"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'm tired
Of everyone
I know
Of everyone
I see
On the street
And on TV, yeah
On the other side
On the other side
Nobody's waitin' for me
On the other side
I hate them all
I hate them all
I hate myself
For hating them
So I'll drink some more
I'll love them all
I'll drink even more
I'll hate them even more than I did before
On the other side
On the other side
Nobody's waitin' for me
On the other side
(Here we go)
I remember when you came
You taught me how to sing
Now it seems so far away
You taught me how to sing
I'm tired
Of being
So judgmental
Of everyone
I will not go to sleep
I will train my eyes to see
That my mind is as blind
As a branch on a tree
On the other side
On the other side
I know what's waiting for me
On the other side
On the other side
On the other side
I know you're waiting for me
On the other side
Of everyone
I know
Of everyone
I see
On the street
And on TV, yeah
On the other side
On the other side
Nobody's waitin' for me
On the other side
I hate them all
I hate them all
I hate myself
For hating them
So I'll drink some more
I'll love them all
I'll drink even more
I'll hate them even more than I did before
On the other side
On the other side
Nobody's waitin' for me
On the other side
(Here we go)
I remember when you came
You taught me how to sing
Now it seems so far away
You taught me how to sing
I'm tired
Of being
So judgmental
Of everyone
I will not go to sleep
I will train my eyes to see
That my mind is as blind
As a branch on a tree
On the other side
On the other side
I know what's waiting for me
On the other side
On the other side
On the other side
I know you're waiting for me
On the other side
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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
Mountain Song
Jane's Addiction
Jane's Addiction
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
Yo La Tengo
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,
Magical
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
How would you describe the feeling of being in love? For Ed Sheeran, the word is “Magical.” in HIS three-minute album opener, he makes an attempt to capture the beauty and delicacy of true love with words. He describes the magic of it all over a bright Pop song produced by Aaron Dessner.
Clearly, this song is referring to alcoholism / excessive drinking. Julian is expressing his anger and frustration with the difficulties of living in our modern-day society. He is sick and "tired" of having to deal with the everyday drama, complications, and difficulties of human interaction and, as a solution, turns to the bottle ("so i'll drink some more"). The song expresses the realization that when one drinks, he can escape his discontent with the world to the point where he "loves them all." Inevitably, however, it will come down to the point where he will "hate them even more." The phrase, "on the other side," is clearly referring to being drunk, or "on the other side" of the harsh reality of his existence. This "other side" is portrayed as a solution to dealing with life's problems, yet the song seems to suggest that drinking only provides a temporary solution (if it even is a solution at all) to such issues. I absolutely love this album and I think this song successfully displays the anxt and frustration of having to always pretend to please everyone. The song, in a sense, is almost the expression of Julian's experience with drinking--it provides us with the extremely polarized thoughts of an intoxicated person ("I love them all" to "I hate them all"; "Nobody's waiting for me" to "I know you're waiting for me"). Overall, the lyrics suggest a lack of resolution; yes, alcohol can be an escape, but it can also lead to further confusions, frustrations, and anger... ...brilliant song...
insightful :)