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."
Please come to Boston for the Springtime
I'm stayin' here with some friends and they've got lots of room
You can sell your paintings on the sidewalk
By a café where I hope to be workin' soon
Please come to Boston
She said "No, would you come home to me?"
And she said, "Hey ramblin' boy now won't cha settle down?"
"Boston ain't your kinda town"
"There ain't no gold and there ain't nobody like me"
"I'm the number one fan of the man from Tennessee"
Please come to Denver with the snowfall
We'll move up into the mountains so far that we can't be found
And throw "I love you" echoes down the canyon
And then lie awake at night till they come back around
Please come to Denver
She said "No, boy, would you come home to me?"
And she said, "Hey ramblin' boy why don't cha settle down?"
"Denver ain't your kinda town"
"There ain't no gold and there ain't nobody like me"
"'Cause I'm the number one fan of the man from Tennessee"
Now this drifter's world goes 'round and 'round
And I doubt that it's ever gonna stop
But of all the dreams I've lost or found
And all that I ain't got
I still need to lean to
Somebody I can sing to
Please come to LA to live forever
California life alone is just too hard to build
I live in a house that looks out over the ocean
And there's some stars that fell from the sky
Livin' up on the hill
Please come to LA
She just said "No, boy, won't you come home to me?"
And she said, "Hey ramblin' boy why don't cha settle down?"
"LA can't be your kinda town"
"There ain't no gold and there ain't nobody like me"
"No, no, I'm the number one fan of the man from Tennessee"
"I'm the number one fan of the man from Tennessee"
I'm stayin' here with some friends and they've got lots of room
You can sell your paintings on the sidewalk
By a café where I hope to be workin' soon
Please come to Boston
She said "No, would you come home to me?"
And she said, "Hey ramblin' boy now won't cha settle down?"
"Boston ain't your kinda town"
"There ain't no gold and there ain't nobody like me"
"I'm the number one fan of the man from Tennessee"
Please come to Denver with the snowfall
We'll move up into the mountains so far that we can't be found
And throw "I love you" echoes down the canyon
And then lie awake at night till they come back around
Please come to Denver
She said "No, boy, would you come home to me?"
And she said, "Hey ramblin' boy why don't cha settle down?"
"Denver ain't your kinda town"
"There ain't no gold and there ain't nobody like me"
"'Cause I'm the number one fan of the man from Tennessee"
Now this drifter's world goes 'round and 'round
And I doubt that it's ever gonna stop
But of all the dreams I've lost or found
And all that I ain't got
I still need to lean to
Somebody I can sing to
Please come to LA to live forever
California life alone is just too hard to build
I live in a house that looks out over the ocean
And there's some stars that fell from the sky
Livin' up on the hill
Please come to LA
She just said "No, boy, won't you come home to me?"
And she said, "Hey ramblin' boy why don't cha settle down?"
"LA can't be your kinda town"
"There ain't no gold and there ain't nobody like me"
"No, no, I'm the number one fan of the man from Tennessee"
"I'm the number one fan of the man from Tennessee"
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I love these poetic lyrics in the second stanza:
We'll move up into the mountains So far that we can't be found And throw I love you echos Down the canyons And then lie awake at night Until they come back around
Thst is the part that got me hoooked :-)