"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.
The Eiffel tower built to smaller scale
The freshest oxygen I'd ever inhale
I tapped a bottle against a safety rail, killing time
And you were like a walking compliment
Tall in stature and exceptionally read
In dummy glasses and a cardigan
Oh, come on
And oh so empty were the faces of the dealers And the waitresses around
You said that all these things you've learned to ignore
The hidden cameras on the casino floor
And what gets paid for behind hotel doors
Oh, come on
You pretend every slot machine is a robot amputee waving hello
The people stare into their eyes and they feed them little bribes and then they go
The never-ending twilight
In a basement where the sun has never split
You said that you were lonely
And then we kissed like lonely people do
You said the city has a beating heart
That pushes people down the boulevard
And they're all hoping for a wish fulfilled
In a desert for a dollar bill
Those foolish dreams, you know they plague me still
Oh, come on
And oh so empty were the faces
Of the dealers and the waitresses around
Of the dealers and the waitresses around
They're empty
The freshest oxygen I'd ever inhale
I tapped a bottle against a safety rail, killing time
And you were like a walking compliment
Tall in stature and exceptionally read
In dummy glasses and a cardigan
Oh, come on
And oh so empty were the faces of the dealers And the waitresses around
You said that all these things you've learned to ignore
The hidden cameras on the casino floor
And what gets paid for behind hotel doors
Oh, come on
You pretend every slot machine is a robot amputee waving hello
The people stare into their eyes and they feed them little bribes and then they go
The never-ending twilight
In a basement where the sun has never split
You said that you were lonely
And then we kissed like lonely people do
You said the city has a beating heart
That pushes people down the boulevard
And they're all hoping for a wish fulfilled
In a desert for a dollar bill
Those foolish dreams, you know they plague me still
Oh, come on
And oh so empty were the faces
Of the dealers and the waitresses around
Of the dealers and the waitresses around
They're empty
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Fast Car
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The bridge shows signs of longing and a plea for companionship. The Lyrics express a desire for authentic connection and the importance of Loving someone just as they are. "Just in passing, I'm not asking. That you be anyone but you”
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Amazing
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
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Page
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
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So basically, this song seems to indicate that casinos are sucky places of empty dreams, and in the song two people who don't really belong there meet.
This video to the song rocks my face off: vimeo.com/4729762
I really like this one. The whole EP is really good!
Best Song On The Open Door!!! Im waiting for people to start making music videos with this to Las Vegas (The TV show). LUV THIS SONG!!! CANT WAIT TO SEE Death Cab For Cutie Next Month At The Hard Rock!
i agree it is the best song on the Open Door EP.i saw Death Cab at the hard rock on May 7th.it was amazing.
Correction: I think is supposed to be "Tall in stature and exceptionally red"
I love this song, it's like "Why You'd Want to Live Here" done Las Vegas-style. Ben's metaphors are genius as always: "Pretend every slot machine is a robot amputee waving hello." Plus it's catchy as hell :)
It's supposed to be "exceptionally read." If you read a variety of books, you are said to be "well-read" so it's just an extension of that expression.
Kinda interesting. The song was originally Casino Blues, but i guess he changed the song name when he released the ep. but yea its similiar to why you would want to live here
i LOVE this song.
"Tall in stature and exceptionally read In dummy glasses and a cardigan"
ummm, my dream guy??
Here here!
Pardon my ignorance but, what are dummy glasses?
glasses without prescription lenses
Easily my favorite song on the EP, and one of my favorite Death Cab songs.
"Pretend every slot machine is a robot amputee waving hello" definitely my favorite line! I love the whole EP.. it really expresses how he feels inside
wait, i just pasted the wrong post!
it's not about a hooker, it's just about two people who have no business hooking up doing it anyway, which again, everyone who lives/works in vegas has seen 1,000 or more times. the "empty" part still fits--screwing someone in las vegas because you're lonely is not much of a solution to any of life's problems...