"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.
God only knows
All the side effects of listening
To static on the radio
Stare at the screen
‘Til the videos have driven you
To lunacy with visuals
I can’t believe you sold
I can’t believe you sold out
Rip your soul out
Rip your soul
Would you face me and look into my eyes
Before you lie straight through your teeth
And maybe you’ll pull it off again
But you can count me out
Look to the sun
For the energy you’re gonna need
While fighting for your legacy
Take it and run
So they’ll never know the holy ghost
Is not in you and never was
I can’t believe you sold
I can’t believe you sold out
Rip your soul out
Rip your soul
Would you face me and look into my eyes
Before you lie straight through your teeth
And maybe you’ll pull it off again
But you can count me out
Can’t believe you’re selling out
We only bury all the useless
We bury all the useless every day
Can’t believe you’re selling out
We only bury all the useless
We bury all the useless every day…
Would you face me and look into my eyes
Before you lie straight through your teeth
And maybe you’ll pull it off again
But you can count me out
They’re so tasteless
Changing
To be the one they want
Faceless
Wasted
You don’t know who you are
All the side effects of listening
To static on the radio
Stare at the screen
‘Til the videos have driven you
To lunacy with visuals
I can’t believe you sold
I can’t believe you sold out
Rip your soul out
Rip your soul
Would you face me and look into my eyes
Before you lie straight through your teeth
And maybe you’ll pull it off again
But you can count me out
Look to the sun
For the energy you’re gonna need
While fighting for your legacy
Take it and run
So they’ll never know the holy ghost
Is not in you and never was
I can’t believe you sold
I can’t believe you sold out
Rip your soul out
Rip your soul
Would you face me and look into my eyes
Before you lie straight through your teeth
And maybe you’ll pull it off again
But you can count me out
Can’t believe you’re selling out
We only bury all the useless
We bury all the useless every day
Can’t believe you’re selling out
We only bury all the useless
We bury all the useless every day…
Would you face me and look into my eyes
Before you lie straight through your teeth
And maybe you’ll pull it off again
But you can count me out
They’re so tasteless
Changing
To be the one they want
Faceless
Wasted
You don’t know who you are
Lyrics submitted by BetterOffAlone13
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Fast Car
Tracy Chapman
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This is one of my favorite songs. https://fnfgo.io
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
Radiohead
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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.
Punchline
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran sings about missing his former partner and learning important life lessons in the process on “Punchline.” This track tells a story of battling to get rid of emotions for a former lover, whom he now realized might not have loved him the same way. He’s now caught between accepting that fact and learning life lessons from it and going back to beg her for another chance.
Well he trying to say well you sold out so go ahead rip your soul out, meaning you did something terrible, so do something worse than that
This is about the bands who sell out for money or fame MTV is big reason for this.
No I dont think its just about bands selling out, its mostly about religion and or fitting into some cliche. Because he says "Take it and run, so they'll never know the Holy Ghost is not in you, and never was." -obviously talking about christianity because "The Holy Ghost" = God. If you have ever been to a church most people are very superficial and the lines "Before you lie straight through your teeth and maybe you'll pull it off again, but you can count me out." -makes Total sense.
Nah man. The entire song is indeed about bands, nothing really about religion.
See, at massive music and entertainment events, the Grammy's, Juno Awards, etc, every single person who goes up on the podium to accept their award praises and thanks "God" or the "Holy Ghost itself" for their "blessing" and helping them get that far. They'll praise their success on that, then the next bit they'll go ahead and screw it all over by selling themselves out as well, changing their style.
Then when it comes to the final breakdown, he sings:
"Can't believe you're selling out We only bury all the useless We bury all the useless every day"
This is a reference to bands and pop stars being there one day, gone the next, because record companies aren't making money off of them/the sellouts and just bury their careers.
So basically nobody has any clue at all LOL
I think it is the devil (evil) talking about it's experience on earth.