"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.
Oh, baby, I found heaven when I found you
And this heaven is somethin' I don't want to lose
I only know that if you ever said goodbye, I couldn't stand the pain
These eyes would cry, cry, cry like the rain
And the sun would have nowhere to shine
And the stars would all fall from the sky
Baby, please
Don't take away my heaven, oh, no
'Cause this world would stop turnin', I know
And I'd lose my whole world if you go
Baby, don't
Don't take away my heaven, oh, no
Oh, baby, I saw forever when I saw you
And if you left me, I can't imagine what I'd do
Now that I've gone and built my world around your love, I couldn't let you go
Don't ever say goodbye, no, don't, don't, don't ever go
'Cause the sun would have nowhere to shine
And the stars would all fall from the sky
Baby, please
Don't take away my heaven, oh, no
'Cause this world would stop turnin', I know (yes, I know)
And I'd lose my whole world if you go (if you go)
Baby, please
Don't take away my heaven, oh, no
'Cause you might as well take my life from me
What good would a life without you be anyway (anyway)
If you go away
Well, the sun would have nowhere to shine
And the stars would all fall from the sky (from the sky)
Baby, please
Don't take away my heaven, oh, no
'Cause this world would stop turnin', I know (yes, I know)
And I'd lose my whole world if you go (if you go)
Baby, don't, no
Don't take away my heaven, oh, no
Don't take away my heaven, don't take away your love
Don't take away my world 'cause baby, I need your touch
Baby, don't
Don't take away my heaven, oh, no
Please don't take away my heaven
Please
Baby, don't, oh, no
Don't take away my heaven, oh
Don't take away my heaven, don't take away your love
Don't take away my world 'cause baby, I need your touch
Baby, don't, oh
Don't take away my heaven, oh, no
And this heaven is somethin' I don't want to lose
I only know that if you ever said goodbye, I couldn't stand the pain
These eyes would cry, cry, cry like the rain
And the sun would have nowhere to shine
And the stars would all fall from the sky
Baby, please
Don't take away my heaven, oh, no
'Cause this world would stop turnin', I know
And I'd lose my whole world if you go
Baby, don't
Don't take away my heaven, oh, no
Oh, baby, I saw forever when I saw you
And if you left me, I can't imagine what I'd do
Now that I've gone and built my world around your love, I couldn't let you go
Don't ever say goodbye, no, don't, don't, don't ever go
'Cause the sun would have nowhere to shine
And the stars would all fall from the sky
Baby, please
Don't take away my heaven, oh, no
'Cause this world would stop turnin', I know (yes, I know)
And I'd lose my whole world if you go (if you go)
Baby, please
Don't take away my heaven, oh, no
'Cause you might as well take my life from me
What good would a life without you be anyway (anyway)
If you go away
Well, the sun would have nowhere to shine
And the stars would all fall from the sky (from the sky)
Baby, please
Don't take away my heaven, oh, no
'Cause this world would stop turnin', I know (yes, I know)
And I'd lose my whole world if you go (if you go)
Baby, don't, no
Don't take away my heaven, oh, no
Don't take away my heaven, don't take away your love
Don't take away my world 'cause baby, I need your touch
Baby, don't
Don't take away my heaven, oh, no
Please don't take away my heaven
Please
Baby, don't, oh, no
Don't take away my heaven, oh
Don't take away my heaven, don't take away your love
Don't take away my world 'cause baby, I need your touch
Baby, don't, oh
Don't take away my heaven, oh, no
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More Featured Meanings
Fast Car
Tracy Chapman
Tracy Chapman
Mental Istid
Ebba Grön
Ebba Grön
This is one of my favorite songs. https://fnfgo.io
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.
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.
Plastic Bag
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
“Plastic Bag” is a song about searching for an escape from personal problems and hoping to find it in the lively atmosphere of a Saturday night party. Ed Sheeran tells the story of his friend and the myriad of troubles he is going through. Unable to find any solutions, this friend seeks a last resort in a party and the vanity that comes with it.
“I overthink and have trouble sleepin’ / All purpose gone and don’t have a reason / And there’s no doctor to stop this bleedin’ / So I left home and jumped in the deep end,” Ed Sheeran sings in verse one. He continues by adding that this person is feeling the weight of having disappointed his father and doesn’t have any friends to rely on in this difficult moment. In the second verse, Ed sings about the role of grief in his friend’s plight and his dwindling faith in prayer. “Saturday night is givin’ me a reason to rely on the strobe lights / The lifeline of a promise in a shot glass, and I’ll take that / If you’re givin’ out love from a plastic bag,” Ed sings on the chorus, as his friend turns to new vices in hopes of feeling better.
I love this song. Its quite self explantory really....