be sexually faithful. "sheets he's been in" "swallow him whole like a pill that makes you choke and stills your soul" "still you take him"
He's giving her a chance to "send him back", though.
Best song off the new album. If you listen carefully with headphones you can hear Damien whispering the lyrics over his own vocals. A masterpiece!
oh i always thought it was "steals your soul"? anyway amazing lyrics and feel. thank god for the existance of damien
I agree - I think it's "steals your soul".
It certainly is an amazing song. I can't stop listening to it.
There's not many "male specific" songs out there about heartbreak. This one captures it perfectly.
INDEED.
I first heard this song after watching a video of him performing it on youtube and it just blew my mind. Awesome!
I think the word amazing is used too much, but I guess there is no other word this kind of song:) It really is amazing.
I played this song over and over and sang it very loud to someone I knew was cheating on me and didn't tell me showing them I knew about it this song is so beautiful
its really powerful and i think it is about either someone being cheated on or someone who is the cheaters lover as in he is shagging the girl and she wont leave her partner because he "stills her soul" but not likely because she looks him in the eye and "lies" but people lie about relationships so mabye
I actually think this song is about being with someone who is still broken up over a lost love. He is sleeping in the same sheets because she still hasn't changed them, because she still isn't over that relationship. He broke her up, and she left him, but he keeps coming around and she just can't let him go entirely.