"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 starts to tear me down
Destroyed by what I create
It left the nerve exposed
Feels like a lost cause
Frustration's all I have left
It's what reduced me to this
Turned me against myself
It's still a lost cause
I can't keep doing this to myself
But it's the only way to forget who I am
Your disability
Kept pushing me away
It went beneath what's so real to me
And threw it all away
I underestimated
The lengths that you would have gone
To deny who you are
You threw it all away
I will keep doing this to myself
'Cause it's the only way to forget who I am
I never wanted your help
I never needed your help
This failure has to be all mine all mine now
I'll turn my back on myself
If it's my only way out
It can only help me if it hurts
I won't give into, I won't give into...
I won't become one with your lies
I never wanted your help
I never needed your help
This failure has to be all mine all mine now
I'll turn my back on myself
If it's my only way out
I'm too tired to feel anything anyway
I will keep doing this to myself
'Cause it's the only way to forget who I am
I never wanted your help
I never needed your help
This failure has to be all mine all mine now
I'll turn my back on myself
If it's my only way out
I'm too tired to feel anything anyway
I have become one with your lies
Destroyed by what I create
It left the nerve exposed
Feels like a lost cause
Frustration's all I have left
It's what reduced me to this
Turned me against myself
It's still a lost cause
I can't keep doing this to myself
But it's the only way to forget who I am
Your disability
Kept pushing me away
It went beneath what's so real to me
And threw it all away
I underestimated
The lengths that you would have gone
To deny who you are
You threw it all away
I will keep doing this to myself
'Cause it's the only way to forget who I am
I never wanted your help
I never needed your help
This failure has to be all mine all mine now
I'll turn my back on myself
If it's my only way out
It can only help me if it hurts
I won't give into, I won't give into...
I won't become one with your lies
I never wanted your help
I never needed your help
This failure has to be all mine all mine now
I'll turn my back on myself
If it's my only way out
I'm too tired to feel anything anyway
I will keep doing this to myself
'Cause it's the only way to forget who I am
I never wanted your help
I never needed your help
This failure has to be all mine all mine now
I'll turn my back on myself
If it's my only way out
I'm too tired to feel anything anyway
I have become one with your lies
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
Cajun Girl
Little Feat
Little Feat
Overall about difficult moments of disappointment and vulnerability. Having hope and longing, while remaining optimistic for the future. Encourages the belief that with each new morning there is a chance for things to improve.
The chorus offers a glimmer of optimism and a chance at a resolution and redemption in the future.
Captures the rollercoaster of emotions of feeling lost while loving someone who is not there for you, feeling let down and abandoned while waiting for a lover. Lost with no direction, "Now I'm up in the air with the rain in my hair, Nowhere to go, I can go anywhere"
The bridge shows signs of longing and a plea for companionship. The Lyrics express a desire for authentic connection and the importance of Loving someone just as they are. "Just in passing, I'm not asking. That you be anyone but you”
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.
American Town
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran shares a short story of reconnecting with an old flame on “American Town.” The track is about a holiday Ed Sheeran spends with his countrywoman who resides in America. The two are back together after a long period apart, and get around to enjoying a bunch of fun activities while rekindling the flames of their romance.
Page
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
There aren’t many things that’ll hurt more than giving love a chance against your better judgement only to have your heart crushed yet again. Ed Sheeran tells such a story on “Page.” On this track, he is devastated to have lost his lover and even more saddened by the feeling that he may never move on from this.
"Your disability Kept pushing me away It went beneath what's so real to me ..And threw it all away
I underestimated The lengths that you would have gone To deny who you are ..You threw it all away."
this song.. as well as a lot of this album, is about someone who abondoned him and left him with nothing but lies and a sense of failure. he has nowhere else to turn and the pain is slowly numbing him to the point of hostile apathy.
this band diserves a lot more attention then they got
this band kicks ass!....first time heard of them was bout a yr ago...was blown away by the music
leet song.
sounds kind of like using alcohol or drugs to escape a problem, "I'll keep doing this to myself 'cause it's the only way to forget who I am"
Kind of makes you think about alcohol or maybe a drug of some sort. I guess it's just a bout a failed relationship that led to drugs.
i agree they are so underated __ :(
yea, definitely a very underrated band.
hopefully silent civilian becomes pretty popular
This song is about a relationship that was about drugs and alcohol. Then the girl stopped doing drugs and alcohol then they broke up.
"It starts to tear me down Destroyed by what I create" The relationship ending hit him really hard
"It left the nerve exposed Feels like a lost cause" She was a major part of his life and breaking up feels like all that time was waisted
"Frustration's all I have left It's what reduced me to this" He's really angry, and he continues to do drugs and alcohol.
"Turned me against myself It's still a lost cause" Doesn't know if he can trust anyone anymore and doesn't beleive his life to be worth anything.
Thats just my thoughts
Really one of the bands I love the most.
I think this song could be about a total downfall an resorting to either alcohol/drugs or even self mutalation. i mean, really, think about it for a minute. but this song is amazing. so much emotioan and energy.
activate the pit!