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."
You live out where the street ends
in a basement apt. with one of your friends
and the tap drips all night
water torture in the sink
The furnace is burning
but it's still cold i think
I can smell the bleach
that they use in the hall
but it can't clean the dirt off of me
It's seeping under the door
in across the floor
it's starting to hurt
Everytime I breathe
Everytime I try to leave
Everytime I breathe
Now the toaster sticks
and the empties are piled
I haven't been up the stairs in awhile now
I gotta wash the sheets on my bed
gotta watch the things that go unsaid
God I wish we'd leave it at this
And every evening you open the door
You come down
There's nothing like watching tv all night underground
and no one is watching me slide
below street level
barely alive
Now we live out where the street ends
in a basement apt. just like our friends
We always said that we were different
but you know now that we weren't
'cause there's holes in all the bottles
and my lungs hurt
in a basement apt. with one of your friends
and the tap drips all night
water torture in the sink
The furnace is burning
but it's still cold i think
I can smell the bleach
that they use in the hall
but it can't clean the dirt off of me
It's seeping under the door
in across the floor
it's starting to hurt
Everytime I breathe
Everytime I try to leave
Everytime I breathe
Now the toaster sticks
and the empties are piled
I haven't been up the stairs in awhile now
I gotta wash the sheets on my bed
gotta watch the things that go unsaid
God I wish we'd leave it at this
And every evening you open the door
You come down
There's nothing like watching tv all night underground
and no one is watching me slide
below street level
barely alive
Now we live out where the street ends
in a basement apt. just like our friends
We always said that we were different
but you know now that we weren't
'cause there's holes in all the bottles
and my lungs hurt
Lyrics submitted by glytter_girl
Add your thoughts
Log in now to tell us what you think this song means.
Don’t have an account? Create an account with SongMeanings to post comments, submit lyrics, and more. It’s super easy, we promise!
More Featured Meanings
Mountain Song
Jane's Addiction
Jane's Addiction
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.
Blue
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
“Blue” is a song about a love that is persisting in the discomfort of the person experiencing the emotion. Ed Sheeran reflects on love lost, and although he wishes his former partner find happiness, he cannot but admit his feelings are still very much there. He expresses the realization that he might never find another on this stringed instrumental by Aaron Dessner.
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.
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 totally relate to this song. When I first moved out on my own 10 yrs ago I lived in a basement apartement and had a similar lifestyle: hanging out, watching the empties pile up, never really seing the light of day for days at a time, smoking too much pot, feeling like you barely exist anymore, like there's no meaning to life...it got really depressing. I was totally disillusioned after that, because I used to want that lifestyle, and after awhile I realized that living like that sucked and I was missing out on life. This song totally speaks to that time in my life.