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 feel so unsure
As I take your hand and lead you to the dance floor
As the music dies
Something in your eyes
Calls to mind a silver screen
And all it's sad goodbyes
I'm never going to dance again
These guilty feet have got no rhythm
Though it's easy to pretend
I know you're not a fool
I should have known better than to cheat a friend
And waste a chance that I've been given
So I'm never going to dance again
The way I danced with you
Oh
Time can never mend
The careless whispers of a good friend
To the heart and mind
Ignorance is kind
There's no comfort in the truth
Pain is all you'll find
I'm never going to dance again
These guilty feet have got no rhythm
Though it's easy to pretend
I know you're not a fool
I should have known better than to cheat a friend
And waste a chance that I've been given
So I'm never going to dance again
The way I danced with you
Oh
Tonight the music seems so loud
I wish that we could lose this crowd
Maybe it's better this way
We've hurt each other with the things we want to say
We could have been so good together
We could have lived this dance forever
Now who's going to dance with me?
Please stay
I'm never going to dance again
These guilty feet have got no rhythm
Though it's easy to pretend
I know you're not a fool
I should have known better than to cheat a friend
And waste a chance that I've been given
So I'm never going to dance again
The way I danced with you
Oh
Oh oh, oh oh, oh oh
Oh oh, oh oh, oh oh
Oh oh, oh oh, oh oh
As I take your hand and lead you to the dance floor
As the music dies
Something in your eyes
Calls to mind a silver screen
And all it's sad goodbyes
I'm never going to dance again
These guilty feet have got no rhythm
Though it's easy to pretend
I know you're not a fool
I should have known better than to cheat a friend
And waste a chance that I've been given
So I'm never going to dance again
The way I danced with you
Oh
Time can never mend
The careless whispers of a good friend
To the heart and mind
Ignorance is kind
There's no comfort in the truth
Pain is all you'll find
I'm never going to dance again
These guilty feet have got no rhythm
Though it's easy to pretend
I know you're not a fool
I should have known better than to cheat a friend
And waste a chance that I've been given
So I'm never going to dance again
The way I danced with you
Oh
Tonight the music seems so loud
I wish that we could lose this crowd
Maybe it's better this way
We've hurt each other with the things we want to say
We could have been so good together
We could have lived this dance forever
Now who's going to dance with me?
Please stay
I'm never going to dance again
These guilty feet have got no rhythm
Though it's easy to pretend
I know you're not a fool
I should have known better than to cheat a friend
And waste a chance that I've been given
So I'm never going to dance again
The way I danced with you
Oh
Oh oh, oh oh, oh oh
Oh oh, oh oh, oh oh
Oh oh, oh oh, oh oh
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
I Can't Go To Sleep
Wu-Tang Clan
Wu-Tang Clan
This song is written as the perspective of the boys in the street, as a whole, and what path they are going to choose as they get older and grow into men. (This is why the music video takes place in an orphanage.) The seen, and unseen collective suffering is imbedded in the boys’ mind, consciously or subconsciously, and is haunting them. Which path will the boys choose? Issac Hayes is the voice of reason, maybe God, the angel on his shoulder, or the voice of his forefathers from beyond the grave who can see the big picture and are pleading with the boys not to continue the violence and pattern of killing their brothers, but to rise above. The most beautiful song and has so many levels. Racism towards African Americans in America would not exist if everyone sat down and listened to this song and understood the history behind the words. The power, fear, pleading in RZA and Ghostface voices are genuine and powerful. Issac Hayes’ strong voice makes the perfect strong father figure, who is possibly from beyond the grave.
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/
Amazing
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran tells a story of unsuccessfully trying to feel “Amazing.” This track is about the being weighed down by emotional stress despite valiant attempts to find some positivity in the situation. This track was written by Ed Sheeran from the perspective of his friend. From the track, we see this person fall deeper into the negative thoughts and slide further down the path of mental torment with every lyric.
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.
Interpretations vary. To me, this song starts off by saying that the narrator cheats on his gf, after a while, he remembers he has a lover and the guilts start up. he feels that the girl knows he has a girlfriend and she's pretending she doesn't know anything. he knows she's not stupid. he starts to remember how much his girlfriend really likes him, and how lucky he is to have someone like that and how foolish he is to have thrown all of that away for something temporary. he decides to tell his girlfriend what had happened and she makes it seem that she took it well and didn't cry or say something like, "how could you?" but something more like, "it's okay, it happens." so now he can't comfort her. but the truth is both of them are feeling this massive pain inside of them. He remembers how fortunate he was, and wonders what he would do without her. he wishes there was nothing else in the world besides them so they can fix things. then he wonders if that really would be best or if everything happened for a reason. They both have hid things from eachother and they felt that they sensed something when they didn't. so with all that guilt accumilating, the only one's they really hurt was themselves. they could have made the best of their relationship and could've stayed for a longer time, but they didn't. he wishes she would've stayed and wonders if anyone will ever love him as much as she did. he wonders whyy she really left him. did she not know that he could fix/learn from his mistakes? afterall, he is human just like she is. so he asks her, "Now that youre gone... Was what I did so wrong? So wrong that you had to leave me alone?" because he is wondering if that was the real reason that she had broken up with him, or was there something else that she is not telling him?
hmmphh. basically, i think it's making it seem at first as if the narrator has the fault, but towards the end, it reveals that the lover isn't too inocent.
i'm only 14. I tried my best. :D
myspace.com/dorkster4
i think thats write, but dude just so you know, the original person who wrote it, george michaels, was gay.
haha just shows how much I know. (:
my jaw hit the floor after reading this comment, bleenapple. Its like you went inside my head and picked this out from everything else roaming around up there. When i listen to this song it makes me feel exactly the way you just described it. I did those exact things, cheated, lied and kinda got what i deserved. but im still left here wondering, did she know? why did she take the news so well? questions never cease to come up in my mind, they will never get answered, but this song helps a little bit. Great song seether.
my jaw hit the floor after reading this comment, bleenapple. Its like you went inside my head and picked this out from everything else roaming around up there. When i listen to this song it makes me feel exactly the way you just described it. I did those exact things, cheated, lied and kinda got what i deserved. but im still left here wondering, did she know? why did she take the news so well? questions never cease to come up in my mind, they will never get answered, but this song helps a little bit. Great song seether.
Excellent interpretation! I'm impressed that this came from a 14-year-old. I'm teaching eighth grade English and wanted to use this song as an example of metaphor, but was worried that it would be too difficult for my kids to relate to. Good job, you'd make your English teacher proud, kiddo. :)
Me too impressed that this came from a 14 year old friend. This is one song I have gone word by word but have always confused the meaning. I really want to understand this once more. So bleenapple could you re narrate again by using gf #1 & gf #2 because that is not clear in the explanation or may be I am dumb :)
thanks lovesickened. I just snagged these lyrics from elsewhere and didn't have time to edit them, but I'll be sure to fix them.
and yes I lovee this version. I've heard the original and I like it, and I really love how Shaun put his own singing style into it, (most people that do covers sing the same exact way) but I guess it's just being a good singer.
Anywho, the song's about looking back on what happened in the relationship (the narrator cheated on their spouse).
i think this song is about i guy who is in love with one of his friends and wants to tell them but is worried that it would ruin their friendship but in the end does it anyway and it kills their relationship
i totally agree and i think that it could also be one of his friends' girl.
This is seriously the best "Careless Whisper" cover that I've heard. Better than the others by far, in my opinion.
Not to sound like my mother, but original still beats this cover and all other rock covers. This is a remorseful song, not an embittered one. And since when does saxophone and beautiful, spine-tingling tenor beat guitar and whatever you call what Shaun is doing. I listened to this song three times and still can't place it. I love Seether's music, I honestly do, but they could have done way better covering this. They don't do the song any justice! If you are trying to get kids of today to learn about the old school stuff, then this is a great learning tool, seriously. If not for sx3 and punk covers of old school rap songs, I wouldn't listen to them.
But let's do better, yes? I can't believe I'm saying this, but I grew up with this song (I'm 17) and love rock and metal, but hate this cover.
I feel this sing is deeper than, "The one that got away" and is more like, "I just fucked this shit up and I really feel bad about it now. Damn, things will never be the same." I imagine that maybe the narrator hooked up with his best friend's girl and tried to play it off like his friend couldn't tell. However, friend is no fool and doesn't appreciate what happened, especially since they were so tight. Friendship ruined and the narrator feels like a douchebag, regretting his actions. Dancing is a metaphor here, as stated previously, and the gender is interchangeable, so have fun with that.
This cover is honestly amazing, amazing, amazing. I liked the original George Michael version, but I honestly like the Seether version better. They put a deep, emotional spin on the original.
Just a few corrections that I noticed:
Chorus should be "I should have KNOWN better than to cheat a friend."
Second verse line should be "To the heart and mind, IGNORANCE IS kind."
I love the Seether version waaaay more than the original. It's really amazing man!
seether version is way better then the wham! version, seether fucking rocks
tbis is possibly the greatest song of the new millenium and its a cover.
A.M.A.Z.I.N.G.
lovin it!