"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.
You take a deep breath
And you walk through the doors
It's the morning of your very first day
You say hi to your friends you ain't seen in awhile
Try and stay out of everybody's way
It's your freshman year
And you're gonna be here for the next four years
In this town
Hoping one of those senior boys
Will wink at you and say
"You know I haven't seen you around, before"
'Cause when you're fifteen
And somebody tells you they love you
You're gonna believe them
And when you're fifteen
Feeling like there's nothing to figure out
Well, count to ten
Take it in
This is life before you know who you're gonna be
At fifteen
You sit in class next to a red-head named Abigail
And soon enough you're best friends
Laughing at the other girls
Who think they're so cool
We'll be out of here as soon as we can
And then you're on your very first date
And he's got a car
And you're feeling like flying
And your mama's waiting up
And you're thinking he's the one
And you're dancing 'round your room when the night ends
When the night ends
'Cause when you're fifteen
And somebody tells you they love you
You're gonna believe them
And when you're fifteen
And your first kiss makes your head spin around
Well, in your life you'll do things
Greater than dating the boy on the football team
I didn't know it at fifteen
When all you wanted
Was to be wanted
Wish you could go back
And tell yourself what you know now
Back then I swore I was gonna marry him someday
But I realized some bigger dreams of mine
And Abigail gave everything she had
To a boy who changed his mind
And we both cried
'Cause when you're fifteen
And somebody tells you they love you
You're gonna believe them
And when you're fifteen
Don't forget to look before you fall
But I've found time can heal most anything
And you just might find who you're supposed to be
I didn't know who I was supposed to be
At fifteen
La-la la-la la-la-la-la
La-la la-la la-la-la-la
La-la la-la
Your very first day
Take a deep breath girl
Take a deep breath as you walk through the doors
And you walk through the doors
It's the morning of your very first day
You say hi to your friends you ain't seen in awhile
Try and stay out of everybody's way
It's your freshman year
And you're gonna be here for the next four years
In this town
Hoping one of those senior boys
Will wink at you and say
"You know I haven't seen you around, before"
'Cause when you're fifteen
And somebody tells you they love you
You're gonna believe them
And when you're fifteen
Feeling like there's nothing to figure out
Well, count to ten
Take it in
This is life before you know who you're gonna be
At fifteen
You sit in class next to a red-head named Abigail
And soon enough you're best friends
Laughing at the other girls
Who think they're so cool
We'll be out of here as soon as we can
And then you're on your very first date
And he's got a car
And you're feeling like flying
And your mama's waiting up
And you're thinking he's the one
And you're dancing 'round your room when the night ends
When the night ends
'Cause when you're fifteen
And somebody tells you they love you
You're gonna believe them
And when you're fifteen
And your first kiss makes your head spin around
Well, in your life you'll do things
Greater than dating the boy on the football team
I didn't know it at fifteen
When all you wanted
Was to be wanted
Wish you could go back
And tell yourself what you know now
Back then I swore I was gonna marry him someday
But I realized some bigger dreams of mine
And Abigail gave everything she had
To a boy who changed his mind
And we both cried
'Cause when you're fifteen
And somebody tells you they love you
You're gonna believe them
And when you're fifteen
Don't forget to look before you fall
But I've found time can heal most anything
And you just might find who you're supposed to be
I didn't know who I was supposed to be
At fifteen
La-la la-la la-la-la-la
La-la la-la la-la-la-la
La-la la-la
Your very first day
Take a deep breath girl
Take a deep breath as you walk through the doors
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I love Taylor and especially this song. She is the ONLY artist out there right now that is telling girls "Hold onto yourself!" ... all the other artists out there promote being slutty and giving your first sexual expierences away to boys while you are drunk and high. This whole song is about being in high school and holding onto yourself, being secure with who you are, and NOT needing a guy to reassure you of your own self-worth. When ever I feel this song it makes me proud to be a girl. We all need to support each other without needing men. My favorite line in this song is "When all you wanted was to be wanted" ... it basically sums up being an American teenage girl. I'm 16 right now and Taylor helps me be okay with who I am.