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."
Black babies running for the candy truck in Africa
See them kicking up the dust from miles away
I'm drinking Evian and wondering where the hell I am
Looking for the preacher man to just translate
To just translate
To just translate
We're eating chicken feet
Swear it kind of tastes like meat
Waiting for the Masai chief to take us in
Flies cover up his face
Makes you want to look away
Cannot take another day beneath this heat
Beneath this heat
The world is falling apart
And I know in my heart, I don't know what to do about it
The world is bigger than me and I do not believe another human
Being on the planet
The world, the world needs love
Love and nothing else can save us now
Black babies running from a big hairy elephant
I wish that I had the guts to save the day
Here come the preacher man he's telling us to run like mad
Leave everything you have and follow me
Dive in the water hole don't drink it in you know
You'll die from an overload of some disease
Dive in the water hole don't drink it in you know
You'll die from an overload of some disease
Some disease
The world is falling apart
And I know in my heart, I don't know what to do about it
The world is bigger than us and I don't really trust another
Human being on the planet
The world, the world needs love
The world is falling apart
And I know in my heart, I don't know what to do about it
The world is bigger than me and I do not believe another human
Being on the planet
The world is falling apart
And I know in my heart, I don't know what to do about it
The world is bigger than us and I don't really trust another
Human being on the planet
The world is falling apart
And I know in my heart, I don't know what to do about it
The world is bigger than me and I do not believe another human
Being on the planet
The world, the world needs love
See them kicking up the dust from miles away
I'm drinking Evian and wondering where the hell I am
Looking for the preacher man to just translate
To just translate
To just translate
We're eating chicken feet
Swear it kind of tastes like meat
Waiting for the Masai chief to take us in
Flies cover up his face
Makes you want to look away
Cannot take another day beneath this heat
Beneath this heat
The world is falling apart
And I know in my heart, I don't know what to do about it
The world is bigger than me and I do not believe another human
Being on the planet
The world, the world needs love
Love and nothing else can save us now
Black babies running from a big hairy elephant
I wish that I had the guts to save the day
Here come the preacher man he's telling us to run like mad
Leave everything you have and follow me
Dive in the water hole don't drink it in you know
You'll die from an overload of some disease
Dive in the water hole don't drink it in you know
You'll die from an overload of some disease
Some disease
The world is falling apart
And I know in my heart, I don't know what to do about it
The world is bigger than us and I don't really trust another
Human being on the planet
The world, the world needs love
The world is falling apart
And I know in my heart, I don't know what to do about it
The world is bigger than me and I do not believe another human
Being on the planet
The world is falling apart
And I know in my heart, I don't know what to do about it
The world is bigger than us and I don't really trust another
Human being on the planet
The world is falling apart
And I know in my heart, I don't know what to do about it
The world is bigger than me and I do not believe another human
Being on the planet
The world, the world needs love
Lyrics submitted by tinkle_tinkle_drip
Another Human Being Lyrics as written by Russell Andrew Broom Jann Arden Richards
Lyrics © Red Brick Music Publishing, Universal Music Publishing Group
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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More Featured Meanings
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,
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/
American Town
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran shares a short story of reconnecting with an old flame on “American Town.” The track is about a holiday Ed Sheeran spends with his countrywoman who resides in America. The two are back together after a long period apart, and get around to enjoying a bunch of fun activities while rekindling the flames of their romance.
Page
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
There aren’t many things that’ll hurt more than giving love a chance against your better judgement only to have your heart crushed yet again. Ed Sheeran tells such a story on “Page.” On this track, he is devastated to have lost his lover and even more saddened by the feeling that he may never move on from this.
I think this song is more than nonsensical. My opinion of course.
Jann's painting an image for the listener about a specific way of life in a specific place. She's then using that image to tell us that 'the world is bigger than me', showing us her self-realization that in this world, we are each insignificant. That thought is also expressed when she talks about the child running from the elephant and she wishes she 'had the guts to save the day'. The world (our existence, not the physical earth, but the way we live) being the child, the elephant representing what our population is doing to it, and her just another human being on the planet - feeling as though they themselves can do nothing.
People as a whole forget what the world has given them, and forget that they can give back to it. The world needs love. I think the first verse is a comment on religion in this sense too. People don't know their own paths, and instead of looking inward to find who they are and what they can do they look to 'the preacher' for guidance. This line is meant as your religion or faith is brought forth from an exterior point, instead of from within. Later on Jann expands on this thought to say that the preacher tells you to 'run like mad/leave everything you have and follow me'. Most organized religions demand that you follow certain codes or give up certain things. Doesn't that defeat the whole purpose of faith?
On our own, we are each insignificant. We find small things to keep up those barriers between us - religion, race, social status, sexuality. But if we could only 'trust another human being on the planet', we could be more than what we are.
That's what this song says to me.