"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.
Every night before I go to sleep
Find a ticket, win a lottery
Scoop the pearls up from the sea
Cash them in and buy you all the things you need
Every night before I rest my head
See those dollar bills go swirling 'round my bed
I know they're stolen, but I don't feel bad
I take that money, buy you things you never had
Oh, baby, it would mean so much to me
Oh, baby, to buy you all the things you need for free
I'll buy you a jet plane, baby, get you on a higher plane to a jet stream
And take you through the stratosphere
And check out the planets there and then take you down deep
Where it's hot, hot in Arabia, baby, then cool, cold fields of snow
And we'll roll, dream, roll, dream, roll, roll, dream, dream
When we dream it, when we dream it, when we dream it
We'll dream it, dream it for free, free money
Free money, free money, free money, free money, free money
Free money
Every night before I go to sleep
Find a ticket, win a lottery
Every night before I rest my head
See those dollar bills go swirling 'round my bed
Oh, baby, it would mean so much to me
Baby, I know our troubles will be gone
Oh, I know our troubles will be gone, goin', gone
If we dream, dream, dream for free
And when we dream it, when we dream it, when we dream it
Let's dream it, we'll dream it for free, free money
Free money, free money, free money
Free money, free money, free money, money
Free money, free money, free money
Free money, free money, free money
Free money, free money, free money
Free money, free money, free money
Free money, free money, free money
Free money, free money, free money, free
Find a ticket, win a lottery
Scoop the pearls up from the sea
Cash them in and buy you all the things you need
Every night before I rest my head
See those dollar bills go swirling 'round my bed
I know they're stolen, but I don't feel bad
I take that money, buy you things you never had
Oh, baby, it would mean so much to me
Oh, baby, to buy you all the things you need for free
I'll buy you a jet plane, baby, get you on a higher plane to a jet stream
And take you through the stratosphere
And check out the planets there and then take you down deep
Where it's hot, hot in Arabia, baby, then cool, cold fields of snow
And we'll roll, dream, roll, dream, roll, roll, dream, dream
When we dream it, when we dream it, when we dream it
We'll dream it, dream it for free, free money
Free money, free money, free money, free money, free money
Free money
Every night before I go to sleep
Find a ticket, win a lottery
Every night before I rest my head
See those dollar bills go swirling 'round my bed
Oh, baby, it would mean so much to me
Baby, I know our troubles will be gone
Oh, I know our troubles will be gone, goin', gone
If we dream, dream, dream for free
And when we dream it, when we dream it, when we dream it
Let's dream it, we'll dream it for free, free money
Free money, free money, free money
Free money, free money, free money, money
Free money, free money, free money
Free money, free money, free money
Free money, free money, free money
Free money, free money, free money
Free money, free money, free money
Free money, free money, free money, free
Lyrics submitted by lahesperia
Free Money Lyrics as written by Patti Smith Leonard J Kaye
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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i've always felt like this song was about someone who was in dire need of money so they ended up stealing it - "see those dollar bills swirling around my head/i know they're stolen, but i don't feel bad." and she doesn't feel bad because what she did with the money was good ("i'll buy you all the things you'll ever need/baby, i know all our troubles will be gone"). just my interpretation though. it's just too bad she doesn't get more comments than she does.