"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.
Could you see the aisles of women?
Could you see them screaming and weeping?
Could you see the storm rising?
Could you see the guy who was driving?
Could you climb higher and higher?
Could you climb right over the top?
Why does a multi-millionaire
Fill up his home with priceless junk?
The wind is whistling,
The wind is whistling
Through the house.
Elvis, are you out there somewhere
Looking like a happy man?
In the snow with Rosebud
And king of the mountain.
Another Hollywood waitress
Is telling us she's having your baby.
And there's a rumor that you're on ice
And you will rise again someday,
And that there's a photograph
Where you're dancing on your grave.
The wind is whistling,
The wind is whistling
Through the house.
Elvis, are you out there somewhere
Looking like a happy man?
In the snow with Rosebud
And king of the mountain.
The wind, it blows,
The wind, it blows the door closed.
Could you see them screaming and weeping?
Could you see the storm rising?
Could you see the guy who was driving?
Could you climb higher and higher?
Could you climb right over the top?
Why does a multi-millionaire
Fill up his home with priceless junk?
The wind is whistling,
The wind is whistling
Through the house.
Elvis, are you out there somewhere
Looking like a happy man?
In the snow with Rosebud
And king of the mountain.
Another Hollywood waitress
Is telling us she's having your baby.
And there's a rumor that you're on ice
And you will rise again someday,
And that there's a photograph
Where you're dancing on your grave.
The wind is whistling,
The wind is whistling
Through the house.
Elvis, are you out there somewhere
Looking like a happy man?
In the snow with Rosebud
And king of the mountain.
The wind, it blows,
The wind, it blows the door closed.
Lyrics submitted by DarkLuna62
King of the Mountain Lyrics as written by Kate Bush
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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
Mental Istid
Ebba Grön
Ebba Grön
This is one of my favorite songs. https://fnfgo.io
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.
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.
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.
I think this song is about being released after becoming trapped after finding fame. Elvis became hugely rich and successful but he was unhappy. His wealth and all his priceless junk didn't bring him happiness. This compares to Kane in Citizen Kane - who was also very rich but unhappy. On his deathbed he looked back to simpler times (riding on his sledge as a child) which he couldn't go back to life. However, Kate sees death as positive and she believes the soul is released from the stress of life and complications of modern society and goes to a better place.
Elvis is released and he becomes part of nature. He is still King but he is King of the Mountain instead of Rock and Roll. A mountain is a contrast to the screaming crowds in Las Vegas. A mountain he away from people but he has finally found happiness within himself.
The house is whistling because the door is open as Elvis is no longer there. It represents his mortality on earth and what he has left behind. It's an empty shell and Elvis should represent more than Gold discs on a wall, money and all those ridiculous rumours of people who can accept he has gone.