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'm in love with the night
Every breath of this house creaking
I'm familiar with the cold and the windows and the doors
And the sound of my heart beating
Beating in and out of time
And it's such a shame
I heard the wind say this morning
Be still my heart
I age by years at the mention of your name
What a pity this season
You remember me, my lover
I don't recognize myself
I'm not the man you love
Behold the hurricane
Behold the hurricane
I walk around these empty rooms
We once moved like the morning
Silhouettes they haunt this house
Like a memory haunts me now
As if it were a dream
As if it were a dream
And it's such a shame
I heard the wind say this morning
Be still my heart
I age by years at the mention of your name
What a pity this season
You remember me, my lover
I don't recognize myself
I'm not the man you love
Behold the hurricane
Behold the hurricane
I heard the moon has visions of her nightly
I heard the mighty rivers cry out her
I saw the heaven and the earth
I saw the heavens and the earth cry alone to you
And it's such a shame
I heard the wind say this morning
Be still my heart
I age by years at the mention of your name
What a pity this season
You remember me, my lover
I don't recognize myself
I'm not the man you love
Behold the hurricane
Behold the hurricane
Every breath of this house creaking
I'm familiar with the cold and the windows and the doors
And the sound of my heart beating
Beating in and out of time
And it's such a shame
I heard the wind say this morning
Be still my heart
I age by years at the mention of your name
What a pity this season
You remember me, my lover
I don't recognize myself
I'm not the man you love
Behold the hurricane
Behold the hurricane
I walk around these empty rooms
We once moved like the morning
Silhouettes they haunt this house
Like a memory haunts me now
As if it were a dream
As if it were a dream
And it's such a shame
I heard the wind say this morning
Be still my heart
I age by years at the mention of your name
What a pity this season
You remember me, my lover
I don't recognize myself
I'm not the man you love
Behold the hurricane
Behold the hurricane
I heard the moon has visions of her nightly
I heard the mighty rivers cry out her
I saw the heaven and the earth
I saw the heavens and the earth cry alone to you
And it's such a shame
I heard the wind say this morning
Be still my heart
I age by years at the mention of your name
What a pity this season
You remember me, my lover
I don't recognize myself
I'm not the man you love
Behold the hurricane
Behold the hurricane
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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.
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.
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.
Honestly, in my opinion this song I feel has a double meaning. The lyrics reflect on a past relationship with a serious couple who lived together and she is no longer around. The man walks around his cold, empty house, where he and his ex once "once moved like the morning" seeing silhouettes that make him uneasy and feel as if the past and their time together was a dream. But the chorus to me reflects positive winds of change. He's starting to get over the break up. It's such a shame, but he's telling his heart to slow down and relax. The memories of her still are painful but he doesn't recognize himself in that he's no longer than man she loved. The winds of change (behold the hurricane) are starting to change him. He is no longer the man she loved, he is a different person, and sure winds of change can be scary and destructive like a hurricane; but I feel that the song precedes good things to come.
the end:
"at the door the leaves had fallen suddenly i realized that you were gone suddenly i realize that you were gone"
This is a sad song about a man who's life is falling apart and he doesn't know where to turn. The film that goes with it can be found on The Horrible Crowes' website.
"I don't recognize myself I'm not the man you love Behold the hurricane" - I've got a feeling he's referring to to that quote by Haruki Murakami - “When you come out of the storm, you won’t be the same person who walked in. That’s what this storm’s all about.” or it might just be a coincidence, but either way I think the "hurricane" refers to his lover and now he's left to deal with the wreckage. Truly one of the best tracks on Elsie.
Does anyone know what the words are at the end of the song?
"When all the lines are drawn, and the leaves have fallen. Suddenly I realized that you were gone, suddenly I realized that you were gone."
Lyrically one of Brian’s best songs!
Lyrically one of Brian’s best songs!
Lyrically one of Brian’s best songs!