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."
These things just took over me
Just took over my whole body
So I can't even see no more
I'm calling my black woman a bitch
I'm calling my peoples all kinds of thing that they not
I'm lost brother, can you help me
Can you help me brother, please
You see what we did, we lost the love
I'm talking 'bout the love
The love of your own
But brother, but brother, but brother, check this out
I still don't understand man, I'm all high off this shit man
Well, what I'm trying to say my brother
Why, why do we kill each other
Look at our children, what kind of a future
This is the training thats gonna be given to you
By the Wu, brothers and sisters
The revolution, the revolution
It's time to rise, and take our place
Will be televised, televised
So we can inherit the universe
The planet earth belongs to God
This is ninety, ninety, ninety-seven
Every square inch of it
That he chose for himself
Is the best part
Yeah, the revolution should be, televised)
By every strong woman
To the highest power
You'll find a strong man
And by every strong man
You'll find a strong woman
Wont you agree
The universe is not completed
Without the sun, moon, and stars
Wont you be for real
Thats man, woman, and child
To the highest power
To all you fake ass niggas who
Think you gonna survive out here
Without your black woman, you're wrong
They have attraction powers on the planet
I wanna be free
We are original man, the Asiatic black man
The maker, the arthur, the cream of the planet earth
Wanna be free, yeah
Father of civilization and daughter of the universe
Want to be free, oh yeah
The population was seventeen men
With the two man indians
Making a total of nineteen men for all
Being, for all men, all over the planet earth
Magneta, magneta, magneta, Wu revolution king yeah
Arise you gods, cause the time for the revolutional war
Thats the mental war
Malcolm X, Malcolm X, Malcolm X
Thats the battle between god and devil
Gonna be free
Take the devil off your plane
Take him off your mental mentality
Take him off your brain
Make a change, from my mind
Leave all the ciggarettes and guns
The alcohol and everything
Thats the mental devil that exists within your body
Take this pain
Thats destroying and decaying your mind
Take these chains, off my mind
The mind controls the body
Everything within must come out
Want to be free
Don't look towards the sky
Cause there's no heaven above
Don't look down beneath your feet
There's no hell below
Want to be free
But heaven and hell exist within
Heaven is what you make it and
Hell is what you're going through
There is only one, god
There is a whole new one, faith
There is a holy one
World, revolution yeah
At one time it was told to me
Yeah
That man came from monkeys, ha ha ha
That we was swinging from trees
I hardly can believe that unless
I'm dumb deaf and blind
Save the children
You ever heard about the ape man
Gonna be free
And the ape woman
Hey, want to be free
You have a mankind
That has a beginning to him
And its ending is about to come
Oooh, yeah
If you take one step
I will take one with you
Through the stormy vein
Swim the deepest sea, with you my brother
I know, you got to be strong
Gotta hold on
Now the story is about to close
It was a hundred percent of us
Save the children
That came on the slave ships
Eighty five percent of our future
They're our future
Was uncivilized
Poison animal eaters
They're slaves of the mental powers
Save the children
They don't know who the true living god is
And all the orchards in the world
Save the children
So they worship what they know not
And let evil lead them in the wrong direction
Far fewer men than right
Now you got the ten percent
Who are rich slave niggas of the poor
Who teach the poor lies
To make the people believe
That the old mighty true living god
Is a spook in the sky
Save the children
And you can't see him with the physical eyes
They're also known as blood suckers of the poor
Save the children
And then you got the five percent
Who are the poor rightous people who do not believe
The teachers of the ten percent
Save the children
Who is all wise and know that the true
And living god, and teach that the true
And living god is supreme being black
Man from within
Otherwise known as civilized people
Also Muslims, and Muslims sons
Peace we out
I have given it much thought
It seems, disaster must come
At best, only postponed
Shaolin Kung-Fu to survive
Must now be taught to more young men
We must expand, get more pupils
So that the knowledge will spreads
Just took over my whole body
So I can't even see no more
I'm calling my black woman a bitch
I'm calling my peoples all kinds of thing that they not
I'm lost brother, can you help me
Can you help me brother, please
You see what we did, we lost the love
I'm talking 'bout the love
The love of your own
But brother, but brother, but brother, check this out
I still don't understand man, I'm all high off this shit man
Well, what I'm trying to say my brother
Why, why do we kill each other
Look at our children, what kind of a future
This is the training thats gonna be given to you
By the Wu, brothers and sisters
The revolution, the revolution
It's time to rise, and take our place
Will be televised, televised
So we can inherit the universe
The planet earth belongs to God
This is ninety, ninety, ninety-seven
Every square inch of it
That he chose for himself
Is the best part
Yeah, the revolution should be, televised)
By every strong woman
To the highest power
You'll find a strong man
And by every strong man
You'll find a strong woman
Wont you agree
The universe is not completed
Without the sun, moon, and stars
Wont you be for real
Thats man, woman, and child
To the highest power
To all you fake ass niggas who
Think you gonna survive out here
Without your black woman, you're wrong
They have attraction powers on the planet
I wanna be free
We are original man, the Asiatic black man
The maker, the arthur, the cream of the planet earth
Wanna be free, yeah
Father of civilization and daughter of the universe
Want to be free, oh yeah
The population was seventeen men
With the two man indians
Making a total of nineteen men for all
Being, for all men, all over the planet earth
Magneta, magneta, magneta, Wu revolution king yeah
Arise you gods, cause the time for the revolutional war
Thats the mental war
Malcolm X, Malcolm X, Malcolm X
Thats the battle between god and devil
Gonna be free
Take the devil off your plane
Take him off your mental mentality
Take him off your brain
Make a change, from my mind
Leave all the ciggarettes and guns
The alcohol and everything
Thats the mental devil that exists within your body
Take this pain
Thats destroying and decaying your mind
Take these chains, off my mind
The mind controls the body
Everything within must come out
Want to be free
Don't look towards the sky
Cause there's no heaven above
Don't look down beneath your feet
There's no hell below
Want to be free
But heaven and hell exist within
Heaven is what you make it and
Hell is what you're going through
There is only one, god
There is a whole new one, faith
There is a holy one
World, revolution yeah
At one time it was told to me
Yeah
That man came from monkeys, ha ha ha
That we was swinging from trees
I hardly can believe that unless
I'm dumb deaf and blind
Save the children
You ever heard about the ape man
Gonna be free
And the ape woman
Hey, want to be free
You have a mankind
That has a beginning to him
And its ending is about to come
Oooh, yeah
If you take one step
I will take one with you
Through the stormy vein
Swim the deepest sea, with you my brother
I know, you got to be strong
Gotta hold on
Now the story is about to close
It was a hundred percent of us
Save the children
That came on the slave ships
Eighty five percent of our future
They're our future
Was uncivilized
Poison animal eaters
They're slaves of the mental powers
Save the children
They don't know who the true living god is
And all the orchards in the world
Save the children
So they worship what they know not
And let evil lead them in the wrong direction
Far fewer men than right
Now you got the ten percent
Who are rich slave niggas of the poor
Who teach the poor lies
To make the people believe
That the old mighty true living god
Is a spook in the sky
Save the children
And you can't see him with the physical eyes
They're also known as blood suckers of the poor
Save the children
And then you got the five percent
Who are the poor rightous people who do not believe
The teachers of the ten percent
Save the children
Who is all wise and know that the true
And living god, and teach that the true
And living god is supreme being black
Man from within
Otherwise known as civilized people
Also Muslims, and Muslims sons
Peace we out
I have given it much thought
It seems, disaster must come
At best, only postponed
Shaolin Kung-Fu to survive
Must now be taught to more young men
We must expand, get more pupils
So that the knowledge will spreads
Lyrics submitted by Nuklear
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
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.
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.
i think this is something everyone should think about cuz its true!
"Want to be free Don't look towards the sky Cause there's no heaven above Don't look down beneath your feet There's no hell below Want to be free But heaven and hell exist within Heaven is what you make it and Hell is what you're going through"
Best and only good part.
This song really bothers me. I've never minded the 5% undertones in Wu-Tang's music, but this is just so blatant it honestly irritates me. Especially that little anti-evolution rant. If you want someone to take you seriously, you probably shouldn't ridicule scientific fact.
Agreed.