"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 1:25 a.m. I think I've seen that look somewhere before
1:25 a.m. I thought that you were headed for the door
Then something touched my skin
I won't ask you to leave here any more
Was it the talk or the drink or the dance that led to this
Was I so naive presuming the innocence
Well it's 1:54 and it's such an unusual kiss
Come on come on come on
Over and over
Come on come on come on
We all wanted this
Come on come on come on
Over and over
It's such an unusual kiss
The smell the taste the touch is so brand new
The thrill of the eyes that capture this forbidden view
It's 2:45 and you'll have some explaining to do
It's 3:17 a.m. please let me into your eyes
It's 4:23 and I try to hold on as you rise
I'll give you all that I have if that's what you want me to try
Come on come on come on
Over and over
Come on come on come on
We all wanted this
Come on come on come on
Over and over
It's such an unusual kiss
It's 5:26 a.m. I've got nothing left that I can say
5:26 a.m. black and white has melted into gray
My baby draws the shades as the taxi pulls away
Come on come on come on
Over and over
Come on come on come on
We all wanted this
Come on come on come on
Over and over
It's such an unusual kiss
1:25 a.m. I thought that you were headed for the door
Then something touched my skin
I won't ask you to leave here any more
Was it the talk or the drink or the dance that led to this
Was I so naive presuming the innocence
Well it's 1:54 and it's such an unusual kiss
Come on come on come on
Over and over
Come on come on come on
We all wanted this
Come on come on come on
Over and over
It's such an unusual kiss
The smell the taste the touch is so brand new
The thrill of the eyes that capture this forbidden view
It's 2:45 and you'll have some explaining to do
It's 3:17 a.m. please let me into your eyes
It's 4:23 and I try to hold on as you rise
I'll give you all that I have if that's what you want me to try
Come on come on come on
Over and over
Come on come on come on
We all wanted this
Come on come on come on
Over and over
It's such an unusual kiss
It's 5:26 a.m. I've got nothing left that I can say
5:26 a.m. black and white has melted into gray
My baby draws the shades as the taxi pulls away
Come on come on come on
Over and over
Come on come on come on
We all wanted this
Come on come on come on
Over and over
It's such an unusual kiss
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Fast Car
Tracy Chapman
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The Night We Met
Lord Huron
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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"
Mountain Song
Jane's Addiction
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Jane's Addiction vocalist Perry Farrell gives Adam Reader some heartfelt insight into Jane’s Addiction's hard rock manifesto "Mountain Song", which was the second single from their revolutionary album Nothing's Shocking. Mountain song was first recorded in 1986 and appeared on the soundtrack to the film Dudes starring Jon Cryer. The version on Nothing's Shocking was re-recorded in 1988.
"'Mountain Song' was actually about... I hate to say it but... drugs. Climbing this mountain and getting as high as you can, and then coming down that mountain," reveals Farrell. "What it feels to descend from the mountain top... not easy at all. The ascension is tough but exhilarating. Getting down is... it's a real bummer. Drugs is not for everybody obviously. For me, I wanted to experience the heights, and the lows come along with it."
"There's a part - 'Cash in now honey, cash in Miss Smith.' Miss Smith is my Mother; our last name was Smith. Cashing in when she cashed in her life. So... she decided that, to her... at that time, she was desperate. Life wasn't worth it for her, that was her opinion. Some people think, never take your life, and some people find that their life isn't worth living. She was in love with my Dad, and my Dad was not faithful to her, and it broke her heart. She was very desperate and she did something that I know she regrets."
I Can't Go To Sleep
Wu-Tang Clan
Wu-Tang Clan
This song is written as the perspective of the boys in the street, as a whole, and what path they are going to choose as they get older and grow into men. (This is why the music video takes place in an orphanage.) The seen, and unseen collective suffering is imbedded in the boys’ mind, consciously or subconsciously, and is haunting them. Which path will the boys choose? Issac Hayes is the voice of reason, maybe God, the angel on his shoulder, or the voice of his forefathers from beyond the grave who can see the big picture and are pleading with the boys not to continue the violence and pattern of killing their brothers, but to rise above. The most beautiful song and has so many levels. Racism towards African Americans in America would not exist if everyone sat down and listened to this song and understood the history behind the words. The power, fear, pleading in RZA and Ghostface voices are genuine and powerful. Issac Hayes’ strong voice makes the perfect strong father figure, who is possibly from beyond the grave.
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.
"my baby draws the shades as the taxi pulls away" couldn't this be the singer taking a taxi home after an illicit affair? She gets out of the taxi and looks up to see her lover pulling the shades closed--she's been waiting up. The person she was with so late has some explaining to do because she also has to go home to a lover or partner.
@jayboi I don’t think it’s about an affair. I think it’s about an open relationship that didn’t work out as planned/hoped. Perhaps”my baby” was waiting up for Melissa to get home from the person she was with because, what the hell, it’s an open relationship. The person that was going to have dome explaining to do could have been Melissa. Usually, the person that suggests the relationship be open is the one that can’t take it when their other half is actually with someone else. Thus, the reason “my baby” draws the shade once she knows Melissa is home. She was waiting up because her idea of an open relationship sucked once she was the one waiting at home alone.
@jayboi I don’t think it’s about an affair. I think it’s about an open relationship that didn’t work out as planned/hoped. Perhaps”my baby” was waiting up for Melissa to get home from the person she was with because, what the hell, it’s an open relationship. The person that was going to have dome explaining to do could have been Melissa. Usually, the person that suggests the relationship be open is the one that can’t take it when their other half is actually with someone else. Thus, the reason “my baby” draws the shade once she knows Melissa is home. She was waiting up because her idea of an open relationship sucked once she was the one waiting at home alone.
Awesome song. Obviously, it's about a very tense excitement mixed with a little bit of fear about forbidden...acts. ;) I get the impression it's about a threesome ("We all wanted this") Am I the only one that thinks this? Either way, the blending of tension while letting go of inhibitions and sexual pleasure is a fascinating one to me. Awesome song.
@VegasJames-Hmmm, I never looked at it that way. (Threesome)
@VegasJames-Hmmm, I never looked at it that way. (Threesome) I took “we all wanted this” to mean Melissa, her partner and the 2 women they are seeing in the open relationship.,
VegasJames: Nope, you\'re not. This lyric:
\"My baby (me=1, baby=2) draws the shades as the taxi (person who\'s got some \'splaining to do=3) pulls away\"
Pretty much settles THAT question. Hot, hot song.
@Mojave66-“The taste, the touch” is so brand new. Hot indeed!
I get from this song that it's about someone cheating on their lover. Say Melissa is the 'other woman'. So the cheater cheats on her lover with Melissa and then Melissa leaves as the other woman closes the shades.
Here's my take on this song...
It's about the results of an open relationship, and how in theory she thought it would work, but once confronted with the reality of it, her lover's kiss is now "unusual"...
Melissa has repeatedly denied explaining this song for years now, and the mystery around it makes people think it must have been about Julie Cypher maybe going back to men during their 10 yr relationship...This song also has a touch of "I can do it, you can't" feeling as well...
@beyondchance-Think her lovers kiss is unusual because she’s been kissing others?
If you read her book you'll understand it its about when she first started seeing julie cypher they were at julie's house and they ended up like making out but julie was still married to lou diamond phillips
Why wasn't this song released as a single! It's one of my favs from the album. What i got from the song was there was some heavy flirting which lead to the act that caught the two of them off guard.
i do agree i kinda see where it could be about a 3some. But alexriott it's about her and julie
I believe the song is about Melissa watching her partner have sex with another person. It’s pretty self explanatory if you break down the verses. \nVerse 1) she thought the person would go and then something touched her and she decides not to ask them to leave. 2) she doesn’t know how they got there she isn’t sure it it was spontaneous or perhaps something planned by her partner and their lover. chorus: sounds angry “ we all wanted this” but I don’t think she really did. 3) it’s all new the thrill of watching the forbidden view but her partner has so explaining to do perhaps the touches weren’t so new? 4) Melissa is begging her partner to look into her eyes. If we presume that Melissa is the one watching she is bothered that her partner is getting so into the other person. Then Melissa is saying she will all she has if that is what her lover wants her to try. Sounds like she is having second thoughts about this whole thing. 5) she has nothing left to say as her baby watches the taxi leave with the other person.
@jennifergy-I don’t think it’s about Melissa watching but Melissa knowing her lover is really into the other person. I get the feeling Melissa agreed to the open relationship but really didn’t want to and she ended up getting hurt. Maybe that’s why, as much as I love the song, it makes me a little sad.,