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."
Intense silence
As she walked in the room
Her black robes trailing
Sister of the moon
And a black widow spider makes
More sound than she
And black moons in those eyes of hers
Made more sense to me
Heavy persuasion
It was hard to breathe
She was dark at the top of the stairs
And she called to me
And so I followed
As friends often do
I cared not for love, nor money
I think she knew
The people, they love her
And still they are the most cruel
She asked me
Be my sister, sister of the moon
Some call her sister of the moon
Some say illusions are her game
Wrap her in velvet
Does anyone, ah, know her name
So we make our choices
When there is no choice
And we listen to their voices
Ignoring our own voice
As she walked in the room
Her black robes trailing
Sister of the moon
And a black widow spider makes
More sound than she
And black moons in those eyes of hers
Made more sense to me
Heavy persuasion
It was hard to breathe
She was dark at the top of the stairs
And she called to me
And so I followed
As friends often do
I cared not for love, nor money
I think she knew
The people, they love her
And still they are the most cruel
She asked me
Be my sister, sister of the moon
Some call her sister of the moon
Some say illusions are her game
Wrap her in velvet
Does anyone, ah, know her name
So we make our choices
When there is no choice
And we listen to their voices
Ignoring our own voice
Lyrics submitted by oofus
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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.
Trouble Breathing
Alkaline Trio
Alkaline Trio
While the obvious connections with suicide or alcoholism could be drawn easily, more subtly this song could be about someone who views the world through a negative lens constantly and how as much as the writer tries to show the beauty in the world, this person refuses to see it. It's one or another between the rope and the bottle. There is no good option for this person. They can't see it. Skiba sings it in a kind of exasperated way like He's tired of hearing this negative view constantly and just allowing that person to continue feeling the way they feel knowing he can't do anything about it. You can hear it when he says maybe you're a vampire.
Another Love
Tom Odell
Tom Odell
I think the meaning is pretty clear. This person got really burned in a previous relationship, and because of this is unable to love and show care in his present one, even though he so badly wants to. It's lovely song, and very sad. You can really feel how defeated and frustrated he is with himself.
Sunglasses at Night
Corey Hart
Corey Hart
In the 1980s, sunglasses were a common fashion for people who wanted to adopt a "tough guy" persona (note all the cop shows from that era -- Simon & Simon, Miami Vice, etc. -- where the lead characters wore shades). So I think this song is about a guy who wears shades as a way of hiding his insecurity after learning that his girlfriend is cheating on him. He's trying to pretend that he's a "tough guy" to hide the fact that his girlfriend's affair is disturbing him.
I also think this is Stevie writing about herself. Like lots of artists, she had to come to grips with the gap between the stage persona she created, and the public's perception of that image. "The people, they love her / but still they're the most cruel" is the one line that sums up the psychology behind the song for me.
There was silly public speculation in the late 1970s that Stevie practiced witchcraft. (In case you weren't around at the time, some right-wing religious groups could get very scary with those kind of accusations on TV.) Stevie started wearing pastel colors instead of black, put her hair up in a bun, started dancing on stage instead of twirling (check out videos made during the TUSK tour) .... all to counter those silly accusations.
"Sisters" IS scary and gothic-sounding. The power chords are awesome, the closest FM ever came to heavy metal. Lindsay's guitar solo sounds like a screaming voice. Stevie's confronting the public rumors about her image, and the trouble they caused for her fans and herself. It's both a defense and a rallying cry - a self-parody and an anthem.
That's what I have just found at some Nick's site: About the Song About: A bad mood
A lyrically enigmatic Stevie contribution, with a guitar solo by Lindsey that’s reminiscent of “The Chain,” this was a surprise addition to the set on the band’s spectacularly successful 2014/15 reunion tour.
Stevie: “I honestly don’t know what the hell this song is about. I’ve been singing it on tour for the last two and a half years, and every time I’m thinking, What the hell is that? I think it was me putting up an alter ego or something, the dark lady in the corner, and there’s a Gemini twin thing. It wasn’t a love song; it wasn’t written about a man, or anything precious. It was just about a feeling I might have had over a couple days, going inward in my gnarly trollness. Makes no sense. Perfect for this record!”
But in another Interview she said that this song is also about the situation when she looked in the mirror and spotted herself as a very thin and almost dying person, here's a part of her comment: “I walked out in front of a mirror and looked at myself,” Nicks said during a 1979 radio interview with Jim Ladd. “And I was sick. I went, ‘Oh, poor sad little thing. She must be dying.'” Yeah, her both bad physical and mental conditions were because of hardship of touring and she even didn't sleep and eat much.
Gosh I have no idea what this song is really supposed to be about - except the literal interpretation of some gothic-type woman that Stevie is describing. Beautiful song though.
I can't say for sure...but watching Stevie perform this song drugged out of her mind makes me think this is about drug addiction.
This "sister of the moon" in the dark robes is cocaine (Stevie's drug of choice). The drug calls to her and Stevie cannot break free. "Illusions are her game," "so we make our choices when there is no choice..." Yeah, I'd almost bet money on this being about drugs.
I don't see any reason why something described as being in "dark robes" would be cocaine.
I'm inclined to think Stevie Nicks is writing about her own witchy woman stage persona.
What a trippy song.....This Stevie singing about Stevie ...
I think this song is about a person looking at the darker side of themselves. I think its about the fight for it to prevail and ultimately it wins...
Witches