"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.
Dripping wet with practiced sincerity,
cute slogans for intangible mysteries
You reduce your god (pruned to profit your ego)
to a TV commercial,
"Buy what I sell! (advertise, advertise!") you you scream,
"Purchase my lifestyle!"
I once held the key but now I have nothing
You are so naive,
I'm sorry for leading you along
I'm just a man
Wake me up and wipe the cliches from my eyes,
It's killing me when all I see is hypocrisy and lies
I know that my faults bring me down, it's a constant battle
That's why I have to be honest with you now
I'm not your saint, I'm not your savior
I once held the key to everything you ever dreamed of
Now I have nothing,
I'm sorry for leading you along
I'm just a man
cute slogans for intangible mysteries
You reduce your god (pruned to profit your ego)
to a TV commercial,
"Buy what I sell! (advertise, advertise!") you you scream,
"Purchase my lifestyle!"
I once held the key but now I have nothing
You are so naive,
I'm sorry for leading you along
I'm just a man
Wake me up and wipe the cliches from my eyes,
It's killing me when all I see is hypocrisy and lies
I know that my faults bring me down, it's a constant battle
That's why I have to be honest with you now
I'm not your saint, I'm not your savior
I once held the key to everything you ever dreamed of
Now I have nothing,
I'm sorry for leading you along
I'm just a man
Lyrics submitted by topherc3103
Just a Man Lyrics as written by Ken Gormly Gregory Perkins
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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Fast Car
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Son Şansın - Şarkı Sözleri
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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.
Mountain Song
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Jane's Addiction vocalist Perry Farrell gives Adam Reader some heartfelt insight into Jane’s Addiction's hard rock manifesto "Mountain Song", which was the second single from their revolutionary album Nothing's Shocking. Mountain song was first recorded in 1986 and appeared on the soundtrack to the film Dudes starring Jon Cryer. The version on Nothing's Shocking was re-recorded in 1988.
"'Mountain Song' was actually about... I hate to say it but... drugs. Climbing this mountain and getting as high as you can, and then coming down that mountain," reveals Farrell. "What it feels to descend from the mountain top... not easy at all. The ascension is tough but exhilarating. Getting down is... it's a real bummer. Drugs is not for everybody obviously. For me, I wanted to experience the heights, and the lows come along with it."
"There's a part - 'Cash in now honey, cash in Miss Smith.' Miss Smith is my Mother; our last name was Smith. Cashing in when she cashed in her life. So... she decided that, to her... at that time, she was desperate. Life wasn't worth it for her, that was her opinion. Some people think, never take your life, and some people find that their life isn't worth living. She was in love with my Dad, and my Dad was not faithful to her, and it broke her heart. She was very desperate and she did something that I know she regrets."
No Surprises
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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.
The meaning is pretty simple. It's about how society makes everything look pretty on the commercials and tv, but in actuality, it's not good for us at all. He gives into the temptation of following that craze because he's just a man. It ended up leaving him with nothing.
i think to sum it all up with what people say,
it talks of a man who was very rich and powerful. and now he has nothing because of the lies and hypocrisy he brought through tv commercials. then admitting hes sorry for leading all those people along, thinking he was their saint or savior. when he himself is just a man like everyone else
thats my take on it. thanks to many people above me too. :)
I think that the second line is intangible instead of tangible.
For the meaning I'd say everybody else hit it. I don't think this song is necessarily pointing toward God and that he is the real savior. I was wondering if this is supposed to be a concept album and I googled it and someone said that the singer said at a concert that the songs on the album are supposed to be about life, death, or the transition. Supposedly when you have a near-death experience and do the whole out-of-body thing you see yourself connected to your body by a silver cord.
Anyway, I'd say this guy is looking back on his life and how he made money off of religion and he's sorry about it. It's kind of a warning not to repeat how people idolized him.
I agree. This song is about a man who made himself a religious icon, thinking he could actually save people. It's a continuation of the first song on the Silver Cord, "The End," which talks about how "I am not worthy to be called your savior, I'm not going to catch all your pain, but to warn you, some may fall on my name." Now he realizes he's just a man, and people need Jesus because only Jesus is perfect. I love the first line, the practiced sincerity he's talking about is people who seem really genuine when they're just working up fake tears, something all those Christian Televangelists do sometimes.
at the end of the second verse, it should be "i'm not your saint, i'm not your savior"
i'm still working on the meaning right now though
"You reduce your god (pruned to profit your ego) to a tv commercial, "Buy what I sell! (advertise, advertise!)" you scream, "Purchase my lifestyle!""
this personally reminds me of christian televangelists.
that's what i thought as well.
This song makes a lot more sense to me now that you've said that (and thanks to some of the posts below as well).
True, but not just televangelists. Walk into a Christian bookstore and you'll find out a lot of companies sell out the Christian image. Cheesy T-shirts, cheesy movies, cheesy music. All cheesy products, companies sell to make mucho profits, not to actually spread the word. On Tv many televangelists like Joel Osteen promoting themselves instead of Christ with their feel good message of no consequences and the whole Prosperity Gospel, the idea that wealth is a good measure of God's favor. Companies scramble to sell their next Bible Translation by tearing at the last. And then sell them at ludicrous prices to unsuspecting newbies who think everything needs to be explained at 2nd grade level for them to understand so they get versions that have commentaries that explain every redundancy and explain how the previous translators are stupid and how they are "experts". And then there are apologists that forgo their faith so they sound smarter. "God didn't really create life, we evolved" as some would say almost excluding his presence and calling God a liar without really looking at the evidence and making an opinion.
I Think the song is about that we should folow people who are rich and high on themself, we look at them as saints and savior, but really their just man. nothing more and one day they could lose everything. then who to you look up to.
One of my absolute favorite songs! And I think this song means we should stop looking up to the rich, powerful or famous people in this world because they are just men with faults and we're not looking up to the one we should be looking up to; God, our real savior.