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 feel you far away
Your hesitation matching mine
Sadness left me far away yeah
Your contemplations turn to wine
An old man stares at me
In mutual bizarre reverie
Laugh at thy neighbor
Pretend you are sane, just the same
You survived in vain
Laugh at thy neighbor
Pretend you are sane, just the same
You survived in vain
Time is the father of existence
Rhyme, the brother of resistance
Broken down by men in their crazy mind
Void is the mother of unknown distance
Will, the sister of persistence
Stripping under the elusive sky
The potion of devotion
Euphoric scriptures of the ocean
Laugh at they neighbour
Pretend you are sane just the same
You survived in vain
Time is the father of existence
Rhyme, brother of resistance
Broken down by men in their crazy mind
Void is the mother of unknown distance
Will, the sister of persistence
Stripping under the elusive sky
I felt so alone
'Til you came into my life
And stopped the pain
I felt so alone then you came into my life
And poured the rain
I feel so alone
Dressed in the dark silk clothing of your own distain
I feel so disowned
Since your children took up arms in your own name
God name's different in every language
God name's different in every language
Imposed illusion composed dissolution
God name's different in every language
Imposed illusion composed dissolution
God name's different in every language
Your hesitation matching mine
Sadness left me far away yeah
Your contemplations turn to wine
An old man stares at me
In mutual bizarre reverie
Laugh at thy neighbor
Pretend you are sane, just the same
You survived in vain
Laugh at thy neighbor
Pretend you are sane, just the same
You survived in vain
Time is the father of existence
Rhyme, the brother of resistance
Broken down by men in their crazy mind
Void is the mother of unknown distance
Will, the sister of persistence
Stripping under the elusive sky
The potion of devotion
Euphoric scriptures of the ocean
Laugh at they neighbour
Pretend you are sane just the same
You survived in vain
Time is the father of existence
Rhyme, brother of resistance
Broken down by men in their crazy mind
Void is the mother of unknown distance
Will, the sister of persistence
Stripping under the elusive sky
I felt so alone
'Til you came into my life
And stopped the pain
I felt so alone then you came into my life
And poured the rain
I feel so alone
Dressed in the dark silk clothing of your own distain
I feel so disowned
Since your children took up arms in your own name
God name's different in every language
God name's different in every language
Imposed illusion composed dissolution
God name's different in every language
Imposed illusion composed dissolution
God name's different in every language
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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.
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/
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.
I feel this song has a strong contrast with other songs on the album - especially Borders Are. We can look at this song as two (neighboring or not) countries, separated by either a border or a long distance.
In fact, if you read the lyrics, thinking of this song as a country singing to/about another country (for example United States singing to Iraq, Israel singing to Pakistan, North Korea singing to South Korea, or vice versa).
The two countries are essentially the same - we're all people, with rights, feelings and religion - but won't admit it. We will always believe we are better than the other one, laughing at our neighbor and pretend we're the ones who are sane, though we're essentially the same.
We all exist in the same time, but in different space. We therefore all have the same father, but due to the void that is our mother, we're distant from each other. So, we're all brother and sisters, but we resist the fact that we're the same - we're persistent in our belief that we're not.
Now we turn to the other country, singing to the first one. It felt so alone before you came and stopped the pain, but eventually made the rain pour on them. Now it feels alone again, because of your disdain. Your children - your people - decided to start a war against it in your name.
But the conclusion is, that the fact that we're different is merely an illusion. We're all the same, though we don't necessarily give our gods the same name - we're all human beings, why can't we accept that?
agree, separation is the greatest illusion
@singdongdingdong thank you<br />