"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.
Nothings the same.
Fading away.
You've been worn.
You've been worn.
You've been warned for the last time.
Don't it hurt?
Don't it hurt?
Honey, you're playing with matches.
It's not time to go (It's something in your eyes)
You can't take it slow (It's something in the wine)
You taste like something's wrong (You can't play with matches)
"Darling, tell me, is something wrong?"
Turn, turn the wheels of horror.
You'll hang for what you've done.
I failed to recognize my hand as part of the problem.
I'll watch you fall from this balcony,
Like a chandalier from the 6th story.
The concrete will stain from the blood which you paint.
A poet you've lived, now an artist you'll die.
It's not time to go (It's something in your eyes)
You can't take it slow (It's something in the wine)
You taste like something's wrong (You can't play with matches)
"Darling, tell me, is something wrong?"
Turn, turn the wheels of horror.
You'll hang for what you've done.
I failed to recognize my hand as part of the problem.
Fading away.
You've been worn.
You've been worn.
You've been warned for the last time.
Don't it hurt?
Don't it hurt?
Honey, you're playing with matches.
It's not time to go (It's something in your eyes)
You can't take it slow (It's something in the wine)
You taste like something's wrong (You can't play with matches)
"Darling, tell me, is something wrong?"
Turn, turn the wheels of horror.
You'll hang for what you've done.
I failed to recognize my hand as part of the problem.
I'll watch you fall from this balcony,
Like a chandalier from the 6th story.
The concrete will stain from the blood which you paint.
A poet you've lived, now an artist you'll die.
It's not time to go (It's something in your eyes)
You can't take it slow (It's something in the wine)
You taste like something's wrong (You can't play with matches)
"Darling, tell me, is something wrong?"
Turn, turn the wheels of horror.
You'll hang for what you've done.
I failed to recognize my hand as part of the problem.
Lyrics submitted by Toast1288
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Fast Car
Tracy Chapman
Tracy Chapman
Dreamwalker
Silent Planet
Silent Planet
I think much like another song “Anti-Matter” (that's also on the same album as this song), this one is also is inspired by a horrifying van crash the band experienced on Nov 3, 2022. This, much like the other track, sounds like it's an extension what they shared while huddled in the wreckage, as they helped frontman Garrett Russell stem the bleeding from his head wound while he was under the temporary effects of a concussion. The track speaks of where the mind goes at the most desperate & desolate of times, when it just about slips away to all but disconnect itself, and the aftermath.
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.
Amazing
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran tells a story of unsuccessfully trying to feel “Amazing.” This track is about the being weighed down by emotional stress despite valiant attempts to find some positivity in the situation. This track was written by Ed Sheeran from the perspective of his friend. From the track, we see this person fall deeper into the negative thoughts and slide further down the path of mental torment with every lyric.
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.
"Nothings the same"- nothings the same since "it" happened whatever that is
"you've been worn" i think worn should be warned worn makes no sense- This means she was warned ;D, she knew she shouldn't have done "it"
"Don't it hurt?"- He's murdered her or hes saying this as he is killing her. He's basically telling her this is the way you've made me feel the pain i'm making you feel is equivelent to pain you put me through
"Honey, you're playing with matches" this means that she was testing the limits you saw it coming. When you play with matches you risk fire. when you fuck around or do whatever she did you risk hurting the murder and you knew it was coming.
"It's not time to go" this is a harder part of the song to decipher i think hes saying that hes poisoned her and is going to kill her somewhere else at another time.
"you can't take it slow" bleh idk what this means. i think it has somthing to do with what she did to deserve to be killed.
"you taste like somthings wrong (you can't play with matches"- Hes saying you know why i'm doing this to you, you saw it coming.
"darling tell me is somthin wrong?" Hes saying hey, you did this to me and acted like it was fine so shouldn't it be okay that i'm doing this to you?
"Turn, turn the wheels of horror. You'll hang for what you've done." - Hes basically saying i'm going to kill you for what you've done i think she probably slept with someone else or somthing along those lines.
"I failed to recognize my hand as part of the problem"- i think hes saying that me killing you was all your fault you were the problem theres nothing wrong with what i'm doing.
"I'll watch you fall from this balcony, Like a chandalier from the 6th story."- think this ones kinda self explainitory hes going to kill her by dropping her off a balcony now that she has been drugged by him. the chandalier part is basically selling you'll go splat into a million pieces.
"The concrete will stain from the blood which you paint.A poet you've lived, now an artist you'll die."- probably the 2nd part is my favorite part of the song. the first parts obviously means that her blood will stain the concrete beneath balcony. the 2nd part i'm not really sure about but i think hes trying to say she flirted with him with her words or "poetry" only for her to hurt him and be with someone else. "now an artist you'll die" is talking about her blood splatter on the concreate making art.
i kinda suck at writing so sorry for my horrible writing skills but hopfully this helped a bit ;D