"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.
Don't worry, dear he'll never find the gun
A child alone in daddy's room
The gun was hidden here
No one home to catch me when I fall
A young man now in a private chair
I've seen the world through a bitter stare
But my dream is still alive
I'm going to be the best I can
I want to be a busy man
I want to see a change in the future
I'm gonna make the best of what I have
I want to write for a magazine
I'm gonna be the best they've ever seen
I know I'll win if I give it all I can
I won't let go
Gotta make the grade, no I won't let go
To be the best man, the best man that I can
Back street hoop star you've got it good
You were the wonder of the crumbling neighborhood
Now taking bids on the next six digit plan
Showed me that my will survived
The tragedy that came into my life
Giving me hope and the new start that I have
And I won't let go
Gotta make the grae no, I won't let go
To be the best man, the best man that I can
Step by step I dream the plan
From my chair to walking man
This constant dream is on my mind
Chase the light I see ahead
Luminate the path I tread
I live to be the best I can
Now I'm moving forward and I'm never looking back
Straight ahead, focused on the big attack
On a roll and I'm never slowing down
I won't be torn between
The man in the chair and the man that's in my dream
I'm going to melt the two men into one
And I won't let go
Gotta make the grade I set no, I won't let it go
To be the best man,
The best man that I can
The best man that I can
The best man that I can
A child alone in daddy's room
The gun was hidden here
No one home to catch me when I fall
A young man now in a private chair
I've seen the world through a bitter stare
But my dream is still alive
I'm going to be the best I can
I want to be a busy man
I want to see a change in the future
I'm gonna make the best of what I have
I want to write for a magazine
I'm gonna be the best they've ever seen
I know I'll win if I give it all I can
I won't let go
Gotta make the grade, no I won't let go
To be the best man, the best man that I can
Back street hoop star you've got it good
You were the wonder of the crumbling neighborhood
Now taking bids on the next six digit plan
Showed me that my will survived
The tragedy that came into my life
Giving me hope and the new start that I have
And I won't let go
Gotta make the grae no, I won't let go
To be the best man, the best man that I can
Step by step I dream the plan
From my chair to walking man
This constant dream is on my mind
Chase the light I see ahead
Luminate the path I tread
I live to be the best I can
Now I'm moving forward and I'm never looking back
Straight ahead, focused on the big attack
On a roll and I'm never slowing down
I won't be torn between
The man in the chair and the man that's in my dream
I'm going to melt the two men into one
And I won't let go
Gotta make the grade I set no, I won't let it go
To be the best man,
The best man that I can
The best man that I can
The best man that I can
Add your thoughts
Log in now to tell us what you think this song means.
Don’t have an account? Create an account with SongMeanings to post comments, submit lyrics, and more. It’s super easy, we promise!
More Featured Meanings
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"
Bron-Y-Aur Stomp
Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin
This is about bronies. They communicate by stomping.
Son Şansın - Şarkı Sözleri
Hayalperest
Hayalperest
This song seemingly tackles the methods of deception those who manipulate others use to get victims to follow their demands, as well as diverting attention away from important issues. They'll also use it as a means to convince people to hate or kill others by pretending acts of terrorism were committed by the enemy when the acts themselves were done by the masters of control to promote discrimination and hate. It also reinforces the idea that these manipulative forces operate in various locations, infiltrating everyday life without detection, and propagate any and everywhere.
In general, it highlights the danger of hidden agendas, manipulation, and distraction, serving as a critique of those who exploit chaos and confusion to control and gain power, depicting a cautionary tale against falling into their traps. It encourages us to question the narratives presented to us and remain vigilant against manipulation in various parts of society.
Punchline
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran sings about missing his former partner and learning important life lessons in the process on “Punchline.” This track tells a story of battling to get rid of emotions for a former lover, whom he now realized might not have loved him the same way. He’s now caught between accepting that fact and learning life lessons from it and going back to beg her for another chance.
the arrogant omnipresence of modernism and how we are all slaves to it- my and strictly my opinion- this is the underlying theme of the entire promised land album
@babin3in Although I am french and french is my native language, I think so and overall, that this song is a warning about the trap of narcissism, especially with the social networks.