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."
Loving him is like
Driving a new Maserati down a dead-end street
Faster than the wind
Passionate as sin
Ending so suddenly
Loving him is like
Trying to change your mind once you're already flying through the free fall
Like the colors in autumn, so bright
Just before they lose it all
Losing him was blue like I'd never known
Missing him was dark grey, all alone
Forgetting him was like trying to know somebody you never met
But loving him was red (re-e-e-ed, re-e-e-ed)
(Re-e-e-ed, re-e-e-ed)
Loving him was red (re-e-e-ed, re-e-e-ed)
(Re-e-e-ed, re-e-e-ed)
Touching him was like
Realizing all you ever wanted was right there in front of you
Memorizing him was as
Easy as knowing all the words to your old favorite song
Fighting with him was like
Trying to solve a crossword and realizing there's no right answer
Regretting him was like
Wishing you never found out that love could be that strong
Losing him was blue like I'd never known
Missing him was dark grey, all alone
Forgetting him was like trying to know somebody you never met
But loving him was red (re-e-e-ed, re-e-e-ed)
Oh, red (re-e-e-ed, re-e-e-ed)
Burning red (re-e-e-ed, re-e-e-ed)
(Re-e-e-ed, re-e-e-ed)
Remembering him comes in flashbacks
And echoes
Tell myself it's time now
Gotta let go
But moving on from him is impossible
When I still see it all in my head
In burning red
Burning it was red
Oh, losing him was blue like I'd never known
Missing him was dark grey, all alone
Forgetting him was like trying to know somebody you never met
'Cause loving him was red (re-e-e-ed, re-e-e-ed)
Yeah, yeah, red (re-e-e-ed, re-e-e-ed)
Oh, burning red (re-e-e-ed, re-e-e-ed)
(Re-e-e-ed, re-e-e-ed)
And that's why he's spinning 'round in my head (re-e-e-ed, re-e-e-ed)
Comes back to me, burning red (re-e-e-ed, re-e-e-ed)
Yeah, yeah (re-e-e-ed, re-e-e-ed)
His love was like
Driving a new Maserati down a dead-end street
Driving a new Maserati down a dead-end street
Faster than the wind
Passionate as sin
Ending so suddenly
Loving him is like
Trying to change your mind once you're already flying through the free fall
Like the colors in autumn, so bright
Just before they lose it all
Losing him was blue like I'd never known
Missing him was dark grey, all alone
Forgetting him was like trying to know somebody you never met
But loving him was red (re-e-e-ed, re-e-e-ed)
(Re-e-e-ed, re-e-e-ed)
Loving him was red (re-e-e-ed, re-e-e-ed)
(Re-e-e-ed, re-e-e-ed)
Touching him was like
Realizing all you ever wanted was right there in front of you
Memorizing him was as
Easy as knowing all the words to your old favorite song
Fighting with him was like
Trying to solve a crossword and realizing there's no right answer
Regretting him was like
Wishing you never found out that love could be that strong
Losing him was blue like I'd never known
Missing him was dark grey, all alone
Forgetting him was like trying to know somebody you never met
But loving him was red (re-e-e-ed, re-e-e-ed)
Oh, red (re-e-e-ed, re-e-e-ed)
Burning red (re-e-e-ed, re-e-e-ed)
(Re-e-e-ed, re-e-e-ed)
Remembering him comes in flashbacks
And echoes
Tell myself it's time now
Gotta let go
But moving on from him is impossible
When I still see it all in my head
In burning red
Burning it was red
Oh, losing him was blue like I'd never known
Missing him was dark grey, all alone
Forgetting him was like trying to know somebody you never met
'Cause loving him was red (re-e-e-ed, re-e-e-ed)
Yeah, yeah, red (re-e-e-ed, re-e-e-ed)
Oh, burning red (re-e-e-ed, re-e-e-ed)
(Re-e-e-ed, re-e-e-ed)
And that's why he's spinning 'round in my head (re-e-e-ed, re-e-e-ed)
Comes back to me, burning red (re-e-e-ed, re-e-e-ed)
Yeah, yeah (re-e-e-ed, re-e-e-ed)
His love was like
Driving a new Maserati down a dead-end street
Lyrics submitted by PinkInk, edited by girafferah, NeverDie
Red Lyrics as written by Taylor Alison Swift
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
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,
I Can't Go To Sleep
Wu-Tang Clan
Wu-Tang Clan
This song is written as the perspective of the boys in the street, as a whole, and what path they are going to choose as they get older and grow into men. (This is why the music video takes place in an orphanage.) The seen, and unseen collective suffering is imbedded in the boys’ mind, consciously or subconsciously, and is haunting them. Which path will the boys choose? Issac Hayes is the voice of reason, maybe God, the angel on his shoulder, or the voice of his forefathers from beyond the grave who can see the big picture and are pleading with the boys not to continue the violence and pattern of killing their brothers, but to rise above. The most beautiful song and has so many levels. Racism towards African Americans in America would not exist if everyone sat down and listened to this song and understood the history behind the words. The power, fear, pleading in RZA and Ghostface voices are genuine and powerful. Issac Hayes’ strong voice makes the perfect strong father figure, who is possibly from beyond the grave.
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.
What a perfect song. My favorite lines are:
Losing him was blue like I'd never known Missing him was dark gray all alone Forgetting him was like trying to know somebody you never met But loving him was red
She has a hard time forgetting him since she loved him. There are so many nice little metaphors throughout the song that string back to her feelings.
"Loving him is like driving a new Maserati down a dead-end street" A Maserati is a really nice (and expensive) luxury car, so driving it down a dead-end street sort of defeats the purpose of it- no one will see it.She relates the car to her love because she is very proud and wants to show her love interest off, yet it saddens her as it's not going anywhere. It's a disappointment.
I love the juxtaposition within the lines. "Fighting with him was like trying to solve a crossword and realizing there's no right answer Regretting him was like wishing you never found out that love could be that strong"
If there is no "right" answer there isn't much to fight about, which is defeating. Regretting him also seems backwards, since you typically wouldn't wish that you never found out that love could be that strong. She doesn't regret the relationship but in fact longs and wishes things had been different.