Jane's Addiction Top Ten Songs

Some argue the Red Hot Chili Peppers defined the pre-Nirvana alternative scene. But as Flea and Anthony were busy infiltrating the LA movie and music scene, Jane's Addiction was busy paving the way for Nirvana's Bleach and the rest of Seattle's burgeoning flannel-clad music scene to launch out of the ill-apropos genre moniker of college-rock into the mainstream.

Jane's Addiction's influence can be heard in the driving guitar of Chicago's Smashing Pumpkins, the octave-straining vocals of Seattle's Chris Cornell and Soundgarden, and the political angst-ridden lyrics of Rage Against the Machine. But before the influences made their mark on air time traditionally set aside for canned pop, Jane's Addiction was doing it first and in all cases better than their proteges.

Here are the best ten songs from Jane's Addiction's catalogue:

10. Then She Did...: From Ritual de lo Habitual, Then She Did transcends genre and becomes an anthem, or at least roadmap, for the maturing sound of Jane's. Beginning with a slow, melancholic hymn to the back drop of slow-picked electric guitar, Perry Farrell's distinctive voice climbs from the creeping depths of a lover's serenade to the passion and infatuation of a screaming stalker. One gets the sense of Jane's breadth of talent from this song.

9. Up the Beach: Oh, yeah. Hang on to your ear buds and tighten down the tympanic latches you're about to go on a psychedelic, guitar-infused ride to the culmination of psychedelic music. Picking up where Austin's Thirteenth Floor Elevators left off, the haunting guitar and Steven Perkins beats will have you craving a black-light lit room and a few of your closest friends.

8. Pigs in Zen: Where most heavier rock musicians go misogynistic with their lyrics, Farrell often airs on the side of a modern, male woman's libber. His lyrics and music are the better for it. Pigs in Zen either lambasts politicians or the inner male chauvinist in us all.

7. Rock & Roll: Very seldom do I add a cover to a top ten list, especially when the cover is of the eponymous likes of the inimitable Lou Reed. But, Rock & Roll goes there and takes us with it as it possible surpasses the Velvet Underground's original.

6. Mountain Song: From the opening bass line to the break and Farrell's opening COMING DOWN THE MOUNTAIN, the second track from their second album is iconic of their sound. Screaming guitar, rifting beats, and a thumping bass line, all with Farrell's angry voice climbing and diving the octave range, Mountain Song should be the best song of the eighties.

5. 1%: Oh, yeah. I went there. 1% is one of Jane's rare performance songs and an oldie from their original, unpurchasable expect for used, XXX. This is the creed Rage Against the Machine tried to emulate, but fell quite short of achieving.

4. I Would For You: I have a soft spot in my heart for this one, but for good reason. It has something to do with losing something long ago in a girl's parents' living room while they were in Maine for the weekend. Brings back precious memories and is a pretty damn good love song too.

3. Summertime Rolls: Psychedelic ramblings again, but always a crowd pleaser. This always reminds me of my best friends from high school, skipping days to catch ankle to knee high swells, and sneaking brown whiskey out of a friends. The song is about lazy summer days, and it captures it to a tee. It's me and my girlfriend, you know.

2. Ocean Size: This is the song that hooked me. Ocean Size is the opening vignette of Nothing Shocking. It starts with a great, hand-picked acoustic guitar and explodes into a violent electric powerfest. This is modern surf music that would make Jan and Dean sulk off into a corner and make Brian Wilson wish he'd never produced Pet Sounds.

1. Jane Says: Iconic. Lilting. Catchy. And, well, defining. G, C, and D chords never quite sounded so good together, but the boys pull them off, and in style. Clearly for the true Jane's fan this is the most recognizable and popular song. For the other, if you know Jane's through Been Caught Stealing, please listen to the first 10 songs on this list.