"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.
Untie me, I've said no vows
The train is getting way too loud
I gotta leave here my girl
Get on with my lonely life
Just leave the ring on the rail
For the wheels to nullify
Until this turn in my head
I let you stay and you paid no rent
I spent twelve long months on the lam
That's enough sitting on the fence
For the fear of breaking dams
I find a fatal flaw
In the logic of love
And go out of my head
You love a sinking stone
That'll never elope
So get used to the lonesome
Girl, you must atone some
Don't leave me no phone number there
It took me all of the year
To put the poison pill to your ear
But now I stand on honest ground, on honest ground
You want to fight for this love
But honey you cannot wrestle a dove
So baby it's clear
You want to jump and dance
But you sat on your hands
And lost your only chance
Go back to your hometown
Get your feet on the ground
And stop floating around
I find a fatal flaw
In the logic of love
And go out of my head
You love a sinking stone
That'll never elope
So get used to used to the lonesome
Girl, you must atone some
Don't leave me no phone number there
The train is getting way too loud
I gotta leave here my girl
Get on with my lonely life
Just leave the ring on the rail
For the wheels to nullify
Until this turn in my head
I let you stay and you paid no rent
I spent twelve long months on the lam
That's enough sitting on the fence
For the fear of breaking dams
I find a fatal flaw
In the logic of love
And go out of my head
You love a sinking stone
That'll never elope
So get used to the lonesome
Girl, you must atone some
Don't leave me no phone number there
It took me all of the year
To put the poison pill to your ear
But now I stand on honest ground, on honest ground
You want to fight for this love
But honey you cannot wrestle a dove
So baby it's clear
You want to jump and dance
But you sat on your hands
And lost your only chance
Go back to your hometown
Get your feet on the ground
And stop floating around
I find a fatal flaw
In the logic of love
And go out of my head
You love a sinking stone
That'll never elope
So get used to used to the lonesome
Girl, you must atone some
Don't leave me no phone number there
Lyrics submitted by Gwalyn
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Fast Car
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The hell? No one's commented on this? I think it's basically from the viewpoint of a fiancee who's always had commitment issues, and is now telling his lover to leave him... Pretty straightforward.
I love the lyric: "I find a fatal flaw In the logic of love And go out of my head" Because it's just the base frustration of the human condition in regards to being loved and being in love, that there's a serious problem with it...
"I spent twelve long months on the lam" i think it's "land" not "lam"
i like how it's blunt and harsh because too many songs are mushy mashy these days i think. it's so true to life as well.
God...... I don't know what to say about how much I truly love this band. This is one of my more favorite songs because of the way he bounces the lyrics through the melody, and that raise in pitch of his voice starting with "I find a fatal flaw".
i think its fairly straight forward, this guy has been with this girl for a while and has been possibly falling out of love with her and wants her to just leave him.
What record is this song on? Never heard of it
How odd, I've read the lyrics but I have that song labeled as "Gone for good".
This is the same song as Gone for Good. They changed titles and slightly changed the lyrics.
on the land? Na-uh. Lam means on the run - makes way more sense.
This is my favorite song by them. I think it's quite clear what this song is about.
"Just leave the ring on the rail For the wheels to nullify"
To me, this means that someone is telling his wife or fiance to let their relationship end by metaphorically letting the train destroy their ring.