"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.
It's not her fault that she's so irresistible
But all the damage she's caused isn't fixable
Every twenty seconds you repeat her name
But when it comes to me you don't care
If I'm alive or dead
So objection, I don't wanna be the exception
To get a bit of your attention
I love you for free and I'm not your mother
But you don't even bother
Objection, I'm tired of this triangle
Got dizzy dancing tango
I'm falling apart in your hands again
No way, I've got to get away
Next to her cheap silicone I look minimal
That's why in front of your eyes, I'm invisible
But you gotta know small things also count
You better put your feet on the ground
And see what it's about
So objection, I don't wanna be the exception
To get a bit of your attention
I love you for free and I'm not your mother
But you don't even bother
I'm tied to the angles of this triangle
Got dizzy dancing tango
I'm falling apart in your hands again
No way, no, no, no, no
I wish there was a chance for you and me
I wish you couldn't find a place to be
Away from here
This is pathetic and sardonic
It's sadistic and psychotic
Tango is not for three
Was never meant to be
But you can try it, rehearse it
Or train like a horse
But don't you count on me
Oh, don't you count on me, boy
Objection, I don't wanna the exception
To get a bit of your attention
I love you for free and I'm not your mother
But you don't even bother
Objection, I'm tired of this triangle
Got dizzy dancing tango
I'm falling apart in your hands again
No way, I've got to get away
Get away
Get away, eh, eh, eh
Get away
Ah-ha-ho, ah-ha-ho, aha
Ah-ha-ho, ah-ha-ho, aha
Uh-uh
I'm falling apart in your hands again
Get away
I'm falling apart in your hands again
Get away
Get away
But all the damage she's caused isn't fixable
Every twenty seconds you repeat her name
But when it comes to me you don't care
If I'm alive or dead
So objection, I don't wanna be the exception
To get a bit of your attention
I love you for free and I'm not your mother
But you don't even bother
Objection, I'm tired of this triangle
Got dizzy dancing tango
I'm falling apart in your hands again
No way, I've got to get away
Next to her cheap silicone I look minimal
That's why in front of your eyes, I'm invisible
But you gotta know small things also count
You better put your feet on the ground
And see what it's about
So objection, I don't wanna be the exception
To get a bit of your attention
I love you for free and I'm not your mother
But you don't even bother
I'm tied to the angles of this triangle
Got dizzy dancing tango
I'm falling apart in your hands again
No way, no, no, no, no
I wish there was a chance for you and me
I wish you couldn't find a place to be
Away from here
This is pathetic and sardonic
It's sadistic and psychotic
Tango is not for three
Was never meant to be
But you can try it, rehearse it
Or train like a horse
But don't you count on me
Oh, don't you count on me, boy
Objection, I don't wanna the exception
To get a bit of your attention
I love you for free and I'm not your mother
But you don't even bother
Objection, I'm tired of this triangle
Got dizzy dancing tango
I'm falling apart in your hands again
No way, I've got to get away
Get away
Get away, eh, eh, eh
Get away
Ah-ha-ho, ah-ha-ho, aha
Ah-ha-ho, ah-ha-ho, aha
Uh-uh
I'm falling apart in your hands again
Get away
I'm falling apart in your hands again
Get away
Get away
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More Featured Meanings
Fast Car
Tracy Chapman
Tracy Chapman
Dreamwalker
Silent Planet
Silent Planet
I think much like another song “Anti-Matter” (that's also on the same album as this song), this one is also is inspired by a horrifying van crash the band experienced on Nov 3, 2022. This, much like the other track, sounds like it's an extension what they shared while huddled in the wreckage, as they helped frontman Garrett Russell stem the bleeding from his head wound while he was under the temporary effects of a concussion. The track speaks of where the mind goes at the most desperate & desolate of times, when it just about slips away to all but disconnect itself, and the aftermath.
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.
Punchline
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran sings about missing his former partner and learning important life lessons in the process on “Punchline.” This track tells a story of battling to get rid of emotions for a former lover, whom he now realized might not have loved him the same way. He’s now caught between accepting that fact and learning life lessons from it and going back to beg her for another chance.
American Town
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran shares a short story of reconnecting with an old flame on “American Town.” The track is about a holiday Ed Sheeran spends with his countrywoman who resides in America. The two are back together after a long period apart, and get around to enjoying a bunch of fun activities while rekindling the flames of their romance.
these lyrics are easy to figure. it's all about cheating, hence the phrase 'two to tango'. and the line "Tango is not for three" in the song.