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."
All you wanna do is stuff your face and be annoying
All you wanna do with me is fight, fight, fight, fight
All you ever do is make excuses, God you're boring
All you wanna do with me is fight, fight, fight, fight
Use everything you've got inside, you still don't find the courage
Stick your tail between your legs and go
Oh you're just a man of straw, you think you know it all?
You're just a king without a throne
It's like it's all a bad dream, nothing is as it seems
This is a nightmare awake, and you're the one to blame
You're putting us through hell, you set us up to fail
You've gone and proved to be the misery of mankind
You've gone in way too deep, you won't admit defeat
But in the end you'll be the misery of mankind
Ay, ay, ay, ay, mankind
All you wanna do is sit around and point the finger
Everything you say to me's a lie, lie, lie, lie
Even when you leave your ego stays behind to linger
Everything you say to me's a lie, lie, lie, lie
All you really do to me is prove that you're a deadbeat
You left us all out in the cold
Oh what happened to a thing called trust? I think we've had enough
It's time for you to head on home
It's like it's all a bad dream, nothing is as it seems
This is a nightmare awake, and you're the one to blame
You're putting us through hell, you set us up to fail
You've gone and proved to be the misery of mankind
You've gone in way too deep, you won't admit defeat
But in the end you'll be the misery of mankind
Ay, ay, ay, ay, mankind
Misery
It's like it's all a bad dream, nothing is as it seems
This is a nightmare awake
You're putting us through hell, you set us up to fail
You've gone and proved to be the misery of mankind
You've gone in way too deep, you won't admit defeat
But in the end you'll be the misery of mankind
You're putting us through hell, you set us up to fail
You've gone and proved to be the misery of mankind
You've gone in way too deep, you won't admit defeat
But in the end you'll be the misery of mankind
Ay, ay, ay, ay, mankind
All you wanna do with me is fight, fight, fight, fight
All you ever do is make excuses, God you're boring
All you wanna do with me is fight, fight, fight, fight
Use everything you've got inside, you still don't find the courage
Stick your tail between your legs and go
Oh you're just a man of straw, you think you know it all?
You're just a king without a throne
It's like it's all a bad dream, nothing is as it seems
This is a nightmare awake, and you're the one to blame
You're putting us through hell, you set us up to fail
You've gone and proved to be the misery of mankind
You've gone in way too deep, you won't admit defeat
But in the end you'll be the misery of mankind
Ay, ay, ay, ay, mankind
All you wanna do is sit around and point the finger
Everything you say to me's a lie, lie, lie, lie
Even when you leave your ego stays behind to linger
Everything you say to me's a lie, lie, lie, lie
All you really do to me is prove that you're a deadbeat
You left us all out in the cold
Oh what happened to a thing called trust? I think we've had enough
It's time for you to head on home
It's like it's all a bad dream, nothing is as it seems
This is a nightmare awake, and you're the one to blame
You're putting us through hell, you set us up to fail
You've gone and proved to be the misery of mankind
You've gone in way too deep, you won't admit defeat
But in the end you'll be the misery of mankind
Ay, ay, ay, ay, mankind
Misery
It's like it's all a bad dream, nothing is as it seems
This is a nightmare awake
You're putting us through hell, you set us up to fail
You've gone and proved to be the misery of mankind
You've gone in way too deep, you won't admit defeat
But in the end you'll be the misery of mankind
You're putting us through hell, you set us up to fail
You've gone and proved to be the misery of mankind
You've gone in way too deep, you won't admit defeat
But in the end you'll be the misery of mankind
Ay, ay, ay, ay, mankind
Lyrics submitted by SongMeanings
Misery of Mankind Lyrics as written by Dean Back David Brenner
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
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