"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.
My heart's in the ice house, come hill or come valley
Like a long ago Sunday when I walked through the alley
On a cold winter's morning to a church house
Just to shovel some snow
I heard sirens on the train track howl naked gettin' nuder
An altar boy's been hit by a local commuter
Just from walking with his back turned
To the train that was coming so slow
You can gaze out the window, get mad and get madder
Throw your hands in the air, say what does it matter?
But it don't do no good to get angry so help me, I know
For a heart stained in anger grows weak and grows bitter
You become your own prisoner as you watch yourself sit there
Wrapped up in a trap of your very own chain of sorrow
I've been brought down to zero, pulled out and put back there
I sat on a park bench, kissed the girl with the black hair
And my head shouted down to my heart
"You better look out below"
Hey, it ain't such a long drop, don't stammer don't stutter
From the diamonds in the sidewalk to the dirt in the gutter
And you carry those bruises to remind you wherever you go
You can gaze out the window, get mad and get madder
Throw your hands in the air, say what does it matter?
But it don't do no good to get angry so help me, I know
For a heart stained in anger grows weak and grows bitter
You become your own prisoner as you watch yourself sit there
Wrapped up in a trap of your very own chain of sorrow
My heart's in the ice house, come hill or come valley
Like a long ago Sunday when I walked through the alley
On a cold winter's morning to a church house
Just to shovel some snow
I heard sirens on the train track howl naked gettin' nuder
An altar boy's been hit by a local commuter
Just from walking with his back turned
To the train that was coming so slow
You can gaze out the window, get mad and get madder
Throw your hands in the air, say what does it matter?
But it don't do no good to get angry so help me, I know
For a heart stained in anger grows weak and grows bitter
You become your own prisoner as you watch yourself sit there
Wrapped up in a trap of your very own chain of sorrow
Like a long ago Sunday when I walked through the alley
On a cold winter's morning to a church house
Just to shovel some snow
I heard sirens on the train track howl naked gettin' nuder
An altar boy's been hit by a local commuter
Just from walking with his back turned
To the train that was coming so slow
You can gaze out the window, get mad and get madder
Throw your hands in the air, say what does it matter?
But it don't do no good to get angry so help me, I know
For a heart stained in anger grows weak and grows bitter
You become your own prisoner as you watch yourself sit there
Wrapped up in a trap of your very own chain of sorrow
I've been brought down to zero, pulled out and put back there
I sat on a park bench, kissed the girl with the black hair
And my head shouted down to my heart
"You better look out below"
Hey, it ain't such a long drop, don't stammer don't stutter
From the diamonds in the sidewalk to the dirt in the gutter
And you carry those bruises to remind you wherever you go
You can gaze out the window, get mad and get madder
Throw your hands in the air, say what does it matter?
But it don't do no good to get angry so help me, I know
For a heart stained in anger grows weak and grows bitter
You become your own prisoner as you watch yourself sit there
Wrapped up in a trap of your very own chain of sorrow
My heart's in the ice house, come hill or come valley
Like a long ago Sunday when I walked through the alley
On a cold winter's morning to a church house
Just to shovel some snow
I heard sirens on the train track howl naked gettin' nuder
An altar boy's been hit by a local commuter
Just from walking with his back turned
To the train that was coming so slow
You can gaze out the window, get mad and get madder
Throw your hands in the air, say what does it matter?
But it don't do no good to get angry so help me, I know
For a heart stained in anger grows weak and grows bitter
You become your own prisoner as you watch yourself sit there
Wrapped up in a trap of your very own chain of sorrow
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Fast Car
Tracy Chapman
Tracy Chapman
Dreamwalker
Silent Planet
Silent Planet
I think much like another song “Anti-Matter” (that's also on the same album as this song), this one is also is inspired by a horrifying van crash the band experienced on Nov 3, 2022. This, much like the other track, sounds like it's an extension what they shared while huddled in the wreckage, as they helped frontman Garrett Russell stem the bleeding from his head wound while he was under the temporary effects of a concussion. The track speaks of where the mind goes at the most desperate & desolate of times, when it just about slips away to all but disconnect itself, and the aftermath.
When We Were Young
Blink-182
Blink-182
This is a sequel to 2001's "Reckless Abandon", and features the band looking back on their clumsy youth fondly.
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/
John Prine explains the song here: youtube.com/watch
More than that, though, this song changed my life. I was consumed with anger over a situation in my life, & this song appeared - I stumbled onto John Prine - & it told me what would come. I saw myself indeed growing weak & bitter, becoming my own prisoner. It was a strange & coincidental alarm warning me that I was going to be trapped in a chain of sorrow.
It saved me. As music always has.
What the neck does howl naked get neuter mean?
@plato1234 It's "howl naked, getting nuder", as in "more naked." In my opinion, the sirens were loud and getting louder--"naked" implying stark, harsh, unadorned.
The verses are examples of the wisdom in the chorus (which he wrote first). In the 1st verse, he states his heart is in the icebox--cold, angry--whether he's up or down, just like it was on that long-ago Sunday. The 2nd verse suggests the risk we take when we surrender our hearts and reminds us that it's not a long drop from the hills to the valleys, and that we carry the wounds of the bad experiences as reminders.