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."
Blue eyes of fire
sweet desire
is bitter torture,
You are no fathers daughter,
No man has this much to offer,
Skin dark as sin,
Soft and when,
We took cover,
From the rain,
And the thunder,
Under stained glass we did slumber,
Till the sun came out to blind us,
So we could not see anything,
So we knew at once we were meant to be,
And we heard the gods all rise and say,
The love we made was no lie.
And with 30 years of hopes and fears breathing down my neck,
Such a sad, sad thing i set you free,
'Cuz I can't get you back.
You are fire, you are water.
When you dance it is torture.
Maybe some night by the grey light of the dull moon we can meet,
Tangled, entwined, we have climbed, we have wrangled, shiny sequins sparked and spangled,
Our hearts iron-cuffed and mangled,
We spent the night,
By the side of the water,
Passed the breakers and the markers,
We swam out into the darkness,
Till we could not feel,
The bottom.
Till we could not feel anything.
And the shoreline slowly drifted out of reach,
As the moon shone down and the ocean heaved,
And darkness gave to light.
And with 30 years of hopes and fears breathing down my neck,
Such a sad, sad thing I set you free,
'Cuz I can't get you back.
You are fire, you are water.
When you dance it is torture.
Maybe some day on the bottom of the ocean we can meet.
Though we know if we do we can never leave,
'Cuz the moment that we turn away
The gods will say
The love we made
Was a lie.
sweet desire
is bitter torture,
You are no fathers daughter,
No man has this much to offer,
Skin dark as sin,
Soft and when,
We took cover,
From the rain,
And the thunder,
Under stained glass we did slumber,
Till the sun came out to blind us,
So we could not see anything,
So we knew at once we were meant to be,
And we heard the gods all rise and say,
The love we made was no lie.
And with 30 years of hopes and fears breathing down my neck,
Such a sad, sad thing i set you free,
'Cuz I can't get you back.
You are fire, you are water.
When you dance it is torture.
Maybe some night by the grey light of the dull moon we can meet,
Tangled, entwined, we have climbed, we have wrangled, shiny sequins sparked and spangled,
Our hearts iron-cuffed and mangled,
We spent the night,
By the side of the water,
Passed the breakers and the markers,
We swam out into the darkness,
Till we could not feel,
The bottom.
Till we could not feel anything.
And the shoreline slowly drifted out of reach,
As the moon shone down and the ocean heaved,
And darkness gave to light.
And with 30 years of hopes and fears breathing down my neck,
Such a sad, sad thing I set you free,
'Cuz I can't get you back.
You are fire, you are water.
When you dance it is torture.
Maybe some day on the bottom of the ocean we can meet.
Though we know if we do we can never leave,
'Cuz the moment that we turn away
The gods will say
The love we made
Was a lie.
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Mountain Song
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Dusty Springfield
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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/
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“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.
Trouble Breathing
Alkaline Trio
Alkaline Trio
While the obvious connections with suicide or alcoholism could be drawn easily, more subtly this song could be about someone who views the world through a negative lens constantly and how as much as the writer tries to show the beauty in the world, this person refuses to see it. It's one or another between the rope and the bottle. There is no good option for this person. They can't see it. Skiba sings it in a kind of exasperated way like He's tired of hearing this negative view constantly and just allowing that person to continue feeling the way they feel knowing he can't do anything about it. You can hear it when he says maybe you're a vampire.
Another Love
Tom Odell
Tom Odell
I think the meaning is pretty clear. This person got really burned in a previous relationship, and because of this is unable to love and show care in his present one, even though he so badly wants to. It's lovely song, and very sad. You can really feel how defeated and frustrated he is with himself.
This was the first Crooked Fingers song ive heard & my fav. I was disappointed to see a lyric error & created an account just to fix that! "Who has the fire, Sweet Desire, Has been tortured, "
should be.... "Blue eyes of fire sweet desire is bitter torture"
@vegan9_06 I think the first lyric is 'Blue as a fire' not 'Blue eyes of fire' as I'm pretty sure it's supposed to be a comparison of how blue the person's eyes are by comparing them to the blue part of a flame/fire. I'm not basing this on anything other than what I hear so I could be wrong.
@vegan9_06 Regarding my previous comment (I got distracted halfway through), I was meant to write that I think it's a comparison of how blue the character's DESIRE is (i.e. incredibly high) as it's being compared to the blueness of a fire. Sorry if that was confusing. :)
Roccer, your taste lies in bad music.
I concur,
This is one of my favorite Crooked Fingers song. Like all of their songs, joyfully sad.
Beautiful song with beautiful imagery. Absolutely love this song
who the heck r these guys they sound really bad and the learics suck! my chemical romance is fantastic. tell the world