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."
These days, a lot a cats is outta line
Seems to me, like they need to get punched
Yeah, but where you gonna punch em?
Yo, the choice is obvious
I'll punch you in the jeans
I'll punch you in the jeans
This is not a case of man vs machine
You think that you're safe, thought you got away clean?
I'll roll up on you smooth and punch you in the jeans
I got my fists clenched, gonna throw a haymaka
Rocking your slacks from here to Jamaica
Shake in your boots, cause I'm the earthquaka
Bringing those jeans round here was a mistaka
I gotta vendetta, it's against your jeans (yeah)
Gonna put my knuckles up against the seams
They can be on your legs or on the clothesline
But when I see the zipper and cloth, it's go time!
And I'm zeroed in, I got the tunnel vision
Gonna cover you in shit like a ton of pigeons
Man I hate your jeans, I'm gonna bruise that denim
It really doesn't matter as long as you're in em'
Yo we'll punch your jeans, we've said it before
Best believe this is not a metaphor
Better watch your back, cause we're on the creep
And we won't stop till your jeans are six feet deep!
Man I'll murder your jeans, I'll feed em to the fishes
Heres what I'd do, if I had three wishes
Punch your jeans, on all three counts
It would bring me satisfaction in large amounts
If I had three wishes I would do the same
We see eye to eye in this jean punch game
I'd lay em in a field, where there's chemical spraying
But I'd punch em first, yo that goes without sayin (yeah)
Acid wash pleats or a nifty cuff
It's just another jean for my fist to stuff
Throwing fista cuffs, eat pants like bag lunches
Jeans pronounced dead
Cause of death?
Hecka punches!
Yo we'll punch your jeans, we've said it before
Best believe this is not a metaphor
You got something to say, we got the proper retorts
Beat your jeans so bad that they'll wish they were shorts
Gonna revise your Levi's with physical harm
Put divets in the rivets with my physical arm
Gonna beat those jeans, gonna dip em in slime
Turn your 501s into 499s
When I punch a jean I like to imagine a face
The fly is the nose and the balls are the base of the face
You got taste and it shows my man
God damn your jean brand got me throwing my hands
Gonna go back in time, find the man who made jeans
And choke him to death, if you know what I mean
Yo I know what you mean, so keep your jeans on a hush
Breakout, before you get bum-rushed
Yo we'll punch your jeans, we've said it before
Best believe this is not a metaphor
So take off your jeans, and reverse the curse
Cause we the best jean punchers in the universe
(It really doesn't matter as long as you're in em') [Repeat: x2]
Seems to me, like they need to get punched
Yeah, but where you gonna punch em?
Yo, the choice is obvious
I'll punch you in the jeans
I'll punch you in the jeans
This is not a case of man vs machine
You think that you're safe, thought you got away clean?
I'll roll up on you smooth and punch you in the jeans
I got my fists clenched, gonna throw a haymaka
Rocking your slacks from here to Jamaica
Shake in your boots, cause I'm the earthquaka
Bringing those jeans round here was a mistaka
I gotta vendetta, it's against your jeans (yeah)
Gonna put my knuckles up against the seams
They can be on your legs or on the clothesline
But when I see the zipper and cloth, it's go time!
And I'm zeroed in, I got the tunnel vision
Gonna cover you in shit like a ton of pigeons
Man I hate your jeans, I'm gonna bruise that denim
It really doesn't matter as long as you're in em'
Yo we'll punch your jeans, we've said it before
Best believe this is not a metaphor
Better watch your back, cause we're on the creep
And we won't stop till your jeans are six feet deep!
Man I'll murder your jeans, I'll feed em to the fishes
Heres what I'd do, if I had three wishes
Punch your jeans, on all three counts
It would bring me satisfaction in large amounts
If I had three wishes I would do the same
We see eye to eye in this jean punch game
I'd lay em in a field, where there's chemical spraying
But I'd punch em first, yo that goes without sayin (yeah)
Acid wash pleats or a nifty cuff
It's just another jean for my fist to stuff
Throwing fista cuffs, eat pants like bag lunches
Jeans pronounced dead
Cause of death?
Hecka punches!
Yo we'll punch your jeans, we've said it before
Best believe this is not a metaphor
You got something to say, we got the proper retorts
Beat your jeans so bad that they'll wish they were shorts
Gonna revise your Levi's with physical harm
Put divets in the rivets with my physical arm
Gonna beat those jeans, gonna dip em in slime
Turn your 501s into 499s
When I punch a jean I like to imagine a face
The fly is the nose and the balls are the base of the face
You got taste and it shows my man
God damn your jean brand got me throwing my hands
Gonna go back in time, find the man who made jeans
And choke him to death, if you know what I mean
Yo I know what you mean, so keep your jeans on a hush
Breakout, before you get bum-rushed
Yo we'll punch your jeans, we've said it before
Best believe this is not a metaphor
So take off your jeans, and reverse the curse
Cause we the best jean punchers in the universe
(It really doesn't matter as long as you're in em') [Repeat: x2]
Lyrics submitted by strykerchick
Punch You in the Jeans Lyrics as written by Marlon Williams Mohandas Dewese
Lyrics © Wixen Music Publishing, Universal Music Publishing Group, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd., Reservoir Media Management, Inc., Hipgnosis Songs Group, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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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,
No Surprises
Radiohead
Radiohead
Same ideas expressed in Fitter, Happier are expressed in this song. We're told to strive for some sort of ideal life, which includes getting a good job, being kind to everyone, finding a partner, getting married, having a couple kids, living in a quiet neighborhood in a nice big house, etc. But in Fitter, Happier the narrator(?) realizes that it's incredibly robotic to live this life. People are being used by those in power "like a pig in a cage on antibiotics"--being pacified with things like new phones and cool gadgets and houses while being sucked dry. On No Surprises, the narrator is realizing how this life is killing him slowly. In the video, his helmet is slowly filling up with water, drowning him. But he's so complacent with it. This is a good summary of the song. This boring, "perfect" life foisted upon us by some higher powers (not spiritual, but political, economic, etc. politicians and businessmen, perhaps) is not the way to live. But there is seemingly no way out but death. He'd rather die peacefully right now than live in this cage. While our lives are often shielded, we're in our own protective bubbles, or protective helmets like the one Thom wears, if we look a little harder we can see all the corruption, lies, manipulation, etc. that is going on in the world, often run by huge yet nearly invisible organizations, corporations, and 'leaders'. It's a very hopeless song because it reflects real life.
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.
Amazing
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran tells a story of unsuccessfully trying to feel “Amazing.” This track is about the being weighed down by emotional stress despite valiant attempts to find some positivity in the situation. This track was written by Ed Sheeran from the perspective of his friend. From the track, we see this person fall deeper into the negative thoughts and slide further down the path of mental torment with every lyric.
i think this is my favorite song, mostly because the jeans' cause of death is "HECKA PUNCHIN!"