"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.
Hey you, JoJo
Yeah, I know your name
I thought I saw you
Jump a Utah train
But I could not say
I heard you tried to
Put your hat on a shelf
Married a woman
Went off and loved someone else
It could be as well
I cannot tell
Hey you JoJo
Don't you forget your name
They might try to keep you
From the man you have been
So don't go that way
The story I heard
Is that people are bored
And the measures you take
To wrestle with your lord
All the money you take
All the memories you spill
Will He measure your time?
Will He measure your will?
One of these mornings
Will be the loudest you hear
You'll write your story on firecracker paper
And disappear
The story I heard
Is that people are bored
And the measures you take
Just to wrestle your lord
Are the measures you fake
Whether you're dead or just still
Will He measure your time?
Will He measure your will?
One of these mornings
We'll be home
Yeah, I know your name
I thought I saw you
Jump a Utah train
But I could not say
I heard you tried to
Put your hat on a shelf
Married a woman
Went off and loved someone else
It could be as well
I cannot tell
Hey you JoJo
Don't you forget your name
They might try to keep you
From the man you have been
So don't go that way
The story I heard
Is that people are bored
And the measures you take
To wrestle with your lord
All the money you take
All the memories you spill
Will He measure your time?
Will He measure your will?
One of these mornings
Will be the loudest you hear
You'll write your story on firecracker paper
And disappear
The story I heard
Is that people are bored
And the measures you take
Just to wrestle your lord
Are the measures you fake
Whether you're dead or just still
Will He measure your time?
Will He measure your will?
One of these mornings
We'll be home
Lyrics submitted by rockerbabe99, edited by magnum8, chigmok
The Story I Heard Lyrics as written by Ryan Dobrowski Aaron Nebeker
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
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Fast Car
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@[Diderik:33655] "Your a holiday!" Was a popular term used in the 50s/60s to compliment someone on their all around. For example, not only are they beautiful, but they are fun and kind too ... just an all around "holiday".
I think your first comment is closer to being accurate. The singer/song writers state "Millions of eyes can see, yet why am i so blind!? When the someone else is me, its unkind its unkind". I believe hes referring to the girl toying with him and using him. He wants something deeper with her, thats why he allows himself to be as a puppet (even though for her fun and games) as long as it makes her happy. But he knows deep down that she doesnt really want to be serious with him and thats what makes him.
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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.
Page
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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.
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.
I think the main focus of this song is that your name and past don't quite define you as a person. It's possible to be 'reborn'.
Like other commenters have said, this song was about a homeless man named JoJo that Israel met. Israel listened to his story about a failed marriage because of JoJo's mistakes, and JoJo let that hang over his head.
Israel is saying you shouldn't let your name (your past and memories) keep you from becoming something bigger than yourself. Being bored and wrestling with your lord (i.e. morals, beliefs; doesn't have to be religious) is something everyone does. 'Am I a good person?', 'Have I used my life wisely?' But it's these questions that steer you down the wrong path. It's easy to get sucked into that hole, but really, the only time is right now.
"One of these mornings will be the loudest you hear."
I just want to say I love this line. If you are having an issue in your life, one that stays with you for days, weeks, months, or years, someday you will wake up and the solution to that issue is going to smack you in the face.
"You'll write your story from firecracker paper, and disappear, near disappear."
He is saying that once you realize the solution, you'll write your story off. Put it in the past. And your old self will disappear, but not quite. You'll still have your name. But you are reborn, and life seems fresh and new, and your name has a new meaning.
Happy listening,
Eric