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."
I want to hold the hand inside you
I want to take the breath that's true
I look to you and I see nothing
I look to you to see the truth
You live your life,
You go in shadows
You'll come apart and you'll go black
Some kind of night into your darkness
Colors your eyes with what's not there.
Fade into you
Strange you never knew
Fade into you
I think it's strange you never knew
A stranger's light it comes on slowly
A stranger's heart without a home
You put your hands into your head
And then it's smiles cover your heart
Strange you never knew
Fade into you
I think it's strange you never knew
Fade into you
Strange you never knew
Fade into you
I think it's strange you never knew
Fade into you
Strange you never knew
Fade into you
I think it's strange you never knew
I want to take the breath that's true
I look to you and I see nothing
I look to you to see the truth
You live your life,
You go in shadows
You'll come apart and you'll go black
Some kind of night into your darkness
Colors your eyes with what's not there.
Fade into you
Strange you never knew
Fade into you
I think it's strange you never knew
A stranger's light it comes on slowly
A stranger's heart without a home
You put your hands into your head
And then it's smiles cover your heart
Strange you never knew
Fade into you
I think it's strange you never knew
Fade into you
Strange you never knew
Fade into you
I think it's strange you never knew
Fade into you
Strange you never knew
Fade into you
I think it's strange you never knew
Lyrics submitted by numb, edited by ducklife447, seattledragon, Lolabunny, AndrewHCF11
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
Magical
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
How would you describe the feeling of being in love? For Ed Sheeran, the word is “Magical.” in HIS three-minute album opener, he makes an attempt to capture the beauty and delicacy of true love with words. He describes the magic of it all over a bright Pop song produced by Aaron Dessner.
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.
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.
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.
what it means to me: she thought she finally found someone true, and fell in love with them. but the person had many walls built up, she tried to reach through them and show how much she cares. she thinks he is damaged and has a dark perception of the world. he doesn't really show himself.
she realizes she will never really get through to him. he won't let her. he doesn't, or can't really love her back. what she thought was inside of him really isn't there (but she loves him anyway).
she looks to him and sees "nothing" because what she originally saw in him doesn't really exist. and that "nothing" has become truth to her. she has to remind herself he can't give back.
i believe the "truth" she looks to him to see, is also the depressing realization that she can't look to someone else to make her happy. he taught her this sad truth.
she doesn't normally open up to people easily either, but she offered her heart to him, to be her home, and welcomed his. deep in his mind, he knows. he realizes how much she loved him, but it's too late. and doesn't matter. his heart is too protected, but he smiles knowing what she has given him.
...and she fades into him. i think this means she loved him so much he became everything to her. at first she looked to him as someone to make her happy, but ended up trying to be everything to make him happy. and lost herself. i think it also means that she begins to see the darkness in him, in herself. she is hurt and depressed and has lost hope. it's like looking in a mirror.
after everything she thinks it is strange he never knew how much she really wanted to care and how sincere she was and wanted to be the one to make him happy and for him to be the one to make her happy. what could have been. the hurt he was causing her. she loved him for what he was. he's too messed up and self-centered to appreciate it. or just didn't feel the same way.
i think it's about disappointment. a broken heart. and a damaged soul.
maybe the darkness also becomes part of what makes him so real to her. accepting truth in disappointment and hurt. he has damaged her, she can't trust her own perception of reality. and now she has to build her own walls. the song sounds final, like there is a loss.
i think she continues to love him from a distance, but she is done.
part of her believes she understood him and that he would have loved her if only he really knew. the other part of her knows the truth.
wow, i feel like yours matches my exact interpretation of the song. keep posting around!
if she fades into him, doesn't it become reflexive and mean that she's also just as guilty? or at least complicit. and do you think that they've got a chance in hell of makin' it once each has had their wounded soul wrapped in neosporn-smeared bandage? <br /> <br /> i'd like to think so, but maybe that's the bleeding heart in me
Well, this is kind of my story............................
Wow! you are a true writer, and a truth seer. Your ability to explain this in such an articulate way. is full of profoundness. and understanding..I know. you must be year of the dog..or perhaps a tiger. Beware who you let in. We see what we see and i feel a true rush within as i gain full transparent understanding of a relationship. Blessed are the weak in spirit for the kingdome of heaven is theirs.
@crowjanie WOW nail on the head.... This is exactly what I understood it to mean.
@crowjanie This is exactly what this means to me.... Excellent post!
@crowjanie I have been here... It did not end up the way I thought it would.
@crowjanie Oh my gosh! YES!! You explained this song perfectly and you gave it much more meaning. Thank you for your thoughts. :-)
@crowjanie r u a mentalist coz u read my mind. Cheers (:
@crowjanie Come on, you have an inside source right? lol That was beautiful.<br />
@crowjanie Nailed it
@crowjanie Wow... I have loved this song for years and now, how you've explained it, I feel I am in the same boat. Your explanation is incredible and mind blowing. I love it, but it makes me sad at the same time<br /> <br />
@crowjanie Beautiful synopsis! This resonates deeply and clarifies my thoughts and feelings just as I was seeking. Thank you!
Wonderful extensive explanation!
@crowjanie wow. Wow. Wow. Is all i can say!
@crowjanie ha either you're an art major or you relate all too much to this song, good luck to you
[Comment Removed]
@crowjanie omg
@crowjanie i agree white you so much
@crowjanie yes, your post was a while ago..(16 or so years..seems like yesterday to me)<br /> Very well stated! Reading your words, I felt damn near exactly how I do while listening to the song..<br /> <br />
@crowjanie Good take on this song