"Fast car" is kind of a continuation of Bruce Springsteen's "Born to Run." It has all the clawing your way to a better life, but in this case the protagonist never makes it with her love; in fact she is dragged back down by him.
There is still an amazing amount of hope and will in the lyrics; and the lyrics themselve rank and easy five. If only music was stronger it would be one of those great radio songs that you hear once a week 20 years after it was released. The imagery is almost tear-jerking ("City lights lay out before us", "Speeds so fast felt like I was drunk"), and the idea of starting from nothing and just driving and working and denigrating yourself for a chance at being just above poverty, then losing in the end is just painful and inspiring at the same time.
Today's a reason for living
Today's the blood from a stone
Today's a light from a candle
Helping us to find our way home
Today we carry each other
Today the past is a freak
Today's a time for forgiveness
You were never that good to me
(Welcome to this world of mine)
I'm sorry, I can't lie
I'm wasting too much time
Drowning I've been blind
But I've opened up my eyes
Sorry, I can't lie
So I just say goodbye
Goodbye
Goodbye
Yeah
Today's tasting the honey
Today's the strike of a match
And today's the lines in the pavement
Helping us to find our way back
Today's the crosses we carry
Today's the strength that we need
And today's the hand of an angel
You were not the kind to believe
(Welcome to this world of mine)
I'm sorry, I can't lie
I'm wasting too much time
Drowning I've been blind
But I've opened up my eyes
Sorry, I can't lie
So I just say goodbye
Goodbye
Goodbye
Yeah
Oh what a day, oh what a day, oh my God
Oh what a day, oh what a day, oh my God
Oh what a day, oh what a day, oh my God
And oh my God, and oh my God, yeah
Today we carry each other
Today we do what we should
Today's a time for forgiving
Today I wish I could
I'm sorry, I can't lie
I'm wasting too much time
Drowning, I've been blind
But I've opened up my eyes
Sorry, I can't lie
So I just say goodbye, goodbye, goodbye
Another bye, goodbye, goodbye
Another bye, goodbye, goodbye, yeah
Another bye, goodbye, goodbye
Another bye, goodbye, bye
Today's the blood from a stone
Today's a light from a candle
Helping us to find our way home
Today we carry each other
Today the past is a freak
Today's a time for forgiveness
You were never that good to me
(Welcome to this world of mine)
I'm sorry, I can't lie
I'm wasting too much time
Drowning I've been blind
But I've opened up my eyes
Sorry, I can't lie
So I just say goodbye
Goodbye
Goodbye
Yeah
Today's tasting the honey
Today's the strike of a match
And today's the lines in the pavement
Helping us to find our way back
Today's the crosses we carry
Today's the strength that we need
And today's the hand of an angel
You were not the kind to believe
(Welcome to this world of mine)
I'm sorry, I can't lie
I'm wasting too much time
Drowning I've been blind
But I've opened up my eyes
Sorry, I can't lie
So I just say goodbye
Goodbye
Goodbye
Yeah
Oh what a day, oh what a day, oh my God
Oh what a day, oh what a day, oh my God
Oh what a day, oh what a day, oh my God
And oh my God, and oh my God, yeah
Today we carry each other
Today we do what we should
Today's a time for forgiving
Today I wish I could
I'm sorry, I can't lie
I'm wasting too much time
Drowning, I've been blind
But I've opened up my eyes
Sorry, I can't lie
So I just say goodbye, goodbye, goodbye
Another bye, goodbye, goodbye
Another bye, goodbye, goodbye, yeah
Another bye, goodbye, goodbye
Another bye, goodbye, bye
Lyrics submitted by dstrbdbliss
Sorry Lyrics as written by Dale Virgo Andre Bailey
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Downtown Music Publishing
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
Add your thoughts
Log in now to tell us what you think this song means.
Don’t have an account? Create an account with SongMeanings to post comments, submit lyrics, and more. It’s super easy, we promise!
More Featured Meanings
Fast Car
Tracy Chapman
Tracy Chapman
Bron-Y-Aur Stomp
Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin
This is about bronies. They communicate by stomping.
Gentle Hour
Yo La Tengo
Yo La Tengo
This song was originally written by a guy called Peter Gutteridge. He was one of the founders of the "Dunedin Sound" a musical scene in the south of New Zealand in the early 80s. From there it was covered by "The Clean" one of the early bands of that scene (he had originally been a member of in it's early days, writing a couple of their best early songs). The Dunedin sound, and the Clean became popular on american college radio in the mid to late 80s. I guess Yo La Tengo heard that version.
Great version of a great song,
When We Were Young
Blink-182
Blink-182
This is a sequel to 2001's "Reckless Abandon", and features the band looking back on their clumsy youth fondly.
No Surprises
Radiohead
Radiohead
Same ideas expressed in Fitter, Happier are expressed in this song. We're told to strive for some sort of ideal life, which includes getting a good job, being kind to everyone, finding a partner, getting married, having a couple kids, living in a quiet neighborhood in a nice big house, etc. But in Fitter, Happier the narrator(?) realizes that it's incredibly robotic to live this life. People are being used by those in power "like a pig in a cage on antibiotics"--being pacified with things like new phones and cool gadgets and houses while being sucked dry. On No Surprises, the narrator is realizing how this life is killing him slowly. In the video, his helmet is slowly filling up with water, drowning him. But he's so complacent with it. This is a good summary of the song. This boring, "perfect" life foisted upon us by some higher powers (not spiritual, but political, economic, etc. politicians and businessmen, perhaps) is not the way to live. But there is seemingly no way out but death. He'd rather die peacefully right now than live in this cage. While our lives are often shielded, we're in our own protective bubbles, or protective helmets like the one Thom wears, if we look a little harder we can see all the corruption, lies, manipulation, etc. that is going on in the world, often run by huge yet nearly invisible organizations, corporations, and 'leaders'. It's a very hopeless song because it reflects real life.
HOW TRUE HOW TRUE!!!!