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."
The lesser lights of heaven are burning towards a dream
The eyes of mothers bleeding
Cast their children to the sea
The lesser lights of heaven are screaming in our mind
Listen to the chorus
So divine and unkind
The lesser lights of heaven are burning for their Son
Praying for the presence
That birthed them into one
The lesser lights of heaven, their bodies but a flame
A sky that knows no distance
A cut that feels no pain
The lesser lights of heaven are bending towards your will
Cutting through the person
Who would rather die than kill
The lesser lights of heaven cast crowns before your throne
Dissipate into nothing
We truly are alone
Can we live through this? The lesser lights of heaven
The eyes of mothers bleeding
Cast their children to the sea
The lesser lights of heaven are screaming in our mind
Listen to the chorus
So divine and unkind
The lesser lights of heaven are burning for their Son
Praying for the presence
That birthed them into one
The lesser lights of heaven, their bodies but a flame
A sky that knows no distance
A cut that feels no pain
The lesser lights of heaven are bending towards your will
Cutting through the person
Who would rather die than kill
The lesser lights of heaven cast crowns before your throne
Dissipate into nothing
We truly are alone
Can we live through this? The lesser lights of heaven
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Mountain Song
Jane's Addiction
Jane's Addiction
Gentle Hour
Yo La Tengo
Yo La Tengo
This song was originally written by a guy called Peter Gutteridge. He was one of the founders of the "Dunedin Sound" a musical scene in the south of New Zealand in the early 80s. From there it was covered by "The Clean" one of the early bands of that scene (he had originally been a member of in it's early days, writing a couple of their best early songs). The Dunedin sound, and the Clean became popular on american college radio in the mid to late 80s. I guess Yo La Tengo heard that version.
Great version of a great song,
Magical
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
How would you describe the feeling of being in love? For Ed Sheeran, the word is “Magical.” in HIS three-minute album opener, he makes an attempt to capture the beauty and delicacy of true love with words. He describes the magic of it all over a bright Pop song produced by Aaron Dessner.
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.
Page
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
There aren’t many things that’ll hurt more than giving love a chance against your better judgement only to have your heart crushed yet again. Ed Sheeran tells such a story on “Page.” On this track, he is devastated to have lost his lover and even more saddened by the feeling that he may never move on from this.
The music is truly awesome in this one. As for the meaning, I'm not sure but I think that this song signifies the angels departure from us and rebuking therein. Apparently, in that we have (according to the story of the album) turned totally from God, even the angels now depart. As I said, I'm not sure, but what a song eh?
i agree with the metaphor of lights as angels, but what if it they never departed? what of they are still just waiting in heaven for God to return? maybe this song is us looking to heaven and seeing the angels and us feeling regret for asking God to leave. ok now that read what i just wrote, your scenario makes more sense
i agree with the metaphor of lights as angels, but what if it they never departed? what of they are still just waiting in heaven for God to return? maybe this song is us looking to heaven and seeing the angels and us feeling regret for asking God to leave. ok now that i read what i just wrote, your scenario makes more sense
i agree with the metaphor of lights as angels, but what if it they never departed? what of they are still just waiting in heaven for God to return? maybe this song is us looking to heaven and seeing the angels and us feeling regret for asking God to leave. ok now that i read what i just wrote, your scenario makes more sense
"The lesser lights of heaven cast crowns before your throne, dissipate to nothing, we truly are alone" I see that as the angels dying along with God, throwing everything they have down before God one last time, and fading away with him. i also kind of see this as talking about humanity in a way. it's said in the Bible that we are actually at a higher status in heaven than the angels. if we rebuke God, though, i think it makes sense that the angels would then become greater than us. if this is about humanity, i think Daniel wrote it to be from the angels' perspective: God has left them and humanity has left God, so the angels are left with nothing. "The lesser lights of heaven are burning for their son" - now maybe this is a stretch, but you could relate this back to "The Rising End (The First Prophecy)", in which humanty is compared to a flame rising towards the sky. more support for that: Jesus is called the Son of Man, not the Son of Angels, so if the lesser lights of heaven are burnign for their son, that could very well be man.
confusing line, with the burning for your son, but i still think that the rest of the explanations are bang on.
I see this as Christians left on earth. If God decided to kill himself, then noone would go to heaven. The latter songs obviously relate to peopel searching for God's return. Some of them could be belivers before God died. I do see the angel reference, but I just feel that the lesser lights are Christians left behind with no where to go.
i believe this song is far less pleasant then you guys make it sound, the lines (Listen to the chorus, so divine and unkind) suggest that angels are quite unhappy with their new kings (us since again, in the bible we are said to be higher up on the hierarchy) and will take vengeance upon us. the lines (the lesser lights of heaven cast crowns upon your throne dissapate into nothing, we truly are alone,) support this idea i think as well. lastly, the very last lines of the song (can we survive this?) suggest they have commenced their attack and humanity is royally screwed.
the lesser lights of heaven...
Wouldnt angels make good masters? I would rather have Gabriel as my leader than Bush..
Most of us would judging by poll ratings Ddadutta, but of course, they have been with God for eternity, why stay when your Lord is gone?