"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.
well, the night was fallen cold outside this convenience store
and then manager guy said, “you gotta go, you can't hang around no more.”
told that guy, "I need a ride, I'm trying to find a way back east."
then this weird guy replied, “it's alright if you ride with me, 'cause I'm going on back east,
it's alright if you ride with me, I'm a rollin' for the east,
get your stuff and come with me.”
he had a big gash on his head, it made him look like a criminal
said it almost killed him dead, spent a week in the hospital
he was sleeping in his car back out in Mexacali
a staggered drunk out of the bar followed him and beat him badly
they weren't from the east, those guys weren't from the east
I think they were from the bay area, gangster tough guys from the bay area
they used a steel pipe and a stick, and he escaped the fatal blow
they tried to drag him into the ditch but he ran up to the road
police happened to arrive, he waved his arms to flag 'em down
he's lucky now to be alive so he's heading for las vegas town
and he's goin' on back east, first he's gonna lose a little money
then he's rollin' back east, after he finds him a honey
Marcalino was his name, loved to listen to The Scorpions
and fishing was his game, in alaska up in ketchiken
when that fishing time was through, back to the lower 48
get a vegas prostitute as his way to celebrate
then he'd go on back east, back home to the family
and he'd roll on back east
his mother and his sister, his only family
we stopped at an all night diner; he insister he would pay
he bought me cigarettes and a lighter and we drove the rest of the way
to arrive at five a.m., he let me off at the bali's casino there
he handed me a five and a ten
he said, "good luck, get out of here."
he said, "you go back east, I'm gonna stay and tame the beast."
he said, "no, you go on back east, I'm gonna get down to the least."
so I walk off to the bus depot and I buy the ticket
and I got on the bus and I fell asleep
and I woke up with this drunk passed out guy next to me
he peed his pants so I moved my seat to the front of the bus
and I fell asleep and I woke up in Winter Park, Colorado
it was minus six, I couldn't find my friend
so I found a job chopping ice off hotel rooms
and I saved up enough to get me back to Georgia
back to my old band, it felt good to be back
I went up to old Picken's County,
late Joe Calski, Kiwi Key, my friend Tony T
no, he never called me, we had our kicks
we did some tricks, we did back flips.
and the whole time I was hangin' around back east
the only thing going through my mind was getting on back west
and then manager guy said, “you gotta go, you can't hang around no more.”
told that guy, "I need a ride, I'm trying to find a way back east."
then this weird guy replied, “it's alright if you ride with me, 'cause I'm going on back east,
it's alright if you ride with me, I'm a rollin' for the east,
get your stuff and come with me.”
he had a big gash on his head, it made him look like a criminal
said it almost killed him dead, spent a week in the hospital
he was sleeping in his car back out in Mexacali
a staggered drunk out of the bar followed him and beat him badly
they weren't from the east, those guys weren't from the east
I think they were from the bay area, gangster tough guys from the bay area
they used a steel pipe and a stick, and he escaped the fatal blow
they tried to drag him into the ditch but he ran up to the road
police happened to arrive, he waved his arms to flag 'em down
he's lucky now to be alive so he's heading for las vegas town
and he's goin' on back east, first he's gonna lose a little money
then he's rollin' back east, after he finds him a honey
Marcalino was his name, loved to listen to The Scorpions
and fishing was his game, in alaska up in ketchiken
when that fishing time was through, back to the lower 48
get a vegas prostitute as his way to celebrate
then he'd go on back east, back home to the family
and he'd roll on back east
his mother and his sister, his only family
we stopped at an all night diner; he insister he would pay
he bought me cigarettes and a lighter and we drove the rest of the way
to arrive at five a.m., he let me off at the bali's casino there
he handed me a five and a ten
he said, "good luck, get out of here."
he said, "you go back east, I'm gonna stay and tame the beast."
he said, "no, you go on back east, I'm gonna get down to the least."
so I walk off to the bus depot and I buy the ticket
and I got on the bus and I fell asleep
and I woke up with this drunk passed out guy next to me
he peed his pants so I moved my seat to the front of the bus
and I fell asleep and I woke up in Winter Park, Colorado
it was minus six, I couldn't find my friend
so I found a job chopping ice off hotel rooms
and I saved up enough to get me back to Georgia
back to my old band, it felt good to be back
I went up to old Picken's County,
late Joe Calski, Kiwi Key, my friend Tony T
no, he never called me, we had our kicks
we did some tricks, we did back flips.
and the whole time I was hangin' around back east
the only thing going through my mind was getting on back west
Lyrics submitted by makemusicnotwar
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Fast Car
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This is one of my favorite songs. https://fnfgo.io
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I Can't Go To Sleep
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