"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.
Peter Parker's life is so much darker than the book I read
'Cause he was defenseless, so defenseless when he was a kid
It's your body, no one's body, but your's anyways
So Peter Parker don't let him mark ya, it's so much darker
Don't let him touch ya, he don't have to stay!
Don't fill a spider up with dread
Spidey's got powers, he takes all of the cowards
And he kills them dead
But when he was younger, an elder among him messed him in the head
So Peter Parker don't let him mark ya, it's so much darker
Don't let him touch ya, he don't have to stay!
The teacher looked at everyone with a PSA
She saw that our hearts were gone
She saw that in everyone!
Peter Parker's life is so much darker
Better tell him, man
'Cause it's your body, no one's body, but your's anyway
So Peter Parker don't him mark ya, it's so much darker
Don't let him touch ya, he don't have to stay!
Don't fill a spider up with dread
Don't fill a spider up with dread
Don't fill a spider up with dread
(Dude, they are conjuring up those demons
Basically, they're taking spells out of that book
Or they are taking demons out of that book and working it
Into a song that basically conjures up these demons, man
Oh dude, it's way insane. Dude, trip out on this!)
'Cause he was defenseless, so defenseless when he was a kid
It's your body, no one's body, but your's anyways
So Peter Parker don't let him mark ya, it's so much darker
Don't let him touch ya, he don't have to stay!
Don't fill a spider up with dread
Spidey's got powers, he takes all of the cowards
And he kills them dead
But when he was younger, an elder among him messed him in the head
So Peter Parker don't let him mark ya, it's so much darker
Don't let him touch ya, he don't have to stay!
The teacher looked at everyone with a PSA
She saw that our hearts were gone
She saw that in everyone!
Peter Parker's life is so much darker
Better tell him, man
'Cause it's your body, no one's body, but your's anyway
So Peter Parker don't him mark ya, it's so much darker
Don't let him touch ya, he don't have to stay!
Don't fill a spider up with dread
Don't fill a spider up with dread
Don't fill a spider up with dread
(Dude, they are conjuring up those demons
Basically, they're taking spells out of that book
Or they are taking demons out of that book and working it
Into a song that basically conjures up these demons, man
Oh dude, it's way insane. Dude, trip out on this!)
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More Featured Meanings
Fast Car
Tracy Chapman
Tracy Chapman
Gentle Hour
Yo La Tengo
Yo La Tengo
This song was originally written by a guy called Peter Gutteridge. He was one of the founders of the "Dunedin Sound" a musical scene in the south of New Zealand in the early 80s. From there it was covered by "The Clean" one of the early bands of that scene (he had originally been a member of in it's early days, writing a couple of their best early songs). The Dunedin sound, and the Clean became popular on american college radio in the mid to late 80s. I guess Yo La Tengo heard that version.
Great version of a great song,
I Can't Go To Sleep
Wu-Tang Clan
Wu-Tang Clan
This song is written as the perspective of the boys in the street, as a whole, and what path they are going to choose as they get older and grow into men. (This is why the music video takes place in an orphanage.) The seen, and unseen collective suffering is imbedded in the boys’ mind, consciously or subconsciously, and is haunting them. Which path will the boys choose? Issac Hayes is the voice of reason, maybe God, the angel on his shoulder, or the voice of his forefathers from beyond the grave who can see the big picture and are pleading with the boys not to continue the violence and pattern of killing their brothers, but to rise above. The most beautiful song and has so many levels. Racism towards African Americans in America would not exist if everyone sat down and listened to this song and understood the history behind the words. The power, fear, pleading in RZA and Ghostface voices are genuine and powerful. Issac Hayes’ strong voice makes the perfect strong father figure, who is possibly from beyond the grave.
Head > Heels
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
“Head > Heels” is a track that aims to capture what it feels like to experience romance that exceeds expectations. Ed Sheeran dedicates his album outro to a lover who has blessed him with a unique experience that he seeks to describe through the song’s nuanced lyrics.
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.
Please, all who read. Do not try and think too hard about this song. Regardless, I think a song about Spiderman getting molested as a child is so fucking cool, as this album. Most definitely one of my FAVORITE bands!