"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.
come and rescue me
in the water deep
careful now don't lose your aim
the road ahead is clear again
I haven't found it yet
you drift away so slow
in the ebb and flow
so I landed on my feet
the steadiness is bittersweet
it feels the same when you're pushed
out and away and into the crush
in all the hidden pleasures you find
in what you're looking for
I hope that you remember that pride
comes before a fall
I can barely see up and down and back again
despite what you believe
I keep away from trouble
if who I am today's a sign of where I'm going
I'm ready to embrace
recreate the scene
of everywhere you've been
overcome the dreaded curse
a symptom of the universe
it feels the same when you're pushed
out and away and into the crush
in all the hidden pleasures you find
in what you're looking for
I hope that you rembember that pride
comes before a fall
I can barely see up and down and back again
despite what you believe
I keep away from trouble
if who I am today's a sign of where I'm going
I'm ready to embrace
if everybody knows just who you are
when your walk on role becomes a major part
have you ever attempted to be yourself
when everybody wants you to be someone else
if you want to see the things you've trapped set free
you better let go of what lets them be
have you ever attempted to be yourself
when everybody wants you to be someone else
up and down and back again
going up and down and back again
in the water deep
careful now don't lose your aim
the road ahead is clear again
I haven't found it yet
you drift away so slow
in the ebb and flow
so I landed on my feet
the steadiness is bittersweet
it feels the same when you're pushed
out and away and into the crush
in all the hidden pleasures you find
in what you're looking for
I hope that you remember that pride
comes before a fall
I can barely see up and down and back again
despite what you believe
I keep away from trouble
if who I am today's a sign of where I'm going
I'm ready to embrace
recreate the scene
of everywhere you've been
overcome the dreaded curse
a symptom of the universe
it feels the same when you're pushed
out and away and into the crush
in all the hidden pleasures you find
in what you're looking for
I hope that you rembember that pride
comes before a fall
I can barely see up and down and back again
despite what you believe
I keep away from trouble
if who I am today's a sign of where I'm going
I'm ready to embrace
if everybody knows just who you are
when your walk on role becomes a major part
have you ever attempted to be yourself
when everybody wants you to be someone else
if you want to see the things you've trapped set free
you better let go of what lets them be
have you ever attempted to be yourself
when everybody wants you to be someone else
up and down and back again
going up and down and back again
Lyrics submitted by dsfire
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