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."
Fifty million years ago
You walked upon the planet so
Lord of all that you could see
Just a little bit like me
Walking in your footsteps
Walking in your footsteps
Walking in your footsteps
Walking in your footsteps
Hey Mr. Dinosaur
You really couldn't ask for more
You were God's favorite creature
But you didn't have a future
Walking in your footsteps
Walking in your footsteps
Walking in your footsteps
Walking in your footsteps
Hey mighty brontosaurus
Don't you have a lesson for us
You thought your rule would always last
There were no lessons in your past
You were built three stories high
They say you would not hurt a fly
If we explode the atom bomb
Would they say that we were dumb
We're
Walking in your footsteps
Walking in your footsteps
Walking in your footsteps
Walking in your footsteps
They say the meek shall inherit the earth
They say the meek shall inherit the earth
Walking in your footsteps
Walking in your footsteps
Walking in your footsteps
Walking in your footsteps
Walking in your footsteps
Walking in your footsteps
Walking in your footsteps
Walking in your footsteps
You walked upon the planet so
Lord of all that you could see
Just a little bit like me
Walking in your footsteps
Walking in your footsteps
Walking in your footsteps
Walking in your footsteps
Hey Mr. Dinosaur
You really couldn't ask for more
You were God's favorite creature
But you didn't have a future
Walking in your footsteps
Walking in your footsteps
Walking in your footsteps
Walking in your footsteps
Hey mighty brontosaurus
Don't you have a lesson for us
You thought your rule would always last
There were no lessons in your past
You were built three stories high
They say you would not hurt a fly
If we explode the atom bomb
Would they say that we were dumb
We're
Walking in your footsteps
Walking in your footsteps
Walking in your footsteps
Walking in your footsteps
They say the meek shall inherit the earth
They say the meek shall inherit the earth
Walking in your footsteps
Walking in your footsteps
Walking in your footsteps
Walking in your footsteps
Walking in your footsteps
Walking in your footsteps
Walking in your footsteps
Walking in your footsteps
Lyrics submitted by Demau Senae
Walking in Your Footsteps Lyrics as written by Gordon Sumner
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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Mountain Song
Jane's Addiction
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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.
When We Were Young
Blink-182
Blink-182
This is a sequel to 2001's "Reckless Abandon", and features the band looking back on their clumsy youth fondly.
Just A Little Lovin'
Dusty Springfield
Dusty Springfield
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/
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.
It's obviously a relic from the Nuclear Age (see "Russians"). Yet its wisdom carries onward. A somewhat common theme among Sting's songs ("History Will Teach Us Nothing") is how we ignore "lessons in our past." How does this play out in the Terrorism Age? A viewing of Steven Spielberg's "Munich" I think provides some ideas.
[Stephen Holden—Rolling Stone 1983] The cuts on Synchronicity are sequenced like Chinese boxes, the focus narrowing from the global to the local to the personal. But every box contains the ashes of betrayal. "Walking in Your Footsteps," a children's tune sung in a third-world accent and brightly illustrated with African percussion and flute, contemplates nothing less than humanity's nuclear suicide. "Hey Mr. Dinosaur, you really couldn't ask for more/You were god's favorite creature but you didn't have a future," Sting calls out before adding, "[We're] walking in your footsteps."
There's a part missing before the end...it goes like Fifty million years ago They walked upon the planet so They live in a museum It's the only place you'll see 'em.
And I love this song... especially this live performance youtube.com/watch Stingo really goes into the song
there is a live version that has the following...<br /> It's really our distinction to laugh at our extinction,<br /> but you really have to think hard<br /> when you're walking in your graveyard.<br /> Fukushima is making this resonate.
This (to me anyway) is about how nuclear war can end humanity and our dominace quickly and become extinct.
And that leaves us with 'Walking In Your Footsteps', which most people hate but I don't understand why - catchy vocal melody AGAIN, plus Copeland is really going nuts with that electronic percussion set, and the song is NOT about dinosaurs, it's about people dying out like dinosaurs which is pretty grim if you ask me … [George Starostin]
I think it's about humans dying out just like the dinosaurs did. We're "walking in (their) footsteps", which hints at a nuclear blast, destroying humanity. And hey, we are headed there. :P
ahhh I love the African drums and the balaphone [or what instruments are they?] "walking in your footsteps" sound familiar, hmm... I guess it's how we're following the dinosaurs on our way to extinction?
I saw the Police back in '81 but this song flew under my radar in a time when I was gravely concerned about our species attraction to weapons of mass destruction.
Only recently did I discover this song and understand Stings' meaning in it but I also have embraced it as a warning against our inactivity to control climate change. When seen this way Walking in Your Footsteps becomes highly relevant.