"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.
It's only when your poison spins into the life you hoped to live
That suddenly you wake up in a shaking panic, now
You set me up like a lamb to slaughter
Garbo as a farmer's daughter
Unbelievable, the gospel according to who?
I lay right down
All your sad and lost apostles
Hum my name and flare their nostrils
Choking on the bones you toss to them
Well, I'm not one to sit and spin
'Cause living well's the best revenge
Baby, I am calling you on that
Don't turn your talking points on me
History will set me free
The future's ours and you don't even rate a footnote now
So who's chasing you? Where did you go?
You disappeared mid-sentence
In a judgment crisis I see my anecdote for it
You weakened shell
All your sad and lost apostles
Hum my name and flare their nostrils
Choking on the bones you toss to them
Well I'm not one to sit and spin
'Cause living well's the best revenge
Baby, I am calling you on that
You savor your dying breath
Well, I forgive but I don't forget
You work it out, let's hear that argument again
Camera three, go now!
All your sad and lost apostles
Hum my name and flare their nostrils
Choking on the bones you toss to them
Well I'm not one to sit and spin
'Cause living well's the best revenge
Baby, I am calling you on that
Baby, I am calling you on that
Baby, I am calling you on
That suddenly you wake up in a shaking panic, now
You set me up like a lamb to slaughter
Garbo as a farmer's daughter
Unbelievable, the gospel according to who?
I lay right down
All your sad and lost apostles
Hum my name and flare their nostrils
Choking on the bones you toss to them
Well, I'm not one to sit and spin
'Cause living well's the best revenge
Baby, I am calling you on that
Don't turn your talking points on me
History will set me free
The future's ours and you don't even rate a footnote now
So who's chasing you? Where did you go?
You disappeared mid-sentence
In a judgment crisis I see my anecdote for it
You weakened shell
All your sad and lost apostles
Hum my name and flare their nostrils
Choking on the bones you toss to them
Well I'm not one to sit and spin
'Cause living well's the best revenge
Baby, I am calling you on that
You savor your dying breath
Well, I forgive but I don't forget
You work it out, let's hear that argument again
Camera three, go now!
All your sad and lost apostles
Hum my name and flare their nostrils
Choking on the bones you toss to them
Well I'm not one to sit and spin
'Cause living well's the best revenge
Baby, I am calling you on that
Baby, I am calling you on that
Baby, I am calling you on
Lyrics submitted by monkeysuncle
Living Well Is The Best Revenge Lyrics as written by Mike Mills Peter Buck
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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Fast Car
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This is about bronies. They communicate by stomping.
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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.
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"'Just a Little Lovin’ is a timeless country song originally recorded by Eddy Arnold in 1954. The song, written by Eddie Miller and Jimmy Campbell, explores the delicate nuances of love and showcases Arnold’s emotive vocals. It delves into the universal theme of love and how even the smallest gesture of affection can have a profound impact on our lives." https://oldtimemusic.com/the-meaning-behind-the-song-just-a-little-lovin-by-eddy-arnold/
Punchline
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Ed Sheeran sings about missing his former partner and learning important life lessons in the process on “Punchline.” This track tells a story of battling to get rid of emotions for a former lover, whom he now realized might not have loved him the same way. He’s now caught between accepting that fact and learning life lessons from it and going back to beg her for another chance.
Judging by most of Stipe's songs I'd say this has a political meaning, but personally when I read it the first thing I could think of was religion, almost as if he's standing up to Jesus and saying "who are you to judge or guide my life, I'm going to live the way I want to", he talks about the apostles all humming his name perhaps all gunning for him, but he doesn't care he just wants to live his life.
(no offence intended to anybody just my take on the song)
To Ebrown9810 and Cyberghost,<br /> <br /> I'm not sure if Stipe is standing up to Jesus or his teachings about love and forgiveness per se, but certainly Stipe is taking on the judgemental and often hypocritical religious far-right.<br /> <br /> "...You had set me up like a lamb to slaughter...." (ie. using the political left, homosexuals, etc as whipping posts is a traditional strategy by far right political and religious leaders....)<br /> <br /> "...Garbo as a farmer's daughter..." (I still have to research the movie's plot to get the reference...)<br /> <br /> "....Unbelievable, the gospel according to who???" (ie. the hypocricy issue...and that - perhaps - the "real" message in the Bible is valid (ie. Love...) but being ignored.<br /> <br /> "...I lay right down..." (perhaps Stipe regrets not taking on Bush and his buddies in the religious far-right earlier??)<br /> <br /> <br /> ..."now I'm not one to sit and spin" (ie. Stipe does not fit the image of The Devil??)<br /> <br /> ..."You savor your dying breath" (referencing the idea that far-right Christians only look towards completing their 'checklist' in order to earn their way to getting to heaven, but they're not paying attention to their behaviour or what is happening NOW???)<br />