"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.
Is she ready to know my frustration?
What she slippin' inside, slow castration
I'm a riddle so strong, you can't break me
Did she come here to try, try to take me
Did she call my name?
I think it's gonna rain
Oh, when I die
Was it something I said, held against me?
Ain't no life on the run, slowly climbing
Caught in ice so she stares, stares at nothing
I can help her but won't, now she hates me
Did she call my name?
I think it's gonna rain
Oh, when I die
She won't let me hide
She don't want me to cry
Yeah
Will she keep on the ground, trying to ground me
Slowly forgive my lie, lying to save me
Could she love me again, or will she hate me
Probably not, I know why, can't explain me
Did she call my name?
I think it's gonna rain
Oh, when I die
What she slippin' inside, slow castration
I'm a riddle so strong, you can't break me
Did she come here to try, try to take me
Did she call my name?
I think it's gonna rain
Oh, when I die
Was it something I said, held against me?
Ain't no life on the run, slowly climbing
Caught in ice so she stares, stares at nothing
I can help her but won't, now she hates me
Did she call my name?
I think it's gonna rain
Oh, when I die
She won't let me hide
She don't want me to cry
Yeah
Will she keep on the ground, trying to ground me
Slowly forgive my lie, lying to save me
Could she love me again, or will she hate me
Probably not, I know why, can't explain me
Did she call my name?
I think it's gonna rain
Oh, when I die
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Fast Car
Tracy Chapman
Tracy Chapman
The Night We Met
Lord Huron
Lord Huron
This is a hauntingly beautiful song about introspection, specifically about looking back at a relationship that started bad and ended so poorly, that the narrator wants to go back to the very beginning and tell himself to not even travel down that road. I believe that the relationship started poorly because of the lines:
"Take me back to the night we met:When the night was full of terrors: And your eyes were filled with tears: When you had not touched me yet"
So, the first night was not a great start, but the narrator pursued the relationship and eventually both overcame the rough start to fall in love with each other:
"I had all and then most of you"
Like many relationships that turn sour, it was not a quick decline, but a gradual one where the narrator and their partner fall out of love and gradually grow apart
"Some and now none of you"
Losing someone who was once everything in your world, who you could confide in, tell your secrets to, share all the most intimate parts of your life, to being strangers with that person is probably one of the most painful experiences a person can go through. So Painful, the narrator wants to go back in time and tell himself to not even pursue the relationship.
This was the perfect song for "13 Reasons Why"
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.
Just A Little Lovin'
Dusty Springfield
Dusty Springfield
I don't think it's necessarily about sex. It's about wanting to start the day with some love and affection. Maybe a warm cuddle. I'm not alone in interpreting it that way! For example:
"'Just a Little Lovin’ is a timeless country song originally recorded by Eddy Arnold in 1954. The song, written by Eddie Miller and Jimmy Campbell, explores the delicate nuances of love and showcases Arnold’s emotive vocals. It delves into the universal theme of love and how even the smallest gesture of affection can have a profound impact on our lives." https://oldtimemusic.com/the-meaning-behind-the-song-just-a-little-lovin-by-eddy-arnold/
Amazing
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran tells a story of unsuccessfully trying to feel “Amazing.” This track is about the being weighed down by emotional stress despite valiant attempts to find some positivity in the situation. This track was written by Ed Sheeran from the perspective of his friend. From the track, we see this person fall deeper into the negative thoughts and slide further down the path of mental torment with every lyric.
I think the actual title of the song (I think it's gonna rain when I die) is a metaphor for a flower. The idea is that flowers tend to die when they don't get watered well enough, and Layne Staley is "the flower". He predicts that when he's wilted it will rain right afterwards as a way of saying his death will happen too soon and what could've saved him would already be too late.
why is it all the great singers die...brad nowell,kurt cobain,and now layne staley,all of you made great music and you will be missed
Don't forget Jeff Buckley.
I think it's about someone who let a girl take the fall for something he did. "Did she call my name?" when she was arrested and taken away "Ain't no life on the run" Life on the run kinda suggests criminality "Caught in ice so she stares, stares at nothing I can help her but won't, now she hates me " She stares at him coldly when she's taken away, and he could say something, say that it was him, but he doesn't. "now she hates me" he wants her to forgive him. "Slowly forgive my lie, lying to save me " he lied and said that it was her to save himself. Of course, it's just an opinion. And I'm probably wrong because i'm always wrong .. bad person that I am.
@drinkthepoison BOTH Cantrell and Staley wrote the lyrics, although ALL of the band members were credited for writing the song. <br /> <br /> en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dirt_(Alice_in_Chains_album)#Track_listing
Rain When I Die is not about Demri. This song is on Dirt, released in 1992. Demri died in 1996.
Another AIC song that can be interpreted in many different ways depending on the circumstance or situation of the person.
Back when I was doing as much research as I can on AIC and Layne Staley, I actually tried finding if it actually rained when Layne Staley died (RIP sweet Layne). I found this site that showed the weather records for the Seattle area in April 2002. Out of all the days, on the 5th, 6th, and the 20th, there was no data.
Whether it rained or not on his death, it rained in our lives as well as the music industry.
I know Im a big loser. Who cares.
@drainingblue I may be 10 years late with the answer, but it actually did NOT rain in Seattle on the day of Layne's death. I specifically remember many radio stations commenting on this almost ironic fact when the unfortunate news broke.
This song is most likely about Layne doing something to hurt Demri because they broke up in 93/94 which wasn't that long after Dirt was released, and she passed in 96 from Bacterial Endocartis. I love Rain when i die because it's how I feel sometimes. RIP Layne & Demri. Layne I hope you're making beautiful music up there with all the other musical legends! All of us AiC fans miss you!
This song is about a way of life and other peoples views upon it. " Im a riddle so strong..." is like living a certain way. " You cant break me " is saying that someone actually cared and tried to help. The person in question obviously didnt want help and possibly made an empty prediction that it would rain when he died maybe out of anger or possibly saying that he would die in Seattle WA. (constant rain) The words rain when I die also has another meaning in the song. Not only all of what I jus said, but it also says that there will be tears becuase of his death.
It did rain the day he died
Read A Farewell To Arms by Hemingway. This will all make sense.
Layne, why did you have to die? Please rest in peace. It surely was raining to me when you died. AIC will live on forever, along with the lasting memory of Layne Staley.
Everyone seems to be ignoring evil killer phones comment and i reckon hes spot on! I think people can interpret the song as a breakup with a girl, but I think the idea of the the girl covering for him is totally right. "She wont let me hide, She Dont want me to cry" seems to be saying that shes willing to cover for him. I also think he has doubts about whether she will keep quiet about him, and whatever hes done wrong
Everytime i listen to this song, i almost cry because it reminds me of my grandmother. It started to rain when she was buried. As soon as it ended, it stoped.
Love how he screams: "i think it's gonna rain, WHEN I DIE!"