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."
Baby, slow down
The end is not as fun as the start
Please stay a child somewhere in your heart
I'll give you everything you want
Except the thing that you want
You are the first one of your kind
And you feel like no-one before
You steal right under my door
I kneel 'cause I want you some more
I want the lot of what you got
And I want nothing that you're not
Everywhere you go you shout it
You don't have to be shy about it
Some things you shouldn't get too good at
Like smiling, crying and celebrity
Some people got way too much confidence, baby, baby
I'll give you everything you want
Except the thing that you want
You are the first one of your kind
And you feel like no-one before
You steal right under my door
I kneel 'cause I want you some more
I want the lot of what you got
And I want nothing that you're not
Everywhere you go you shout it
You don't have to be shy about it, no
Oh, oh no
Sugar, come on!
Show your soul
You've been keeping your love under control
Everywhere you go you shout it
You don't have to be shy about it
Everywhere you go you shout it, oh my my
And you feel like no-one before
You steal right under my door
I kneel 'cause I want you some more
I want you some more, I want you some more
Oh no, oh no, oh no, oh no
The end is not as fun as the start
Please stay a child somewhere in your heart
I'll give you everything you want
Except the thing that you want
You are the first one of your kind
And you feel like no-one before
You steal right under my door
I kneel 'cause I want you some more
I want the lot of what you got
And I want nothing that you're not
Everywhere you go you shout it
You don't have to be shy about it
Some things you shouldn't get too good at
Like smiling, crying and celebrity
Some people got way too much confidence, baby, baby
I'll give you everything you want
Except the thing that you want
You are the first one of your kind
And you feel like no-one before
You steal right under my door
I kneel 'cause I want you some more
I want the lot of what you got
And I want nothing that you're not
Everywhere you go you shout it
You don't have to be shy about it, no
Oh, oh no
Sugar, come on!
Show your soul
You've been keeping your love under control
Everywhere you go you shout it
You don't have to be shy about it
Everywhere you go you shout it, oh my my
And you feel like no-one before
You steal right under my door
I kneel 'cause I want you some more
I want you some more, I want you some more
Oh no, oh no, oh no, oh no
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The new album isnt out yet, so its no surprise nobody's commented on the new songs yet (except Vertigo) Well anyways, I just heard the whole album online because it has been leaked 2 weeks early, and I must say this is my favorite song on the album. No clue what its about lol, i just thought id state what an awesome song this is.
Honestly, I am surprised that only one person in this entire forum has even considered the idea that the Original of the Species is Christ. Yes, Bono may have been inspired The Edge's daughter, and wrote the song for her, but one of my favorite things about a lot of U2's songs is their ambiguity. Many of their songs have both secular and spiritual interpretations; this has allowed them to spread songs with biblical roots in their lyrics all over the world, like "Yahweh", whose title bears the Hebrew name for God. But back to Original of the Species--I do not believe my interpretation is out of place, considering how U2 has included many Christian themes in their lyrics over the years.<br /> <br /> I think the song is told from the perspective of Mary speaking to baby Jesus. Trust me, it all fits. At this point, Mary knows that this baby is to become to savior of the world according to the message she received from an angel, and wants to cherish this time with her son while he is still a child (see the first verse).<br /> <br /> Mary will give her baby everything she's got, but she knows that she cannot complete for him the purpose for which he was sent to this Earth: the die on the cross for the sins of humanity. Jesus was the first of his kind, "like no one before", a true Original of the Species, which contrasts quite well as an opposite of Darwin's work, "Origin of the Species".<br /> <br /> Everywhere Jesus went, he "shouted", not literally, but with his life: healing the sick and the lame, bringing new life to everyone he touched, and never giving in to "celebrity": He could have entered this world as a king, or a full-grown man, but instead came through his mother’s womb as a baby who would grow up in a poor community.<br /> <br /> So, besides being his mother, Mary “kneels” (U2 often uses the image of kneeling as a way of referring to prayer) because she wants a different kind of relationship with him—a spiritual one, not just as her own son, but as the son of God. And “she wants [him] some more.” What a beautiful song.<br />