"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.
Should of trusted my own feelings
But I silenced intuition when you sacrificed your honesty
I believed that you would be there to protect me
And help me with all I'm going through
There's a joy to being free
That you could have taken from me
But I found the strength to walk away
If you turn the pages and you look inside
There is nothing of me I feel that I have to hide
If you turn the tables and look at yourself
Is there something you feel that you would have to confess
Many things will come to pass, I can live with that
I can't help but wonder when, you'll get yours
I'm so happy I have moved on
I heard you are regretful, but you sacrificed your dignity
With the power you have abused you disgust me
And trust me, I'm not the only one
Haven't I already proved
That I'm better off without you
I'm so glad I walked away
If you turn the pages and you look inside
There is nothing of me I feel that I have to hide
If you turn the tables and look at yourself
Is there something you feel that you would have to confess
Many things will come to pass, I can live with that
I can't help but wonder when, you'll get yours
For all the lies and your manipulations
For all the times I never felt good enough
You pushed me round, and put me down
To satisfy your childish ego
For all the times you made me feel worthless
The power struggles, now I couldn't care less
It sounds to you, there's nothing you can do
What goes around, comes around
If you turn the pages and you look inside
There is nothing of me I feel that I have to hide
If you turn the tables and look at yourself
Is there something you feel that you would have to confess
Many things will come to pass, I can live with that
I can't help but wonder when, you'll get yours
But I silenced intuition when you sacrificed your honesty
I believed that you would be there to protect me
And help me with all I'm going through
There's a joy to being free
That you could have taken from me
But I found the strength to walk away
If you turn the pages and you look inside
There is nothing of me I feel that I have to hide
If you turn the tables and look at yourself
Is there something you feel that you would have to confess
Many things will come to pass, I can live with that
I can't help but wonder when, you'll get yours
I'm so happy I have moved on
I heard you are regretful, but you sacrificed your dignity
With the power you have abused you disgust me
And trust me, I'm not the only one
Haven't I already proved
That I'm better off without you
I'm so glad I walked away
If you turn the pages and you look inside
There is nothing of me I feel that I have to hide
If you turn the tables and look at yourself
Is there something you feel that you would have to confess
Many things will come to pass, I can live with that
I can't help but wonder when, you'll get yours
For all the lies and your manipulations
For all the times I never felt good enough
You pushed me round, and put me down
To satisfy your childish ego
For all the times you made me feel worthless
The power struggles, now I couldn't care less
It sounds to you, there's nothing you can do
What goes around, comes around
If you turn the pages and you look inside
There is nothing of me I feel that I have to hide
If you turn the tables and look at yourself
Is there something you feel that you would have to confess
Many things will come to pass, I can live with that
I can't help but wonder when, you'll get yours
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More Featured Meanings
Fast Car
Tracy Chapman
Tracy Chapman
Cajun Girl
Little Feat
Little Feat
Overall about difficult moments of disappointment and vulnerability. Having hope and longing, while remaining optimistic for the future. Encourages the belief that with each new morning there is a chance for things to improve.
The chorus offers a glimmer of optimism and a chance at a resolution and redemption in the future.
Captures the rollercoaster of emotions of feeling lost while loving someone who is not there for you, feeling let down and abandoned while waiting for a lover. Lost with no direction, "Now I'm up in the air with the rain in my hair, Nowhere to go, I can go anywhere"
The bridge shows signs of longing and a plea for companionship. The Lyrics express a desire for authentic connection and the importance of Loving someone just as they are. "Just in passing, I'm not asking. That you be anyone but you”
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.
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.
American Town
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran shares a short story of reconnecting with an old flame on “American Town.” The track is about a holiday Ed Sheeran spends with his countrywoman who resides in America. The two are back together after a long period apart, and get around to enjoying a bunch of fun activities while rekindling the flames of their romance.
"You disgust me and trust me I'm not the only one"
She must have contracted some nasty venereal disease from one of the girl's she's slept with. That's gross, but I still definitely would. Oops.