Last Dance With Mary Jane
Tom Petty
Through out the song "Last Dance With Mary Jane, Tom Petty painfully expresses ones mental addiction to the drug, Marijuanna, known on the streets as, Mary Jane. Although many other meanings of the song have been depicted, the true meaning behind the song remains controversial. But from my understanding of the song, there truly is no doubt in my mind that this song is indeed about Marijuanna.
"She Grew up in an Indianna town, had a good looking mama, who never was around, but she grew up tall and she grew upright, with them indiana boys on them indiana nights". While this line could simply be about a young neglected woman, I believe it is about the growth and harvest of the plant. While in the chorus, Petty sings, "Last dance with Mary Jane, one more time to kill the pain./I feel summer creepin' in and I'm tired of this town again". He is having what he wants to be, his last encounter with the drug, until the reality of his town seeps in and he begins to crave the drug once again. Petty also states "I'm tired of screwin' up, tired of goin' down," He's tired of doing the wrong thing, and he is tired of the after effects of the drug, known as being "burnt out."
