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."
Ooh, yeah
I did my time, and I want out
So effusive, fade, it doesn't cut
The soul is not so vibrant
The reckoning, the sickening
Packaging subversion
Pseudo sacrosanct perversion
Go drill your deserts
Go dig your graves
Then fill your mouth with all the money you will save
Sinking in, getting smaller again
I'm done, it has begun
I'm not the only one
And the rain will kill us all
Throw ourselves against the wall
But no one else can see
The preservation of the martyr in me
Psychosocial
Psychosocial
Psychosocial
Psychosocial
Psychosocial
Psychosocial
Oh, there are cracks in the road we laid
But where the temple fell
The secrets have gone mad
This is nothing new
But when we killed it all
The hate was all we had
Who needs another mess?
We could start over
Just look me in the eyes and say I'm wrong
Now there's only emptiness
Venomous, insipid
I think we're done
I'm not the only one
And the rain will kill us all
Throw ourselves against the wall
But no one else can see
The preservation of the martyr in me
Psychosocial
Psychosocial
Psychosocial
Psychosocial
Psychosocial
Psychosocial
The limits of the dead
The limits of the dead
The limits of the dead
The limits of the dead
Fake anti-fascist lie (psychosocial)
I tried to tell you but (psychosocial)
Your purple hearts are giving out (psychosocial)
Can't stop a killing idea (psychosocial)
If it's hunting season (psychosocial)
Is this what you want? (Psychosocial)
I'm not the only one
And the rain will kill us all
Throw ourselves against the wall
But no one else can see
The preservation of the martyr in me
And the rain will kill us all
Throw ourselves against the wall
But no one else can see
The preservation of the martyr in me
The limits of the dead
The limits of the dead
I did my time, and I want out
So effusive, fade, it doesn't cut
The soul is not so vibrant
The reckoning, the sickening
Packaging subversion
Pseudo sacrosanct perversion
Go drill your deserts
Go dig your graves
Then fill your mouth with all the money you will save
Sinking in, getting smaller again
I'm done, it has begun
I'm not the only one
And the rain will kill us all
Throw ourselves against the wall
But no one else can see
The preservation of the martyr in me
Psychosocial
Psychosocial
Psychosocial
Psychosocial
Psychosocial
Psychosocial
Oh, there are cracks in the road we laid
But where the temple fell
The secrets have gone mad
This is nothing new
But when we killed it all
The hate was all we had
Who needs another mess?
We could start over
Just look me in the eyes and say I'm wrong
Now there's only emptiness
Venomous, insipid
I think we're done
I'm not the only one
And the rain will kill us all
Throw ourselves against the wall
But no one else can see
The preservation of the martyr in me
Psychosocial
Psychosocial
Psychosocial
Psychosocial
Psychosocial
Psychosocial
The limits of the dead
The limits of the dead
The limits of the dead
The limits of the dead
Fake anti-fascist lie (psychosocial)
I tried to tell you but (psychosocial)
Your purple hearts are giving out (psychosocial)
Can't stop a killing idea (psychosocial)
If it's hunting season (psychosocial)
Is this what you want? (Psychosocial)
I'm not the only one
And the rain will kill us all
Throw ourselves against the wall
But no one else can see
The preservation of the martyr in me
And the rain will kill us all
Throw ourselves against the wall
But no one else can see
The preservation of the martyr in me
The limits of the dead
The limits of the dead
Lyrics submitted by Haunted Devil
Psychosocial Lyrics as written by Corey Taylor Christopher Fehn
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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The song seems to be critical of both the way the world works and, to a lesser extent, the failure of religion to give us an answer as to why. Bear with me:
I did my time, and I want out. So effusive - fade - it doesn't cut. The soul is not so vibrant. The reckoning, the sickening. Packaging subversion. Pseudo sacrosanct perversion. Go drill your deserts, go dig you graves. Then fill your mouth with all the money you have saved. Sinking in, getting smaller again. I'm done, it has begun. I'm not the only one.
(I've been a part of this consumerist paradise for too long, and now I want something real. I've realised that there's more to life than money, and I'm not the only one)
And the rain will kill us all. We throw ourselves against the wall. But no-one else can see, the preservation of the martyr in me.
(Yes, we will die no matter what we do, but nobody realises how willing I am to die to prove a point. We're not invincible, and your life should be spent LIVING rather than EARNING.)
Psychosocial! Psychosocial! Psychosocial! Psychosocial! Psychosocial! Psychosocial!
Oh, there are cracks in the road we laid. But where the temple fell. The secrets have gone mad. This is nothing new, but when we kill it all. The hate was all we had. Who needs another mess? We could start over. Just look me in the eyes and say I'm wrong. Now there's only emptiness. Venomous, insepid. I think we're done, I'm not the only one.
(In the past we've looked to religion for answers, but when we realised how fruitless it was and abandoned our religions, all we had left was hatred of our world. You can't deny that we could ALL make a concerted effort to make the world a better place, but you'll never do it because you love your money too much. Because of greed, the world is a grim place, filled with hate and stupidity. I'm sick of it, and I'm not the only one.)
Fake anti-facist lie. I tried to tell you, but your purple hearts are giving out. Can't stop a killing idea if it's hunting season. Is this what you want? I'm not the only one!
(You compare our democracy to extreme forms of government so we'll think we have it better than anyone else, but it's obvious a few rich elites REALLY rule this place. I've tried to warn people, but they'd rather not hear the truth. We're all looking for an answer, and you can't stop people believing what's most convenient for them. Is to continue to be lied to and led what you REALLY want? I'm not the only one who's sick of this.)
At least, this is my interpretation. I could always be wrong.