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."
Bat your eyes, girl
Be otherworldly
Count your blessings
Seduce a stranger
What's so wrong with being happy?
Kudos to those who see through sickness, yeah
Over and over and over and over
And ooh-ooh-ooh
When she woke in the morning
She knew that her life had passed her by
And she called out a warning
"Don't ever let life pass you by"
I suggest we
Learn to love ourselves
Before its made illegal
When will we learn? When will we change
Just in time to see it all come down
Those left standing will make millions
Writing books on the way it should have been
When she woke in the morning
She knew that her life had passed her by
And she called out a warning (warning)
"Don't ever let life pass you by"
Floating in this cosmic Jacuzzi
We are like frogs oblivious
To the water starting to boil
No one flinches, we all float face down
When she woke in the morning
She knew that her life had passed her by
And she called out a warning (warning)
"Don't ever let life pass you by"
Pass you by, oh-oh-oh
Oh-oh-oh
Oh-oh-oh
Oh-oh-oh
Be otherworldly
Count your blessings
Seduce a stranger
What's so wrong with being happy?
Kudos to those who see through sickness, yeah
Over and over and over and over
And ooh-ooh-ooh
When she woke in the morning
She knew that her life had passed her by
And she called out a warning
"Don't ever let life pass you by"
I suggest we
Learn to love ourselves
Before its made illegal
When will we learn? When will we change
Just in time to see it all come down
Those left standing will make millions
Writing books on the way it should have been
When she woke in the morning
She knew that her life had passed her by
And she called out a warning (warning)
"Don't ever let life pass you by"
Floating in this cosmic Jacuzzi
We are like frogs oblivious
To the water starting to boil
No one flinches, we all float face down
When she woke in the morning
She knew that her life had passed her by
And she called out a warning (warning)
"Don't ever let life pass you by"
Pass you by, oh-oh-oh
Oh-oh-oh
Oh-oh-oh
Oh-oh-oh
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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.
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/
Plastic Bag
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
“Plastic Bag” is a song about searching for an escape from personal problems and hoping to find it in the lively atmosphere of a Saturday night party. Ed Sheeran tells the story of his friend and the myriad of troubles he is going through. Unable to find any solutions, this friend seeks a last resort in a party and the vanity that comes with it.
“I overthink and have trouble sleepin’ / All purpose gone and don’t have a reason / And there’s no doctor to stop this bleedin’ / So I left home and jumped in the deep end,” Ed Sheeran sings in verse one. He continues by adding that this person is feeling the weight of having disappointed his father and doesn’t have any friends to rely on in this difficult moment. In the second verse, Ed sings about the role of grief in his friend’s plight and his dwindling faith in prayer. “Saturday night is givin’ me a reason to rely on the strobe lights / The lifeline of a promise in a shot glass, and I’ll take that / If you’re givin’ out love from a plastic bag,” Ed sings on the chorus, as his friend turns to new vices in hopes of feeling better.
I realize that a lot of people on here interpret the song by the video clip, but the truth is, that the producer of the clip interpreted it his own way, which in my opinion doesn’t coincide with the meaning of the song. So, 10:24 has absolutely nothing to do with this song.
This song is about global destruction. Most likely through global warming and pollution. It may sound weird but people who have the slightest idea about the meaning and consequences of environmental pollution (etc.), will understand what I’m saying.
Fist verse is about seduction. Not in a physical, sex-related way, of course. It’s about things that might make our day to day lives easier, thus are appealing to us but yet bad/damaging for our world. Like capitalism, cars/gas, fossil energy, etc. and if these things make it easier for us, why should they be bad ("what’s so wrong with being happy")? Truth is, that my interpretation of the first verse is very vague and probably not very convincing, but if we move on through the song it all makes more sense.
The chorus is about people, in this case a female, that try to warn us about how we’re destroying our own planet. So this person they talk about was initially destructive herself until she noticed the fatal results and how it is too late for her (“she knew that her life had passed her by”) and decides to warn us before it’s too late for everyone.
First three lines of the second verse tell us how we should have more respect for ourselves, that is, human kind in general, before the harmful stuff on earth “takes over”.
“When will we learn? When will we change?” <-- Referring to our selfish and wreckful habits. “Just in time to see it all come down” <-- Well, I think this could also have a question mark behind it, since throughout the song they do emphasize that it isn’t over yet.
The next two lines are the most significant for the song’s meaning. It just says that the time will come where very few people will still be conscious about the facts. And once the earth is practically already broken and destroyed those people will be the one's to write about the right things we should have done to save ourselves.
The last verse isn’t written correctly, so I will write it down:
“Floating in this cosmic Jacuzzi We are like frogs oblivious To the water starting to boil No one flinches, we all float face down”
Some of you may know that several frog-species don’t move at all when they find themselves in boiling water. That’s just a fact, not interpretation. Well, and this is applied to us: a simile that describes how we all see our world crumbling down little by little and yet we do nothing, in the end going down with it. I might even say that this can directly refer to global warming.
Ok, so this is it. Don’t take me for a crack-head, it really does make sense and from the very first time I listened to this song, I understood it this way. My father works in the environmental area, so I know what I’m talking about. I say this because a lot of people don’t realize how severely we are actually damaging our world with cars, electricity, money/capitalism, etc. And I’m also not an eco-freak, just someone very well aware of the facts. ;)
@purplePhilosophy I agree with pretty much everything you say here apart from one point. I think "She" is mother earth.
@purplePhilosophy I don't know if you'll ever see this, all these years later, but the timing was so incredible, I actually created an account just to comment here.<br /> <br /> I loved this song the first time I heard 20-odd years ago. In my youth, I took a slightly hopeful and optimistic view from this song, in an idealistic sort of way. "Warning" has remained a personal favorite over the years, one I come back to again and again. <br /> <br /> And yesterday, after falling in love with the song for the, I-don't -know-how-many time, I finally looked up the lyrics for the first time (there were some I had misunderstood) and let my brain mull them over again. Today, mere hours ago, while I was out and about,, and jamming out, their meaning hit me. And I mean, like a ton of bricks. <br /> <br /> So when I had the chance, I sat down to see what others might have thought about the subject, and happened on the eloquent post I'm responding to and yes! All of it! It was so cool to find the same thought as I was realizing it myself. Crazy it took all these years!
This song is saying don't let things oppress you. Do what makes you happy which to a certain extent is a good message
@ctartaglia2009 aaaaaand that's all about!
This song hits me hard. I am going to be 20 next month, and I feel that most of my life has been spent on a pointless "crusade". I have let my life pass me by, and now I can't ever get my last 20 years back. I had a huge slap in the face the first time I heard it. Yes, I even cried- it's beautiful.
@nietzsche_66 <br /> Dang bro now you’re 40! <br /> Still listening?
Maybe 10 : 14 is a refference to the Bible ?
"If the house is worthy, give it your blessing of peace. But if it is not worthy, take back your blessing of peace. 14"Whoever does not receive you, nor heed your words, as you go out of that house or that city, shake the dust off your feet. 15"Truly I say to you, it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment than for that city."
hey i love this song it rocks on ice! Ok so they did something different. Please don't waste space critizing unless you have the paycheck, experience, and pressure on them as they do!
this song is pretty damn fire, i was wondering if anybody has seen the video and knows the signifigance of 10:24
I think this is a great song and the video is awesome. I love Incubus and they are the greatest band. I really love this song b/c it reminds me sort of remeberd those who lost there lives on 9/11.
THIS SONG KIX FUCKING ASS!!!!!! I RESPECT BRANDON....YOU THE MAN! PEACE OUT!
This song is awesome. The video is great. I think 10:24 has something to do with when they put out their CD "Morning View". If you check CDNOW.com you will see what I mean.
i agree i think that this is a great song..but i still dont understand what the 10:24 has to do with it. i checked on cd now and i couldnt find what your talkin bout. does it have anythin to do with that 2012 AD thing where everyone is SUPPOSE to go to the next level or whatever because that is what they say in there song "A Certain Shade of Green" but i dunno i was just wonderin if someone would help me out here thanks abunch
the signifigance of 10:24 is its 4201 or 4-20. you know pot smoking time. brandon mentions it when fungus amongus came out. Its just the number the band made up. but yea otherwise its about the end of the world on december 10 2012 and she's the only one who knows it. Maybe because shes high haha o and i learned about the whole number thing because one of my friends in school is a cousin of his and i got her to ask him...peace out
So you're saying that Incubus used the time 10:24 to depict a universal smoking time (which derived from the police force FYI)...but other than that- it's about the end of the world on December 10, 2012? First off...Fungus Amongus was produced while the band was experimenting with psilocybin- not marijuana. Secondly- YOU'RE high if you believe that the significance of 10:24 is that backwards it's 4201 (a made up number). Lastly- it's December 21, 2012 (the winter solstice). One of your friends is a cousin of Brandon's and you just happened to convince her to get him to interpret his lyrics for you? I think it's about time to admit that you're a pathological liar..and further more simply put- fuckin nuts.