"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.
Some days we get a thrill in our brains
Some days it turns into malaise
You see our face in the veneer
Reflected on the surface of fear
Because you know that we're better than that
But some days we're worse than you can imagine
And how am I supposed to live with that?
With all these train wrecks coming at random
Hey - what are you gonna do?
When those walls are falling down - falling down on you
Hey - what are you gonna do?
When those walls are falling down - falling down on you
You got warheads stacked in the kitchen
You treat distraction like it's a religion
With a rattlesnake step in your rhythm
We do the best with the souls we've been given
Because you know we're nothing special to them
We're going some place they've already been
Trying to make sense of what they call wisdom
And this riff-raff ain't laughing with them
Hey - what are you gonna do?
When those walls are falling down - falling down on you
Hey - what are you gonna do?
When those walls are falling down - falling down on you
You're wearing all the years on your face
Turn a tombstone into your own place
And your heart only beats in a murmur
But your words ring out just like murder
Some days it turns into malaise
You see our face in the veneer
Reflected on the surface of fear
Because you know that we're better than that
But some days we're worse than you can imagine
And how am I supposed to live with that?
With all these train wrecks coming at random
Hey - what are you gonna do?
When those walls are falling down - falling down on you
Hey - what are you gonna do?
When those walls are falling down - falling down on you
You got warheads stacked in the kitchen
You treat distraction like it's a religion
With a rattlesnake step in your rhythm
We do the best with the souls we've been given
Because you know we're nothing special to them
We're going some place they've already been
Trying to make sense of what they call wisdom
And this riff-raff ain't laughing with them
Hey - what are you gonna do?
When those walls are falling down - falling down on you
Hey - what are you gonna do?
When those walls are falling down - falling down on you
You're wearing all the years on your face
Turn a tombstone into your own place
And your heart only beats in a murmur
But your words ring out just like murder
Lyrics submitted by chickenflicker, edited by FletcherD
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Fast Car
Tracy Chapman
Tracy Chapman
Son Şansın - Şarkı Sözleri
Hayalperest
Hayalperest
This song seemingly tackles the methods of deception those who manipulate others use to get victims to follow their demands, as well as diverting attention away from important issues. They'll also use it as a means to convince people to hate or kill others by pretending acts of terrorism were committed by the enemy when the acts themselves were done by the masters of control to promote discrimination and hate. It also reinforces the idea that these manipulative forces operate in various locations, infiltrating everyday life without detection, and propagate any and everywhere.
In general, it highlights the danger of hidden agendas, manipulation, and distraction, serving as a critique of those who exploit chaos and confusion to control and gain power, depicting a cautionary tale against falling into their traps. It encourages us to question the narratives presented to us and remain vigilant against manipulation in various parts of society.
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.
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.
You got warheads stacked in the kitchen
(I believe he is talking about the state of the common family, and how explosive the close relationship can be in a family these days. It's not like it used to be, what with the "American dream" of a perfect life anymore. At the same time he is also talking about how families have TVs in their kitchen now, and have to hear all the doom and gloom of CNN)
You treat distraction like it's a religion
(A bit of a build from the last line, refering to the distraction of TV in the modern world. Most people sit and allow themselves to be absorbed by the television, to the point of treating it like a religion these days.)
With a rattlenake step in your rhythm
(No clue : P)
We do the best with the souls we've been given
(Humanity is losing is spirtuality, but people still want to feel something deep. Most people feel like they're missing something in their life, but don't do anything to change it)
Because you know we're nothing special to them
(Refering to other people, and how we don't think that "we" are special to other people in our lives. I really don't think this line is about terrorism)
We're going some place they've already been
(I think Beck is refering to "they" as the generation that birthed us, and how even though we hate them for ruining the earth for us, we keep doing the same thing to it)
Trying to make sense of what they call wisdom
(We're trying to understand the wisdom in our parents generation, but for most of us it doesn't make sense, especially because they grew up in generation X. Our parents generation has less wisdom than our grandparents did at that age, because they haven't been through a war, and now that our generation is in one, they have no wisdom for us.)
And this riff-raff ain't laughing with them
(Not entirely sure about this line, but I think it goes with the theme of things. Even the "white-trash/riff-raff" of our generation isn't laughing at the state of the world. But it seems like our parents our, because when they were young, this is exactly what generation X wanted.)
Hey what are you gonna do When those walls are falling down falling down on you Hey what are you gonna do When those walls are falling down falling down on you
(I think the chorus has two meanings. Literally, he's talking about the world ending and the walls of our houses coming down on us because of all the war, famine and other awful things that are happening. Metaphorically Beck is talking about our generally delusive state of thinking that we've grown into, about how we let the government get away with ridiculous things because we are so focused on pop-stars, and other trival things. Once these walls are finally torn down and people realize what terrible shape the world is in, they might freak out hence: "what are you gonna do?")