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."
There's a moment in time
And it's stuck in my mind
Way back when we were just kids
'Cuz your eyes told a tale
Of an act of betrayal
I knew that somebody did
Oh, waves of time
Seem to wash away the scenes of our crimes
For you this never ends
Can you stay strong
Can you go on
Kristy are you doing ok
A rose that won't bloom
Winter's kept you
Don't waste your whole life trying
To get back what was taken away
Though the marks on your dress
Have been neatly repressed
I knew that something was wrong
And I should have spoke out
And I'm so sorry now
I didn't know
'Cuz we were so young
Oh, clouds of time
Seem to rain on innocence left behind
It never goes away
Can you stay strong
Can you go on
Kristy are you doing ok
A rose that won't bloom
Winter's kept you
Don't waste your whole life trying
To get back what was taken away
And it's stuck in my mind
Way back when we were just kids
'Cuz your eyes told a tale
Of an act of betrayal
I knew that somebody did
Oh, waves of time
Seem to wash away the scenes of our crimes
For you this never ends
Can you stay strong
Can you go on
Kristy are you doing ok
A rose that won't bloom
Winter's kept you
Don't waste your whole life trying
To get back what was taken away
Though the marks on your dress
Have been neatly repressed
I knew that something was wrong
And I should have spoke out
And I'm so sorry now
I didn't know
'Cuz we were so young
Oh, clouds of time
Seem to rain on innocence left behind
It never goes away
Can you stay strong
Can you go on
Kristy are you doing ok
A rose that won't bloom
Winter's kept you
Don't waste your whole life trying
To get back what was taken away
Lyrics submitted by Grabbal
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More Featured Meanings
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,
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.
Head > Heels
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
“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.
Somewhere Only We Know
Keane
Keane
Per the FAQ on Keane's website, Keane's drummer Richard Hughes, stated the following:
"We've been asked whether "Somewhere Only We Know" is about a specific place, and Tim has been saying that, for him, or us as individuals, it might be about a geographical space, or a feeling; it can mean something individual to each person, and they can interpret it to a memory of theirs... It's perhaps more of a theme rather than a specific message... Feelings that may be universal, without necessarily being totally specific to us, or a place, or a time..."
With the nostalgic sentiment and the overall tone of the song, I think Keane is attempting to express a Portuguese term known as 'saudade', which does not have a direct English translation but roughly means "that which we remember because it is gone."
this song means so much to me.. i never noticed it till i saw the title. because my name's kristy.
i was saving my first time for marriage. but i was raped 3 years ago by someone i trusted at that time more than my own mother. i read the lyrics before i ever heard the song, and it was my story in a song.. and the stories of a lot of other people too.
"Oh, waves of time Seem to wash away the scenes of our crimes For you this never ends.." ".. clouds of time Seem to rain on innocence left behind It never goes away." --lots of people make mistakes, and get wronged, get over it, and move on. but when something like rape happens.. you never get over it.. it really never ends.
"Don't waste your whole life trying To get back what was taken away." --easier said than done.
I'm very sorry to read this Kristy. I'm recording this song and I'd like to dedicate it to you [although it's already your song, the dedication would be my performance hehe]. When I sing and play it it makes me shed a tear or two at some points of the song, because even though it's not my case, I can relate to the song in another way and also makes me feel sad. I'd like to share with you my recording. May I email you later?
Wow My name's kristy too and something very similar happened to me <br /> I was in 7th grade and it was a close friend of my father's and when I tried to tell my dad he hit me and told to stop lying...<br /> <br /> I feel for you and if you ever need some one to talk to about it you can message me hugs
I'm 19 and I've been raped/sexually harrassed multiple times, and in various different ways from people I have trusted and people i didn't even know. I can totally identify with the song, and wish someone would have spoken up for me when I didn't have the words to speak about, when I finally did my parents didn't believe me. You never really get over it, but there are places you can go that are non-judgemental to speak to someone who tries to understand and work with you. It sucks when you have to fix yourself and you've done NOTHING wrong to cause the problem, but you deserve it(and so do I)!
I'm 12 and when I was nine I was raped by my nanny that my parents hired. I told my sister and to this day she still doesnt believe me. My parents do but there is no proof and we dont know where she lives any more. somewhere in brazil. but i feel your pain kristy.
holy shit i'm sooo sorry to hear that my freinds aunty was mugged and raped a couple of years ago its sooo sad me and my bff and her aunty have never been the same again we were like family :(
Seems to be about this girl, Kristy, being sexuall abused at a young age:
"...when we were just kids..."
"A rose that won't bloom Winter's kept you Don't waste your whole life trying To get back what was taken away"
and especially:
"Oh, clouds of time Seem to rain on innocence left behind"
Yet she tried to keep it to herself, but the friend can see it in her eyes and behaviour.
first time i ever heard this song, i cried. one day my dad left, and never came back. my family never brought him up it was just an awkward thing to talk about. so i assumed he just up and left us, this was when i was 7 years old and up until i was 15 i HATED him for it. spent all those years hating him for no reason. he didnt leave me. he didnt leave us. my dad was murdered and my mom didnt want to believe it let alone even being to try and explain where daddy was to three young children. after i found out he was dead, i stopped hating him and started hating myself. nine years of my life were WASTED hating a man who if he had a choice, woulda been there. he was taken from me. he didnt deserve to be hated.
guilt set in and depression was hidden behind my fake smile. everyday got harder and i couldnt find any reason to forgive myself. until i heard this song.
i realized those 9 years werent coming back no matter how much i hated myself. nothing would bring my dad back, or the time hating myself was just adding years on to my wasted life.
i got these lyrics tattooed on me so i could wake up and see them and remember that its okay. lifes okay. IM OKAY. :) just thought id put it out there that this song might be about a girl who was abused, but anyone can relate their problems to a song even if it isnt the same reason as the artists.
heres a picture of my tattoo ..... "dont waste your whole life trying to get back what was taken away".
<a href='img5.imageshack.us/i/l73549552f5b747499bf1b1.jpg/'><img src='img5.imageshack.us/img5/376/l73549552f5b747499bf1b1.jpg' border='0' alt='Image Hosted by ImageShack.us'/></a>
offspring saved my life. thank you.
I dont know if this songs about rape but definately some type of abuse. it makes me cry everytime i listen to it, my dad abused me when i was little its one of the few songs i can relate to and actually like it. the line Dont wast youw hole life trying to get back what was taken away could be about rape or about the innocence of childhood taken away.
I heard this song for the first time today on my way home from seeing my psychiatrist which I see for my PTSD... The Offspring has become my new favorite band for writing and producing this song (one of such innocence truth & purity) One that I sadly say happens to represent my life as well (like the so many others) The only difference for me being that the one who raped me was not only the love of my life but also the father of my child and how he could break in to our home and rape me over and over while our son was in the next room is beyond my comprehension...I gave him my all in in return he took everything from me including nearly my life, leaving me battered broken a & bruised, alone to go on every day raising our son alone while he would return to his home so he could sleep!!
There are some ppl in this world that r just sicker than any one of us Normal ppl could ever imagine...and it really is just soooo sad!
No matter how hard I try the evil and betrayl I've known and lived never ever go away!! this sond is so to the point true and ultimately empowering its inspiring!!
THANK YOU!
Keep up the work. Only you can make it better for you and it sounds like that's what you are doing. Not easy but so much better sooner than later
pTn... youre exactly right, Dexter said so in an interview that it was about a girl he knew when he was young who was molested and raped.
Its also clear in this verse.
"Though the marks on your dress Have been neatly repressed I knew that something was wrong And I should have spoke out And I'm so sorry now I didn't know 'Cuz we were so young"
Hello my name is kristy and recently i lost my best friend of 25yrs old to cancer and at that same time this song came out. I lost her this winter and since then I have been frozen in time and this song helps me to deal with it as though she wrote it for me
Hello my name is kristy and recently i lost my best friend of 25yrs old to cancer and at that same time this song came out. I lost her this winter and since then I have been frozen in time and this song helps me to deal with it as though she wrote it for me
Hello my name is kristy and recently i lost my best friend of 25yrs old to cancer and at that same time this song came out. I lost her this winter and since then I have been frozen in time and this song helps me to deal with it as though she wrote it for me
Reminds me of my best friend from 4th grade... I'm so sorry. I should have told someone, I really should have. I just couldn't believe my own brother would do such a thing. I can't even express how sorry I am. Now this will never end for you...
You should be sorry.<br /> You should've helped her. She was your friend!<br /> I'm sorry I take this so personal, but it really hurts me to read this. Don't you understand how much you've betrayed her by just not wanting to believe your brother did this. The image of a perfect world in which a brother doesn't do these things was at the time clearly more important to you then the love you feel for you 'best friend'.<br /> <br /> I'm really sorry, but I needed to say this. Things like this make me want to cry<br />
Maybe I'm wrong but I thought this was about a girl Dexter knew who was being or was abused and he regrets not saying anything
This is such a good song. I love it.
this is a good song, yea. i don't understand why are everybody bashing it. it's not like it's their first slow song.
and i agree with people above, though i actually never really thought about that myself, but now it seems pretty damn obvious.