Jane’s Addiction – albums ranked

Blossoming out of the mid-80’s Los Angeles, CA alternative music scene, Jane’s Addiction quickly paved their own road to rock-n-roll glory only to have it crumble just as fast.  With only two studio albums and one live recording under their belt the band was finished, but what they did in those short four or so years was unbelievable.  Still today, over twenty years after their first album was released, their recordings easily hold their own.  There is no sound equal to Jane’s Addiction and there is no lead man equal to Perry Farrell.  Here I am going to dissect their original albums as well as the 2003 album, Strays, which featured three out of the four original members.

1. Nothing’s Shocking – Nothing’s Shocking was Jane’s Addiction’s first studio album.  During the recording sessions, the band almost broke up due to singer Perry Farrell’s demands at 50% percent of the publishing royalties for writing the lyrics, as well as his cut of the music writing.  This effectively left the remaining members with 12.5% each.  This incident had a profound impact on the band and created a rift that would ultimately lead to their demise.  Nothing’s Shocking, was released August 23rd, 1988 and it did not sell well initially.  The cover artwork created by Perry Farrell was nude Siamese twins sitting on a rocking chair with their heads on fire.  Almost all retailers refused to carry the album due to the nudity, so ultimately the album was wrapped in brown paper.  The album itself is raw and energetic, showcasing the band’s unique, funk driven alternative-metal sound.  Nothing’s Shocking rocks throughout with the powerful “Ocean Size“, “Summertime Rolls” and “Mountain Song” being my favorites.  It also features the studio version of “Jane Says”; easily the band’s most popular song ever.
2. Ritual de lo Habitual – Ritual de lo Habitual was the fantastic follow up to Nothing’s Shocking.  It was released August 21st, 1990 and unfortunately ended up being the final album with the original four members.  Once again the album featured artwork by singer Perry Farrell, and once again there was controversy over the nudity it contained.  An alternate censored cover was created which featured the band’s name, album name, and the text of the first amendment in black over a simple white background.  The back of the censored cover stated, “Hitler’s syphilis-ridden dreams almost came true. How could it happen? By taking control of the media. An entire country was led by a lunatic… We must protect our First Amendment, before sick dreams become law. Nobody made fun of Hitler??!”  Nice touch.  The music of Ritual de lo Habitual starts off very heavy with tracks 1-5, and the second half of the album calms down in a memoriam to Farrell’s friend Xiola Blue who died of a heroin overdose in 1987 at the age of 19.  With some airplay and help of the video for “Been Caught Stealing”, the album was the band’s most successful to date topping at 19 on the Billboard 200 chart.  “Stop” is a legendary song by the band as is “Ain’t No Right”.  Perhaps my favorite song ever by the band is track six entitled “Three Days“.  That song is huge and beautiful and displays not only the soft sensitivity the band had, but the thunderous drums of Stephen Perkins and one of the best guitar solos in the history of rock as played by guitarist Dave Navarro.  With the band just entering their prime, it is extremely unfortunate that Ritual de lo Habitual was the band’s finale.
3. Jane’s Addiction – Jane’s Addiction was released in 1987 on the indie label Triple X Records.  The album was recorded live over various dates at the Roxy Theatre in Hollywood, CA in 1987, then polished in the studio with overdubs.  I wouldn’t go as far as calling this a live album though as it has the feel of a studio demo until the crowd roars at the end of the tracks (crowd noise was from a Los Lobos concert).  The tracks “Jane Says” and “Pigs in Zen” were later recorded for the band’s first album Nothing’s Shocking.  The album also features covers of “Rock-n-Roll” by The Velvet Underground and The Rolling Stones’ “Sympathy for the Devil” simply titled “Sympathy” on the album.  Those two tracks are definite standouts, as is “I Would for You” and the wonderful “My Time”.  The album showcases the gritty club sound the band had way back in 1987.  Jane’s Addiction always did it big onstage, and this is a nice reminder of how they did it early on.
4. Strays – I don’t care what anyone says, this album kicks ass.  Released on July 22nd, 2003, Strays featured Chris Chaney on bass instead of Eric Avery who up to this point continued to refuse any participation with the band.  Strays had legendary 70’s rock producer Bob Ezrin on the boards and according to Perry Farrell, “He raised the bar for all of us. It’s like training for the Olympics – something you are aspiring towards in creating art. You’re trying to make the most beautiful music, you try to break new ground creating sound that no one’s ever heard before. When working with Bob; doing that becomes a very real possibility.”  The album has a far more modern sound than their previous groundbreaking albums of the time but taken for what it is, Strays is a solid record.  The singles “Just Because” and “True Nature” are great and helped push the album all the way to #4 on the Billboard 200 in 2003.  I had a chance to see them tour behind this album and that show still ranks up there as a top 5 concert ever.  Following their 2001 Jubilee tour which told fans to expect a “Sexual Psycho Circus”, the Strays tour was incredibly theatrical with half-naked dancers filling the stage and a gyrating and howling Perry Farrell leading as only he could do it.  After the Strays tour the band broke up once again.

Jane’s Addiction is one of the most influential and artistic bands to come out of the 80’s.  They were alternative before alternative was mainstream and cool.  Their unique sound and incredible musicianship ranks them very high in my book, it’s just unfortunate that drugs and greed over royalties continued to plague the band.  In 2008, original bassist Eric Avery finally rejoined the group and in the summer of 2009 they toured with Nine Inch Nails playing only songs Avery was involved with.  To accompany the tour, the band re-recorded versions of  “Chip Away” and one of their most defining songs, “Whores”; both which were released on their official website.  I would be one happy camper if they released a new studio album before the inevitable happens once again.