Mountain Hard Times The Band’s Mid Eighties Rock Statement Comes to Life in Music Video
Mountain’s Hard Times is a song originally released on the band’s seven album Go for Your Life in nineteen eighty five. The track reflects the band’s continued commitment to straightforward hard rock songwriting amid the changing landscape of rock music in the mid nineteen eighties. Known for their influential early seventies work, Mountain approached Hard Times with a direct, unpretentious style built on driving power chords and earnest vocal delivery from Leslie West. The lyrics describe economic struggle and the search for relief through music and shared experience, capturing a theme that remains relatable decades after the original release.
A music video was produced for Hard Times that features performance footage of the band, including appearances by recognizable personalities from popular culture. Among those featured is former professional wrestler and political figure Jesse Ventura, credited in the video as a muscular man figure, adding an unexpected crossover presence to the rock clip. The video pairs images of the band performing with staged scenes of everyday people confronting difficulty, reinforcing the song’s title and central theme of living through challenging periods.
The video for Hard Times provides valuable visual documentation of Mountain during their mid eighties era, when Leslie West and drummer Corky Laing continued to carry the band forward with core members and collaborators. Mountain had first risen to prominence in the late sixties and early seventies with heavy blues rock staples that helped define early hard rock, and though Go for Your Life did not replicate the commercial impact of the band’s earlier records, Hard Times stood out as an accessible and emotionally straightforward track.
The song sits within Mountain’s broader catalog as a reflection of persistence. The theme of Hard Times is rooted in the gritty realism of working life, referencing long hours and financial strain in its lyrical content. It does not shy away from the everyday struggle of people dealing with tight finances while seeking enjoyment and connection through music. The House of Blue Light, a recurring image in the lyrics, acts as a metaphorical escape where listeners can forget their worries for a night.
While Mountain’s earlier work like Mississippi Queen and Nantucket Sleighride earned enduring recognition, Hard Times is notable for representing the band’s later period with dignity and clarity. The music video remains a cultural artifact that situates the band in a broader mid eighties context, capturing both performance energy and the era’s aesthetic. For fans of classic rock, Hard Times continues to offer a snapshot of Mountain’s ongoing dedication to sincere rock expression at a time when mainstream trends were shifting.