"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.
Sensitive heart, you're doomed from the start
Meant to play the penitent part
Inquisitive mind, you're destined to find
Tempted fate and knowledge divine
View in there a pitied pair
Denoted by a scene unfair
Will you make my children bear
The consequences everywhere?
Is it so hard to forgive
The way that we have been made to live?
How much is required to set things right?
Have you confused your power with mine?
Oh whoa oh
View in there a pitied pair
Denoted by a scene unfair
Will you make my children bear
The consequences everywhere?
Imminent you seem to be
A picture of fragility
What is it that you think of me?
Is it a woman that you see?
Is it so hard to forgive
The way that we have been made to live?
How much is required to set things right?
Have you confused your power with mine?
Oh whoa oh
Is it so hard to forgive
The way that we have been made to live?
How much is required to set things right?
Have you confused your power with mine?
Oh whoa oh
Oh oh ooh oh oh ooh oh oh
Oh oh ooh oh oh ooh oh oh
Oh oh ooh oh oh ooh oh oh
Oh oh ooh oh oh ooh oh oh
Meant to play the penitent part
Inquisitive mind, you're destined to find
Tempted fate and knowledge divine
View in there a pitied pair
Denoted by a scene unfair
Will you make my children bear
The consequences everywhere?
Is it so hard to forgive
The way that we have been made to live?
How much is required to set things right?
Have you confused your power with mine?
Oh whoa oh
View in there a pitied pair
Denoted by a scene unfair
Will you make my children bear
The consequences everywhere?
Imminent you seem to be
A picture of fragility
What is it that you think of me?
Is it a woman that you see?
Is it so hard to forgive
The way that we have been made to live?
How much is required to set things right?
Have you confused your power with mine?
Oh whoa oh
Is it so hard to forgive
The way that we have been made to live?
How much is required to set things right?
Have you confused your power with mine?
Oh whoa oh
Oh oh ooh oh oh ooh oh oh
Oh oh ooh oh oh ooh oh oh
Oh oh ooh oh oh ooh oh oh
Oh oh ooh oh oh ooh oh oh
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More Featured Meanings
Fast Car
Tracy Chapman
Tracy Chapman
Cajun Girl
Little Feat
Little Feat
Overall about difficult moments of disappointment and vulnerability. Having hope and longing, while remaining optimistic for the future. Encourages the belief that with each new morning there is a chance for things to improve.
The chorus offers a glimmer of optimism and a chance at a resolution and redemption in the future.
Captures the rollercoaster of emotions of feeling lost while loving someone who is not there for you, feeling let down and abandoned while waiting for a lover. Lost with no direction, "Now I'm up in the air with the rain in my hair, Nowhere to go, I can go anywhere"
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”
Holiday
Bee Gees
Bee Gees
@[Diderik:33655] "Your a holiday!" Was a popular term used in the 50s/60s to compliment someone on their all around. For example, not only are they beautiful, but they are fun and kind too ... just an all around "holiday".
I think your first comment is closer to being accurate. The singer/song writers state "Millions of eyes can see, yet why am i so blind!? When the someone else is me, its unkind its unkind". I believe hes referring to the girl toying with him and using him. He wants something deeper with her, thats why he allows himself to be as a puppet (even though for her fun and games) as long as it makes her happy. But he knows deep down that she doesnt really want to be serious with him and thats what makes him.
Just A Little Lovin'
Dusty Springfield
Dusty Springfield
I don't think it's necessarily about sex. It's about wanting to start the day with some love and affection. Maybe a warm cuddle. I'm not alone in interpreting it that way! For example:
"'Just a Little Lovin’ is a timeless country song originally recorded by Eddy Arnold in 1954. The song, written by Eddie Miller and Jimmy Campbell, explores the delicate nuances of love and showcases Arnold’s emotive vocals. It delves into the universal theme of love and how even the smallest gesture of affection can have a profound impact on our lives." https://oldtimemusic.com/the-meaning-behind-the-song-just-a-little-lovin-by-eddy-arnold/
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.
This song is a critique of Genesis, as stated before me.
In essence, she's saying, "God, it's not our fault for being sensitive and inquisitive, that's how we're wired. Why are you so punitive towards us anyway? Isn't it your fault as the designer? I'm skeptical about your power as a creator and your intentions. Our human nature ought to be celebrated not condemned. You are unfair."
Alaina dislikes the story obviously, finds it frustrating.
Clear examples of this frustration are: "[Adam and Eve] denoted by a scene unfair." "Sensitive heart... Doomed from the start." "Is it so hard to forgive [mankind]?" "Have you confused your power with mine?" "What is that you think of me? Do you see a woman?" "Imminent you seem to be a picture of fragility"
The severity of this critique leads me to believe Alaina is not a fan of this religion. Because of this severe critique of God and the Bible's story, this song functions as a criticism of religion as a whole by exposing it all as a farce based on badly designed stories fabricated by people who are pessimistic about human nature.
She finds religion frustrating because of these negative connotations regarding how humans are seen and judged by the creators of religion. It's also possible that she doubts that even the humans who invented the stories of the Bible had no conviction in these stories either; that Genesis seems so unfair that it was created by a people who's original intent was to more easily dominate the weaker class in society.
With a religion that claims humans are bad innately, you can justify the demand for salvation. With this demand you can control the masses by being the sole provider.
Philosophically, she challenges the concept of God. If he's all powerful and all benevolent, why does he put his creations in such unfair circumstances? Is he actually weak and fragile? Does he even exist?