"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.
(So what you gonna do when you get outta here cat daddy?)
I don't know dawg, just trying to live it one day at a time, ya know?
(I hear you talkin' man, live it one day at a time, it ain't nothing but a thang though, bro
Yeah I hear you fool
Well let me get up outta here, my ride out here waitin' for me
(Alright cat, take it easy baby)
You stay up fool
(Peace)
He greets his father with his hands out
Rehabilitated slightly, glad to be the man's child
The world is different since he's seen it last
Out of jail been seven years and he's happy that he's free at last
All he had was his mother's worth
Now she's gone and he's gotta make a change and make it for the beddah
But he's back so he's got one strike against him
And he's young plus he came up in the system
But he's smart and he's finally makin' eighteen
And his goal's to get on top and try to stay clean
So he's calling up his homie who dun came up
Livin' like this now they dealin' with the same stuff
And had that attitude that who he was was worth it
And with that fucked up attitude he killed his first mate
Now it's different, he's in dead dirt
And realized that the name ain't coming up but it still hurt
And can't nobody change this
It's nineteen-ninety-four and we up against the same shit
I never understand why
I could never seen a man cry, 'til I seen a man die
Man cry
Imagine life at it's full peak
Then imagine lying dead in the arms of your enemy
Imagine peace on this earth when there's no grief
Imagine grief on this earth when there's no peace
Everybody's got a different way of endin' it
And when your number comes for service then they send it in
Now your time has arrived for the final touch
I see the fear in your eyes and hear your final breath
How much longer will it be 'til it's all done?
Total darkness and ease be in all one
I watch him die and when he dies let us celebrate
You took his life, but your memory he'll never take
You'll be headin' to another place
And the life you used to live will reflect in your mother's face
I still got to wonder why
I never seen a man cry, 'til I seen a man die
I hear you breathin' but your heart no longer sounds strong
But you kinda scared of dying so you hold on
And you keep on blacking out, and yo pulse is low
Stop trying to fight the reaper just relax and let it go
Because there's no way you can fight it, though you'll still try
And you can try it 'til you fight it but you'll still die
Your spirits leave your body and your mind clears
The rigor mortis starts to set, now you outta here
You start your journey into outer space
You see yourself in the light but you're still feeling outta place
So you standing in the tunnel of eternal light,
And you see the ones you never learn to love in life
Make the choice let it go but you can back it up
If you ain't at peace with God you need to patch it up
But if you're ready close your eyes and we can set it free
There lies a man not scared to die, may he rest in peace
I still got to wonder why
I never seen a man cry 'til I seen a man die
I don't know dawg, just trying to live it one day at a time, ya know?
(I hear you talkin' man, live it one day at a time, it ain't nothing but a thang though, bro
Yeah I hear you fool
Well let me get up outta here, my ride out here waitin' for me
(Alright cat, take it easy baby)
You stay up fool
(Peace)
He greets his father with his hands out
Rehabilitated slightly, glad to be the man's child
The world is different since he's seen it last
Out of jail been seven years and he's happy that he's free at last
All he had was his mother's worth
Now she's gone and he's gotta make a change and make it for the beddah
But he's back so he's got one strike against him
And he's young plus he came up in the system
But he's smart and he's finally makin' eighteen
And his goal's to get on top and try to stay clean
So he's calling up his homie who dun came up
Livin' like this now they dealin' with the same stuff
And had that attitude that who he was was worth it
And with that fucked up attitude he killed his first mate
Now it's different, he's in dead dirt
And realized that the name ain't coming up but it still hurt
And can't nobody change this
It's nineteen-ninety-four and we up against the same shit
I never understand why
I could never seen a man cry, 'til I seen a man die
Man cry
Imagine life at it's full peak
Then imagine lying dead in the arms of your enemy
Imagine peace on this earth when there's no grief
Imagine grief on this earth when there's no peace
Everybody's got a different way of endin' it
And when your number comes for service then they send it in
Now your time has arrived for the final touch
I see the fear in your eyes and hear your final breath
How much longer will it be 'til it's all done?
Total darkness and ease be in all one
I watch him die and when he dies let us celebrate
You took his life, but your memory he'll never take
You'll be headin' to another place
And the life you used to live will reflect in your mother's face
I still got to wonder why
I never seen a man cry, 'til I seen a man die
I hear you breathin' but your heart no longer sounds strong
But you kinda scared of dying so you hold on
And you keep on blacking out, and yo pulse is low
Stop trying to fight the reaper just relax and let it go
Because there's no way you can fight it, though you'll still try
And you can try it 'til you fight it but you'll still die
Your spirits leave your body and your mind clears
The rigor mortis starts to set, now you outta here
You start your journey into outer space
You see yourself in the light but you're still feeling outta place
So you standing in the tunnel of eternal light,
And you see the ones you never learn to love in life
Make the choice let it go but you can back it up
If you ain't at peace with God you need to patch it up
But if you're ready close your eyes and we can set it free
There lies a man not scared to die, may he rest in peace
I still got to wonder why
I never seen a man cry 'til I seen a man die
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Fast Car
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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,
Punchline
Ed Sheeran
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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.
Original style.
Done with feeling.
After I heard this song I sat there with my mouth wide open for 20 minutes. It just hit me that hard. "I never seen a man cry til I seen a man die." It tells us two big things. Scarface tells you how everybody puts on a hard face and tries to act tough, concealing any feelings from fear of being seen as weak. And you instantly understand the type of people he faced in his neighborhood, and the attitude of gangbangers and these lost souls, the type of person the main character in this song is. Secondly, Scarface tells us how often people die. Crying is a very common thing for people to do and see everywhere. At first glance it seems like he's saying that people cry very rarely. He actually means that people die very often.
Leave it to Face to put a couple of the most powerful messages in one line. Beautiful