"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.
And honestly, I have been begging for answers
That you and only you can give to me
A voice crying loud
I've been crying for days now
And as I start to run, I stop to breathe
(And I was nearly scared to death)
And I was nearly scared to death
(Why you left in paragraphs)
Why you left in paragraphs
(The words were nearly over us)
The words were nearly over us
You stop and turn and grab your bags
And I'll be here by the ocean
Just waiting for proof that there's sunsets and silhouette dreams
All my sand castles fall like the ashes of cigarettes
And every waves drags me to sea
I could stand here for hours
Just to ask God the question, "Is everyone here make-believe?"
With a tear in His voice, He said, "Son, that's the question."
Does this deafening silence mean nothing to no one but me?
As hours move to minutes
And minutes take longer to break
I will be desperately awaiting
But my tongue won't fall apart
And we've been sitting here for hours
All alone and in the dark
So let me think of how to word it
Is it too soon to say 'perfect'?
If I could find another thirty minutes somewhere
I'm sure everything would find me
All that's left is just to sing
And I'll be here by the ocean
Just waiting for proof that there's sunsets and silhouette dreams
All my sand castles fall like the ashes of cigarettes
And every waves drags me to sea
I could stand here for hours
Just to ask God the question, "Is everyone here make-believe?"
With a tear in His voice, He said, "Son, that's the question."
Does this deafening silence mean nothing to no one but me?
And if you sing to me sweet until then
I may never sail Virginia again
And as this current moves slow for me
This much you must know of me again
And I'll have you know I'm scared to death
Tell me once again
That you'll love me to the death
And should I die, you swear that you will come for me
As I fade away, you reach out your hand
(And please don't let me go)
And please don't let me go
(And please don't let me go)
And please don't let me go
And I'll be here by the ocean
Just waiting for proof that there's sunsets and silhouette dreams
All my sand castles fall like the ashes of cigarettes
And every waves drags me to sea
I could stand here for hours
Just to ask God the question, "Is everyone here make-believe?"
With a tear in His voice, He said, "Son, that's the question."
Does this deafening silence mean nothing to no one but me?
That you and only you can give to me
A voice crying loud
I've been crying for days now
And as I start to run, I stop to breathe
(And I was nearly scared to death)
And I was nearly scared to death
(Why you left in paragraphs)
Why you left in paragraphs
(The words were nearly over us)
The words were nearly over us
You stop and turn and grab your bags
And I'll be here by the ocean
Just waiting for proof that there's sunsets and silhouette dreams
All my sand castles fall like the ashes of cigarettes
And every waves drags me to sea
I could stand here for hours
Just to ask God the question, "Is everyone here make-believe?"
With a tear in His voice, He said, "Son, that's the question."
Does this deafening silence mean nothing to no one but me?
As hours move to minutes
And minutes take longer to break
I will be desperately awaiting
But my tongue won't fall apart
And we've been sitting here for hours
All alone and in the dark
So let me think of how to word it
Is it too soon to say 'perfect'?
If I could find another thirty minutes somewhere
I'm sure everything would find me
All that's left is just to sing
And I'll be here by the ocean
Just waiting for proof that there's sunsets and silhouette dreams
All my sand castles fall like the ashes of cigarettes
And every waves drags me to sea
I could stand here for hours
Just to ask God the question, "Is everyone here make-believe?"
With a tear in His voice, He said, "Son, that's the question."
Does this deafening silence mean nothing to no one but me?
And if you sing to me sweet until then
I may never sail Virginia again
And as this current moves slow for me
This much you must know of me again
And I'll have you know I'm scared to death
Tell me once again
That you'll love me to the death
And should I die, you swear that you will come for me
As I fade away, you reach out your hand
(And please don't let me go)
And please don't let me go
(And please don't let me go)
And please don't let me go
And I'll be here by the ocean
Just waiting for proof that there's sunsets and silhouette dreams
All my sand castles fall like the ashes of cigarettes
And every waves drags me to sea
I could stand here for hours
Just to ask God the question, "Is everyone here make-believe?"
With a tear in His voice, He said, "Son, that's the question."
Does this deafening silence mean nothing to no one but me?
Lyrics submitted by thoseguiltyeyes
You Be the Anchor That Keeps My Feet On the Ground, I'll Be the Wings That Keep Your Heart In the Clouds Lyrics as written by Brooks Patrick Betts Alexander Antonio Garcia
Lyrics © THE TALLAHASSEE SKYLINE PUBLISHING
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
You Be the Anchor That Keeps My Feet on the Ground, I'll Be the Wings That Keep Your Heart in the Clouds song meanings
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Fast Car
Tracy Chapman
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Lord Huron
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This is a hauntingly beautiful song about introspection, specifically about looking back at a relationship that started bad and ended so poorly, that the narrator wants to go back to the very beginning and tell himself to not even travel down that road. I believe that the relationship started poorly because of the lines:
"Take me back to the night we met:When the night was full of terrors: And your eyes were filled with tears: When you had not touched me yet"
So, the first night was not a great start, but the narrator pursued the relationship and eventually both overcame the rough start to fall in love with each other:
"I had all and then most of you"
Like many relationships that turn sour, it was not a quick decline, but a gradual one where the narrator and their partner fall out of love and gradually grow apart
"Some and now none of you"
Losing someone who was once everything in your world, who you could confide in, tell your secrets to, share all the most intimate parts of your life, to being strangers with that person is probably one of the most painful experiences a person can go through. So Painful, the narrator wants to go back in time and tell himself to not even pursue the relationship.
This was the perfect song for "13 Reasons Why"
Head > Heels
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
“Head > Heels” is a track that aims to capture what it feels like to experience romance that exceeds expectations. Ed Sheeran dedicates his album outro to a lover who has blessed him with a unique experience that he seeks to describe through the song’s nuanced lyrics.
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.
Plastic Bag
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
“Plastic Bag” is a song about searching for an escape from personal problems and hoping to find it in the lively atmosphere of a Saturday night party. Ed Sheeran tells the story of his friend and the myriad of troubles he is going through. Unable to find any solutions, this friend seeks a last resort in a party and the vanity that comes with it.
“I overthink and have trouble sleepin’ / All purpose gone and don’t have a reason / And there’s no doctor to stop this bleedin’ / So I left home and jumped in the deep end,” Ed Sheeran sings in verse one. He continues by adding that this person is feeling the weight of having disappointed his father and doesn’t have any friends to rely on in this difficult moment. In the second verse, Ed sings about the role of grief in his friend’s plight and his dwindling faith in prayer. “Saturday night is givin’ me a reason to rely on the strobe lights / The lifeline of a promise in a shot glass, and I’ll take that / If you’re givin’ out love from a plastic bag,” Ed sings on the chorus, as his friend turns to new vices in hopes of feeling better.
when i first heard this song [well the whole album actually!] i was sitting next to Derek and Brooks and across from Alex and Cabbage, it was such an amazing moment that i will remember forever... this song is just so awesome, the boys sound so grown up! it's just great! everytime i hear this album i'll remember that the first time i got to hear it was over a month before it came out sitting in a hotel room next to Mayday Parade =)
I love this song. I didn't read many comments, so if what I'm saying is similar to what others have already said, I apologize. <br /> Okay, to me this song is about a death to someone close to the writer of this song. I always had this opinion since I first hear the song, when it first came out, but since the recent death of my grandmother, it makes even more sense. <br /> In the beginning, he is asking God questions such as is there a heaven, what does this life mean, what am I here for, and so on. He has been crying for days because of how sad he is of the death of his loved on. When he sings 'what you left in paragraphs', that, to me, either means that his loved one committed suicide, and he is talking about his suicide note, or maybe he is reading over old cards or letters from his loved one(I do that with old cards from my grandmother, that's why I figured that). <br /> He's on the beach, by the ocean, probably because he just wants to deal with the pain he is feeling and be alone. Maybe so he could cry. In a situation like this, where a loved one passes away, you don't feel like having people around you. You want to be alone so you can just sit there and cry. When he says 'my sand castles fall like the ashes of cigarettes' that could be taken literal, since he is by the ocean, or he could be referring to basically he feels his life is falling apart. You almost feel like everything you thought mattered, doesn't. You just want your loved one back, and since they're gone, it feels like everything you built in your life, falls apart. It just crumbles. <br /> The second verse kind of gets me. I don't really catch on to what he is talking about. I'm guessing he is reminising(sp?). He wishes that he could turn back time and just have 30 more minutes with this person and settle the things he wishes he would have said or done. Like telling this person how much you love them, or telling them how much they mean to you. Maybe that's something that is bothering him since this person passed. <br /> When he talks about 'and every wave drags me to sea' I think he is just talking about being overwhelmed. Maybe by the depression he is feeling about this death. Every small thing he thinks about drags him into being so upset and just back to the start. You think your doing better and one small thing, or wave, just pulls all of this emotion out that you thought you were over, when he is dragged to the sea. <br /> When he says 'and as this current moves slow for me, this much you must know, we'll meet again' I think the current he is referring to is his life. He is still living and he knows he will be living for a while without his love one. He wants to tell his loved one they will meet again in heaven, when his time comes. He then says 'and El, I'll have you know I'm scared to death'. That, to me, means he is talking to El, which is probably the nickname of the loved one that passed away. He is telling her he is scared to death, probably of dying. He isn't scared of seeing her again, because that's all he wants, but he's scared to die. He brought up earlier all of these questions for God, and since those questions go unanswered, that's why he scared of dying. <br /> 'Tell me once again, that you will love me to the death and should I die you swear that you will come for me'. That says to me that even though he and his loved one are in different places, heaven and earth, he still loves her and hopes that she still loves him. (I can relate). Then he says 'and should I die you swear that you will come for me', which is he wants her to be the first he see when he dies. That she will be there waiting and guide him into heaven and they will live there forever with eachother and their loved ones.<br /> 'As I fade away, you reach out your arms. And please don't let me go'. That say when he is fading away, dying, she reaches out and holds him to bring him to heaven. He scared, so he says please don't let me go. So now, his doubts that he had before, have vanished. He hasd died, and she was there and brought him with her, to the place he was so scared didn't exist. <br /> As for the heaven thing I mention above, I get that from him asking God if everyone is make believe, and if everything he thinks is real is really real. God won't tell him the answer because that is sort of the point in believing in God. You don't know for sure that you will live forever in heaven, you don't even know for sure that God exists. It is the faith you need to keep so you can experience these great things. God needs to make sure that even though doubts are everywhere, you still believe. You have always believed in God and in heaven but when a death happens, your mind kind of goes haywire and you start questioning everything. Like you thought there was a heaven and now you hope there is a heaven for the well being of your loved one. You just hope for the best for them, but you start doubting and bringing up all of these what-ifs. You end up remembering why you have always had faith and it brings you to a better place. <br /> This song is just so great and it describes everything I feel. I love that it is such a sad song and sort of depressing, but the end, it's a great ending. his doubts have washed away and they are now together forever. I love it. <br /> Sorry if i am repeating myself, just trying to get my point across. <br /> <br />
Wow, your response gave me chills. That's all I have to say.<br /> Such a beautiful song. My favorite along with One Man Drinking Games.
when i read what you said about someone passing away and how the second verse doesnt really fit in, i start to wander if its maybe a death at liek sea, and he is reminicising what happened, that would also fit in with the beach theme.