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."
They say an end can be a start
Feels like I've been buried yet still alive
It's like a bad day that never ends
I feel the chaos around me
A thing I don't try to deny
I'd better learn to accept that
There are things in my life I can't control
They say love ain't nothing but a sore
I don't even know what love is
Too many tears have had to fall
Don't you know, I'm so tired of it all?
I have known terror dizzy spells
Finding out the secrets words won't tell
Whatever it is it can't be named
There's a part of my world that's fading away
You know I don't want to be clever
To be brilliant or superior
True like ice, true like fire
Now I know that a breeze can blow me away
Now I know there's much more dignity
In defeat than the brightest victory
I'm losing my balance on the tightrope
Tell me please, tell me please, tell me please, tell me please
If I ever feel better
Remind me to spend some good time with you
You can give me your number
When it's all over I'll let you know
Hang on to the good days
I can lean on my friends
They help me going through hard times
But I'm feeding the enemy
I'm in league with the foe
Blame me for what's happening
I can try, I can try, I can try, I can try
No one knows the hard times I went through
If happiness came I miss the call
Stormy days ain't over
Tried and lost now I think that I pay the cost
I've watched all my castles fall
They were made of dust, after all
Someday all this mess will make me laugh
I can wait, I can wait, I can wait, I can wait
If I ever feel better
Remind me to spend some good time with you
You can give me your number
When it's all over I'll let you know
If I ever feel better
Remind me to spend some good time with you
You can give me your number
When it's all over I'll let you know
It's like somebody took my place
I ain't even playing my own game
The rules have changed, well, I didn't know
There are things in my life I can't control
I feel the chaos around me
A thing I don't try to deny
I'd better learn to accept that
There's a part of my life that will go away
Dark is the night, cold is the ground
In the circular solitude of my heart
As one who strives a hill to climb
I am sure I'll come through, I don't know how
They say an end can be a start
Feels like I've been buried yet still alive
I'm losing my balance on the tightrope
Tell me please, tell me please, tell me please, tell me please
If I ever feel better
Remind me to spend some good time with you
You can give me your number
When it's all over I'll let you know
If I ever feel better
Remind me to spend some good time with you
You can give me your number
When it's all over I'll let you know
If I ever feel better
Remind me to spend some good time with you
You can give me your number
When it's all over I'll let you know
Feels like I've been buried yet still alive
It's like a bad day that never ends
I feel the chaos around me
A thing I don't try to deny
I'd better learn to accept that
There are things in my life I can't control
They say love ain't nothing but a sore
I don't even know what love is
Too many tears have had to fall
Don't you know, I'm so tired of it all?
I have known terror dizzy spells
Finding out the secrets words won't tell
Whatever it is it can't be named
There's a part of my world that's fading away
You know I don't want to be clever
To be brilliant or superior
True like ice, true like fire
Now I know that a breeze can blow me away
Now I know there's much more dignity
In defeat than the brightest victory
I'm losing my balance on the tightrope
Tell me please, tell me please, tell me please, tell me please
If I ever feel better
Remind me to spend some good time with you
You can give me your number
When it's all over I'll let you know
Hang on to the good days
I can lean on my friends
They help me going through hard times
But I'm feeding the enemy
I'm in league with the foe
Blame me for what's happening
I can try, I can try, I can try, I can try
No one knows the hard times I went through
If happiness came I miss the call
Stormy days ain't over
Tried and lost now I think that I pay the cost
I've watched all my castles fall
They were made of dust, after all
Someday all this mess will make me laugh
I can wait, I can wait, I can wait, I can wait
If I ever feel better
Remind me to spend some good time with you
You can give me your number
When it's all over I'll let you know
If I ever feel better
Remind me to spend some good time with you
You can give me your number
When it's all over I'll let you know
It's like somebody took my place
I ain't even playing my own game
The rules have changed, well, I didn't know
There are things in my life I can't control
I feel the chaos around me
A thing I don't try to deny
I'd better learn to accept that
There's a part of my life that will go away
Dark is the night, cold is the ground
In the circular solitude of my heart
As one who strives a hill to climb
I am sure I'll come through, I don't know how
They say an end can be a start
Feels like I've been buried yet still alive
I'm losing my balance on the tightrope
Tell me please, tell me please, tell me please, tell me please
If I ever feel better
Remind me to spend some good time with you
You can give me your number
When it's all over I'll let you know
If I ever feel better
Remind me to spend some good time with you
You can give me your number
When it's all over I'll let you know
If I ever feel better
Remind me to spend some good time with you
You can give me your number
When it's all over I'll let you know
Lyrics submitted by hermelinus
If I Ever Feel Better Lyrics as written by Christian Mazzalai Chikara Ueda
Lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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More Featured Meanings
Mountain Song
Jane's Addiction
Jane's Addiction
No Surprises
Radiohead
Radiohead
Same ideas expressed in Fitter, Happier are expressed in this song. We're told to strive for some sort of ideal life, which includes getting a good job, being kind to everyone, finding a partner, getting married, having a couple kids, living in a quiet neighborhood in a nice big house, etc. But in Fitter, Happier the narrator(?) realizes that it's incredibly robotic to live this life. People are being used by those in power "like a pig in a cage on antibiotics"--being pacified with things like new phones and cool gadgets and houses while being sucked dry. On No Surprises, the narrator is realizing how this life is killing him slowly. In the video, his helmet is slowly filling up with water, drowning him. But he's so complacent with it. This is a good summary of the song. This boring, "perfect" life foisted upon us by some higher powers (not spiritual, but political, economic, etc. politicians and businessmen, perhaps) is not the way to live. But there is seemingly no way out but death. He'd rather die peacefully right now than live in this cage. While our lives are often shielded, we're in our own protective bubbles, or protective helmets like the one Thom wears, if we look a little harder we can see all the corruption, lies, manipulation, etc. that is going on in the world, often run by huge yet nearly invisible organizations, corporations, and 'leaders'. It's a very hopeless song because it reflects real life.
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/
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.
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.
"They say love ain't nothing but a sore I don't even know what love is Too many tears have had to fall Don't you know I'm so tired of it all"
These lines - Especially the way the singer in this band makes them sound just won't leave my mind. Iv'e listened to this song a great many times, never gets old!
I think this song is about panic attacks, depression, and anxiety...
"I feel the chaos around me" -typical way of explaining panic attacks "I'd better learn to accept that, There are things in my life that I can't control" - typical way psychologists say to deal with anxiety and panic attacks, tell patiants there are things that are uncontrollable
"I have known terror dizzy spells, Finding out the secrets words won't tell, Whatever it is it can't be named"- terror dizzy spells = panic attacks, but it is difficult to explain to someone who doesn't understand
"Now I know that a breeze can blow me away" - can be triggered by anything
"Hang on to the good days, I can lean on my friends, They help me going through hard times" - there are days when you feel great and days when you feel horrible but you work through it with the people you love
"No one knows the hard times I went through, If happiness came I miss the call" - hopeless
"It's like somebody took my place, I ain't even playing my own game" - hes disassociating, like being in a room of people but feeling seperate from them...
And then they're saying "love is nothing but a sore"...to his recovery so he can't start a new relationship..."if i ever feel better remind me to spend some good time with you"
my 2 cents
I think it's just about being so depressed that you start ignoring you're friends, or potential friends. They start to think you either don't like them or are a total jerk. But it's just because you're hurting right now, and there's just too much crap in life at this moment to create or tend to a friendship. Yes, selfish, but it's what you feel sometimes.
And it's like you're asking them to wait for you. Please, in a couple days, this mood will pass and I'll totally be up for pizza at your place. :)
but a couple days just might be... a couple years :)
Mmm, it's a bit more hopeless though, it's an if this ever passes.
very true, both of you...I really feel like I've been going through this "phase" for fucking years :/
@Aquarius121 This is years late but I have to say it sounds like he says, "I feel the kale surround me." Maybe thats just me though.
gRoovY!
I think it's a song about trying/thinking about trying to be in a relationship as a person suffering from depression. he's saying he wants to spend time with her once (if) he feels better, because it's so hard to be with someone else when you're wrapped up in yourself and just depressed as fuck. I don't think it's a heartbreak song about an ex at all - why would he want to spend some good time with someone/not have their number if they just broke up/had a long, serious relationship? it seems a more light-hearted attachment than that, outside of the depression aspect. fucking great song, anyway. I just wanna have a dance party to it
If they broke up due to him being distant, and he'd want something more/to make it up to them if things were different.
'if i ever feel better, remind me to spend some good time with you"
haha! just how i felt like before.
for me, it's like there's this person you would like to get to know, but the time is just not right.
=)
I love this song...I love this band...I love this website.
this easily my new favorite song. so much to relate to.
I love this song.. when I broke up with my ex I listen to it repeat for a long time, and it really help´t me .
"There are things in my life that I can't control" love it!
2011 has been nutz... Break up from a 7 year relationship... Break up from the 4 month rebound... and now onto the next... BUt i honestly feel like i have nothing left to give... I just feel so damaged from it all... Loving loving this song, just that feeling of "Let me be, cause i need to heal, and then i would love to work on something new with you..."
I know it's been a while, so instead of saying "hold on tight", I'll just say "hope you're doing better and the storm has passed" =)