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."
She's in my veins
Gold in my veins
She is my pain
And my joy
Time and again
Waxing or waning
I am insane
For La Luna
Madame de la Luna
When she is sleepy
She's creepy, mysterious and wicked
When she is full
She is full of promise and joy
Beaming her smile
All the while
Across Heaven's horizons
Weaving her dreams
Into hearts of lonely boys
But when I'm under the moon with you
I'm in Heaven
When I'm under the moon with you
I'm in Heaven
She'll bring out the killer
Bring out the lover
She loves a tyrant, a pirate, a dreamer, a crook and a liar
A joker, a trickster, romancer, a dancer and fool
Cold as the frost but in her heart is a fire
Hanging around the dark throat of the night like a jewel
But when I'm under the moon with you
I'm in Heaven
When I'm under the moon with you
I'm in Heaven
Moon, moon, delirious moon
Alone in the blue
Like a silver balloon
Moon, moon, delirious moon
Dancing a waltz
To a lunatic's tune
Madame de la Luna
Bewitching is she
I cannot live without her
She's scattering stars
Dancing with Mars
Cheek to cheek
With La Luna
Cheek to cheek
With La Luna
Madame de la Luna
She sings as she brings in the harvest
She pulls out her tongue
At the cruel Ethiopian sun
When she's hiding
The dark can bring a terrible vengeance
A pounce in the shadows
A moment alone with a gun
Adrift on a sea of indigo silk
Passionate like an Arabian torch
Enticing two lovers to jump off a bridge
Changing the man into the wolf
Sometimes she's a terrible flirt
Causing mischief and mayhem wherever she can
Sometimes she's a woman that hurts
Sometimes she is a man
Encouraging drunks to sing coarse serenades
Lighting the way for the young renegades
But when I'm under the moon with you
I'm in Heaven
When I'm under the moon with you
I'm in Heaven
She says better times are gonna come soon
Better times are gonna come soon
Trust in the moon
Trust in the moon
La Luna
Gold in my veins
She is my pain
And my joy
Time and again
Waxing or waning
I am insane
For La Luna
Madame de la Luna
When she is sleepy
She's creepy, mysterious and wicked
When she is full
She is full of promise and joy
Beaming her smile
All the while
Across Heaven's horizons
Weaving her dreams
Into hearts of lonely boys
But when I'm under the moon with you
I'm in Heaven
When I'm under the moon with you
I'm in Heaven
She'll bring out the killer
Bring out the lover
She loves a tyrant, a pirate, a dreamer, a crook and a liar
A joker, a trickster, romancer, a dancer and fool
Cold as the frost but in her heart is a fire
Hanging around the dark throat of the night like a jewel
But when I'm under the moon with you
I'm in Heaven
When I'm under the moon with you
I'm in Heaven
Moon, moon, delirious moon
Alone in the blue
Like a silver balloon
Moon, moon, delirious moon
Dancing a waltz
To a lunatic's tune
Madame de la Luna
Bewitching is she
I cannot live without her
She's scattering stars
Dancing with Mars
Cheek to cheek
With La Luna
Cheek to cheek
With La Luna
Madame de la Luna
She sings as she brings in the harvest
She pulls out her tongue
At the cruel Ethiopian sun
When she's hiding
The dark can bring a terrible vengeance
A pounce in the shadows
A moment alone with a gun
Adrift on a sea of indigo silk
Passionate like an Arabian torch
Enticing two lovers to jump off a bridge
Changing the man into the wolf
Sometimes she's a terrible flirt
Causing mischief and mayhem wherever she can
Sometimes she's a woman that hurts
Sometimes she is a man
Encouraging drunks to sing coarse serenades
Lighting the way for the young renegades
But when I'm under the moon with you
I'm in Heaven
When I'm under the moon with you
I'm in Heaven
She says better times are gonna come soon
Better times are gonna come soon
Trust in the moon
Trust in the moon
La Luna
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