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."
Flatter than a tabletop
Makes you wonder why they stopped here
Wagon must have lost a wheel or they lacked ambition one
On the great migration west
Separated from the rest
Though they might have tried their best
They never caught the sun
So they sunk some roots down in the dirt
To keep from blowin' off the earth
Built a town around here
And when the dust had all but cleared
They called it Levelland, the pride of man
In Levelland
Granddad grew the dryland wheat
Stood on his own two feet
His mind got incomplete and they put in the home
Daddy's cotton grows so high
Sucks the water table dry
Rolling sprinklers circle round
Bleedin' it to the bone
And I won't be here when it comes a day
It all dries up and blows away
I'd hang around just to see
But they never had much use for me in Levelland
They don't understand me out in Levelland
And I watch those jet trails carving up that big blue sky
Coast to coasters watch 'em go
And I never would blame 'em one damn bit
If they never looked down on this
Not much here they'd wanna know
Just Levelland
Far as you can point your hand
Nothin' but Levelland
Mama used to roll her hair
Back before the central air
We'd sit outside and watch the stars at night
She'd tell me to make a wish
I'd wish we both could fly
Don't think she's seen the sky
Since we got the satellite dish and
I can hear the marching band
Doin' the best they can
They're playing "Smoke on the Water", "Joy to the World"
I've paid off all my debts
Got some change left over yet and I'm
Gettin' on a whisper jet
I'm gonna fly as far as I can get from
Levelland, doin' the best I can
Out in Levelland - imagine that
Makes you wonder why they stopped here
Wagon must have lost a wheel or they lacked ambition one
On the great migration west
Separated from the rest
Though they might have tried their best
They never caught the sun
So they sunk some roots down in the dirt
To keep from blowin' off the earth
Built a town around here
And when the dust had all but cleared
They called it Levelland, the pride of man
In Levelland
Granddad grew the dryland wheat
Stood on his own two feet
His mind got incomplete and they put in the home
Daddy's cotton grows so high
Sucks the water table dry
Rolling sprinklers circle round
Bleedin' it to the bone
And I won't be here when it comes a day
It all dries up and blows away
I'd hang around just to see
But they never had much use for me in Levelland
They don't understand me out in Levelland
And I watch those jet trails carving up that big blue sky
Coast to coasters watch 'em go
And I never would blame 'em one damn bit
If they never looked down on this
Not much here they'd wanna know
Just Levelland
Far as you can point your hand
Nothin' but Levelland
Mama used to roll her hair
Back before the central air
We'd sit outside and watch the stars at night
She'd tell me to make a wish
I'd wish we both could fly
Don't think she's seen the sky
Since we got the satellite dish and
I can hear the marching band
Doin' the best they can
They're playing "Smoke on the Water", "Joy to the World"
I've paid off all my debts
Got some change left over yet and I'm
Gettin' on a whisper jet
I'm gonna fly as far as I can get from
Levelland, doin' the best I can
Out in Levelland - imagine that
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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.
Anyone who grew up in a small town, and wondered why anyone would stay, now has an anthem. McMurtry makes a pretty compelling case for a desolate part of west Tx. Great song!
James makes a lot of connections to planes, jets and flying in this song. I think this song is more than just a small town in west Texas. On the surface that's that, but it corrilates more to freedom and freedom from the same old boring day to day lives that most are forced to lead. "they lacked ambition, one". You see. It's funny that he throws greed in the song as well because it doesn't seem to fit with the rest. "Sucks the water table dry". In farming communities this kind of practice is frowned upon by some other farmers. (mostly because they can't compete (it takes money to make money kind of thing)). The best verse in this song works so well. Mama used to roll her hair Back before the central air We'd sit outside and watch the stars at night She's tell me to make a wish I'd wish we both could fly I don't sthink she's seen the sky Since we got the sattelite dish
That gets me everytime.
A little trivia: I read in an interview that James said the song is really about the town of Floydada, Texas, but Floydada didn't fit the meter, so it became Levelland. I think I also heard or read somewhere that he has a friend who lives in Floydada, who James has said is the leader of the Socialist party there. Knowing what small towns in west Texas are like, he must be one brave sumbitch.
well you may have read it, but he gives the full explanation on the live album "Live in Aught-Three"; the track's name is "Max's Theorem" he explains the song and pretty much says everything you just did, except "Max was a communist" not a socialist. Which is like saying that a fascist is a capitalist.
Regarding McMurtry's "Levelland:" I just have to add that I used to live in Levelland [Texas] and now I don't. I can see McMurtry writing it about the actual town of Levelland. Just as BoyBlue stated, he "makes a pretty compelling case for a desolate part of west Texas." If I may ask, guitarpicker23, do you remember where you read or heard about McMurtry actually writing the song about Floydada?
Other than Dylan, he is my favorite writer. He gets really nasty and jaded. Check out Red Dress, and 60 Acres...Turtle Bayou is just killer from his latest. This is how it opens:
"Got a idea, tell ya what let's do, Let's go down to that place near the Turtle Bayou. Well, we maybe get lucky, maybe get shot, Couldn't be half the trouble I got.
Turtle Bayou, turn around
Get your big feet up off the ground
Turtle Bayou, turn around.
"Contrary to popular belief, Robert Earl Keen did not write that last song. I wrote it for my buddy Max Crawford from Floydada,Texas. Floydada didn't fit the meter, so I used Levelland. Max was a Communist, so he didn't fit in too good in Floydada. The American Worker's Party is not very well represented in FLoydada, ya know."
Great song about not fitting in, wanting to get away. I especially love the line about Mom: "don't think she's seen the sky, since we got the satellite dish."
Good song, Didn't realize he wrote this.