"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.
Please give me one more chance,
I'm begging you, just one more chance,
If you'll listen
This is not some movie romance,
Or everlasting love at a glance,
Won't you listen
She is a part of me now,
She's the very heart of me now, so
If you really love her, let her go.
She's your daughter and I know that you care,
But like a lost bird in the cold night air,
She is lonely
Thinking back to the days you were young,
When the pain of loving was so very strong,
Weren't you lonely?
She is no longer a child,
She's a woman with love in her eyes, so
If you really love her, let her go.
Oh she is like a bird,
Yearning for the winter wind,
If you let her go,
She'll come again in springtime,
But if you make her stay,
And hold her freedom in your hand,
In the morning you will wake,
And she'll be gone away
She is no longer a child,
She's a woman with my love in her eyes, so
If you really love her, let her go,
If you really love her, let her go,
If you really love her, let her go
I'm begging you, just one more chance,
If you'll listen
This is not some movie romance,
Or everlasting love at a glance,
Won't you listen
She is a part of me now,
She's the very heart of me now, so
If you really love her, let her go.
She's your daughter and I know that you care,
But like a lost bird in the cold night air,
She is lonely
Thinking back to the days you were young,
When the pain of loving was so very strong,
Weren't you lonely?
She is no longer a child,
She's a woman with love in her eyes, so
If you really love her, let her go.
Oh she is like a bird,
Yearning for the winter wind,
If you let her go,
She'll come again in springtime,
But if you make her stay,
And hold her freedom in your hand,
In the morning you will wake,
And she'll be gone away
She is no longer a child,
She's a woman with my love in her eyes, so
If you really love her, let her go,
If you really love her, let her go,
If you really love her, let her go
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
Cajun Girl
Little Feat
Little Feat
Overall about difficult moments of disappointment and vulnerability. Having hope and longing, while remaining optimistic for the future. Encourages the belief that with each new morning there is a chance for things to improve.
The chorus offers a glimmer of optimism and a chance at a resolution and redemption in the future.
Captures the rollercoaster of emotions of feeling lost while loving someone who is not there for you, feeling let down and abandoned while waiting for a lover. Lost with no direction, "Now I'm up in the air with the rain in my hair, Nowhere to go, I can go anywhere"
The bridge shows signs of longing and a plea for companionship. The Lyrics express a desire for authentic connection and the importance of Loving someone just as they are. "Just in passing, I'm not asking. That you be anyone but you”
Magical
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
How would you describe the feeling of being in love? For Ed Sheeran, the word is “Magical.” in HIS three-minute album opener, he makes an attempt to capture the beauty and delicacy of true love with words. He describes the magic of it all over a bright Pop song produced by Aaron Dessner.
Blue
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
“Blue” is a song about a love that is persisting in the discomfort of the person experiencing the emotion. Ed Sheeran reflects on love lost, and although he wishes his former partner find happiness, he cannot but admit his feelings are still very much there. He expresses the realization that he might never find another on this stringed instrumental by Aaron Dessner.
Head > Heels
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
“Head > Heels” is a track that aims to capture what it feels like to experience romance that exceeds expectations. Ed Sheeran dedicates his album outro to a lover who has blessed him with a unique experience that he seeks to describe through the song’s nuanced lyrics.
A father won't give his daughter's hand in marriage. He's trying to persuade the father that it is serious - "this ain't no movie romance", and that he really loves the daughter and will take care of her.
The father has to realise that the daughter isn't a child any more - "she's a woman with love in her eyes".
If the father really loved her then he'd do what was right for her, not what he wanted to do - otherwise she'll rebel and he'll loose her altogether - "in the morning you will wake and she'll be gone".
Great song
I wonder how many times this has actually happened.