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."
Everybody's talking about a new beginning
A new place to drink in, a fast new boyfriend.
A new science for a brand new century
A message to the future, electronic holiday
Let the clock roll.
So let the clock (the question is why)
Roll (the stars in the sky)
Clock hits midnight
Devils hitting midnight
We hit midnight
New Year - everything's goine quiet
Everybody's talking about a new space station
Your teeth falling out in the radiation
All your insurance and all your air miles
In gigantic computer millenium violence
Let the clock roll
So let the clock (the word is out now)
Roll (the sky's falling down)
Clock hits midnight
Devils hitting midnight
We hit midnight
New Year - everything's gone quiet
Everybody suddenly thinks its underground to get into bands that split up in the Sixties.
Burn up that software, Learn that Guitar and get on the radio in America, Yeah!
Clock hits midnight
Devils hitting midnight
We hit midnight
New Year - everything's gone quiet
Clock hits midnight
Devils hitting midnight
Rip it up midnight
New Year - everything's gone quiet
A new place to drink in, a fast new boyfriend.
A new science for a brand new century
A message to the future, electronic holiday
Let the clock roll.
So let the clock (the question is why)
Roll (the stars in the sky)
Clock hits midnight
Devils hitting midnight
We hit midnight
New Year - everything's goine quiet
Everybody's talking about a new space station
Your teeth falling out in the radiation
All your insurance and all your air miles
In gigantic computer millenium violence
Let the clock roll
So let the clock (the word is out now)
Roll (the sky's falling down)
Clock hits midnight
Devils hitting midnight
We hit midnight
New Year - everything's gone quiet
Everybody suddenly thinks its underground to get into bands that split up in the Sixties.
Burn up that software, Learn that Guitar and get on the radio in America, Yeah!
Clock hits midnight
Devils hitting midnight
We hit midnight
New Year - everything's gone quiet
Clock hits midnight
Devils hitting midnight
Rip it up midnight
New Year - everything's gone quiet
Add your thoughts
Log in now to tell us what you think this song means.
Don’t have an account? Create an account with SongMeanings to post comments, submit lyrics, and more. It’s super easy, we promise!
More Featured Meanings
Mountain Song
Jane's Addiction
Jane's Addiction
When We Were Young
Blink-182
Blink-182
This is a sequel to 2001's "Reckless Abandon", and features the band looking back on their clumsy youth fondly.
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.
Head > Heels
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
“Head > Heels” is a track that aims to capture what it feels like to experience romance that exceeds expectations. Ed Sheeran dedicates his album outro to a lover who has blessed him with a unique experience that he seeks to describe through the song’s nuanced lyrics.
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.