"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.
I know everything changes
Yeah, it's strange how time marches on
Maybe there'll be some time in the future
Oh, tell me I'm not wrong
Oh, if I could stop time
It would be a frozen moment just around Christmas
When all of mankind reveals its truest potential
And there is sympathy for the suffering
Yes, there is sympathy for those who are suffering
And the world embraces peace and love and mercy
Instead of power and fear
And as sure as I'm standing here
I swear it really does appear that a change comes over us
Yes, some kind of change comes over us
And it's glimpsed for one shining moment
And this change feels like a change that's real
But then it passes along with the season
And then we just go back to the way we were
Yes, we just go back to the way we were
Say it isn't so
Tell me I'm not just a dreamer
I'm talking with a friend and he knows how it ends
He says it's easier, that's just the way we are
That's human nature and that's just the way we are
Oh, say it isn't so!
Yeah, it's strange how time marches on
Maybe there'll be some time in the future
Oh, tell me I'm not wrong
Oh, if I could stop time
It would be a frozen moment just around Christmas
When all of mankind reveals its truest potential
And there is sympathy for the suffering
Yes, there is sympathy for those who are suffering
And the world embraces peace and love and mercy
Instead of power and fear
And as sure as I'm standing here
I swear it really does appear that a change comes over us
Yes, some kind of change comes over us
And it's glimpsed for one shining moment
And this change feels like a change that's real
But then it passes along with the season
And then we just go back to the way we were
Yes, we just go back to the way we were
Say it isn't so
Tell me I'm not just a dreamer
I'm talking with a friend and he knows how it ends
He says it's easier, that's just the way we are
That's human nature and that's just the way we are
Oh, say it isn't so!
Lyrics submitted by Mellow_Harsher
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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."
Gentle Hour
Yo La Tengo
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This song was originally written by a guy called Peter Gutteridge. He was one of the founders of the "Dunedin Sound" a musical scene in the south of New Zealand in the early 80s. From there it was covered by "The Clean" one of the early bands of that scene (he had originally been a member of in it's early days, writing a couple of their best early songs). The Dunedin sound, and the Clean became popular on american college radio in the mid to late 80s. I guess Yo La Tengo heard that version.
Great version of a great song,
Head > Heels
Ed Sheeran
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“Head > Heels” is a track that aims to capture what it feels like to experience romance that exceeds expectations. Ed Sheeran dedicates his album outro to a lover who has blessed him with a unique experience that he seeks to describe through the song’s nuanced lyrics.
This is my favorite song. Period. No one I know (even those that love the flaming lips) even like it a little.
Wayne Coyne has the unique ability to say whatever he feels at anytime he wants and it serves to be absolutely endearing and genuine. If he didn't, this song would end up sounding like something crooned by a hack in a starbucks.
What's great about this song is that it reflects what it's like to be someone as optimistic as Coyne, it strikes this perfect balance between extreme happiness at knowing what goodness there is in the world and indescribable sadness at knowing how much we're failing to live up to our potential as human beings to create a world that is as beautiful as possible.
It's strange that this song is about the holiday season, because one of the things I've always liked about the Lips is that they seem pretty atheistic. But this 'A Change at Christmas' isn't religious, it's about the secular aspects of the holiday season. The time of year when the world is at its coldest and bleakest, we decorate things and celebrate humanity with those closest to us. Everyone is nicer to each other around Christmas time, it's the "holiday spirit". We give to charities and have parties and show everyone how much we love them. Wayne is saying that this is "mankind's truest potential", imploring us to think about how much better the world would be if we could just stop time there, maintain that kind of spirit our whole lives. Every year he thinks that the change is a real, permanent one, and every year he is let down and emotionally crushed that it only lasts for one shining moment, and we just go back to the way we were.
The last verse is the most angry, as Wayne speaks with a cynical friend of his. He has a dire view of humanity and says that evil is human nature and there's nothing we can do about it, that's just the way we are. And that genuine voice says in the saddest tone it can muster, "say it isn't so."
I know that I just spent a couple of paragraphs "explaining" a very obvious song, but it means a lot to me. I don't usually respond to sappy songs, they seem unnatural. I usually prefer songs that are kind of cynical or satirical towards gooey "let's all love one another" sentiments, but this song is truly heartbreaking and has made me cry like only the Flips can.
DrMambo, I just created an account on this site just so I could say that your post was really beautiful, and I completely agree. I can barely keep myself from crying when I hear this song. And I know this was a few years ago at this point, but I wanted to say so anyway.
Well said, I agree with complicatedshoes. The post was beautiful and very true. The Flaming Lips are, in my opinion, one of the best bands I've ever heard. I thought these guys were a little weird when I first heard them but after listening to their music for so long now I realized they are one of the most original and talented bands out there. The lyrics are just so amazing in every song, it gets me to think of things I never would have before. Really hope I'm able to see them live in the future