"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.
If you knew
What I know
Would you try?
Before your time
Has run on you
And worn you down
Would you know
What you desire
In your heart?
If you knew
What I know
Would you try?
Is there time
Is there time
To follow just one desire?
Is there time
Is there time
To follow your heart?
Dress your wounds
Test your strength
Face the night
Crave the touch
Feel the pain
Know the signs
Is there truth
In your pain?
You decide
If you knew
What I know
Would you try?
Is there time
Is there time
To follow just one desire?
Is there time
Is there time
To follow your heart?
As we lie
In the shade
Of poison trees
Are we as safe
As we let
Ourselves believe?
What I know
Would you try?
Before your time
Has run on you
And worn you down
Would you know
What you desire
In your heart?
If you knew
What I know
Would you try?
Is there time
Is there time
To follow just one desire?
Is there time
Is there time
To follow your heart?
Dress your wounds
Test your strength
Face the night
Crave the touch
Feel the pain
Know the signs
Is there truth
In your pain?
You decide
If you knew
What I know
Would you try?
Is there time
Is there time
To follow just one desire?
Is there time
Is there time
To follow your heart?
As we lie
In the shade
Of poison trees
Are we as safe
As we let
Ourselves believe?
Lyrics submitted by esoteric-heart
The Shade of Poison Trees Lyrics as written by Christopher Andrew Carrabba
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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More Featured Meanings
Fast Car
Tracy Chapman
Tracy Chapman
Gentle Hour
Yo La Tengo
Yo La Tengo
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,
When We Were Young
Blink-182
Blink-182
This is a sequel to 2001's "Reckless Abandon", and features the band looking back on their clumsy youth fondly.
No Surprises
Radiohead
Radiohead
Same ideas expressed in Fitter, Happier are expressed in this song. We're told to strive for some sort of ideal life, which includes getting a good job, being kind to everyone, finding a partner, getting married, having a couple kids, living in a quiet neighborhood in a nice big house, etc. But in Fitter, Happier the narrator(?) realizes that it's incredibly robotic to live this life. People are being used by those in power "like a pig in a cage on antibiotics"--being pacified with things like new phones and cool gadgets and houses while being sucked dry. On No Surprises, the narrator is realizing how this life is killing him slowly. In the video, his helmet is slowly filling up with water, drowning him. But he's so complacent with it. This is a good summary of the song. This boring, "perfect" life foisted upon us by some higher powers (not spiritual, but political, economic, etc. politicians and businessmen, perhaps) is not the way to live. But there is seemingly no way out but death. He'd rather die peacefully right now than live in this cage. While our lives are often shielded, we're in our own protective bubbles, or protective helmets like the one Thom wears, if we look a little harder we can see all the corruption, lies, manipulation, etc. that is going on in the world, often run by huge yet nearly invisible organizations, corporations, and 'leaders'. It's a very hopeless song because it reflects real life.
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.
I love this song. one of the most beautiful songs I've heard by Dashboard