"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.
Don't tell me hard luck stories
And I won't tell you mine
Don't tell me hard luck stories
And I won't tell you mine.
Every time you're feelin' fine
Got another good one on the line
It slips away,
You feel it slip away, slip away.
I don't want no more from you
Won't do what you want me to
Turn me loose
Come on turn me loose, turn me loose.
Every time I'm feelin' good
The phone rings and I knock on wood
Hoping that it won't be you
Calling like you always do.
All you ever seem to say is
How much bad luck came your way
You won't try to start again
You just count on your old friends.
Don't tell me hard luck stories
And I won't tell you mine
Don't tell me hard luck stories
And I won't tell you mine.
Now you call up every day
Got no money no place to stay
That girl made a mess of you
You got what was comin' too.
Build her up and let her down
Tastin' everythin' in town
Treat her right, you never
Treat her right, treat her right.
Now she's gone and you're alone
Bite your fingers to the bone
Slip away,
You feel it slip away, slip away.
You don't know what's goin' on
How you lost it, what went wrong
What ever happened to
The love that you once knew.
Don't tell me hard luck stories
And I won't tell you mine
Don't tell me hard luck stories
And I won't tell you mine.
And I won't tell you mine
Don't tell me hard luck stories
And I won't tell you mine.
Every time you're feelin' fine
Got another good one on the line
It slips away,
You feel it slip away, slip away.
I don't want no more from you
Won't do what you want me to
Turn me loose
Come on turn me loose, turn me loose.
Every time I'm feelin' good
The phone rings and I knock on wood
Hoping that it won't be you
Calling like you always do.
All you ever seem to say is
How much bad luck came your way
You won't try to start again
You just count on your old friends.
Don't tell me hard luck stories
And I won't tell you mine
Don't tell me hard luck stories
And I won't tell you mine.
Now you call up every day
Got no money no place to stay
That girl made a mess of you
You got what was comin' too.
Build her up and let her down
Tastin' everythin' in town
Treat her right, you never
Treat her right, treat her right.
Now she's gone and you're alone
Bite your fingers to the bone
Slip away,
You feel it slip away, slip away.
You don't know what's goin' on
How you lost it, what went wrong
What ever happened to
The love that you once knew.
Don't tell me hard luck stories
And I won't tell you mine
Don't tell me hard luck stories
And I won't tell you mine.
Lyrics submitted by SongMeanings
Hard Luck Stories Lyrics as written by Neil Young
Lyrics © Hipgnosis Songs Group
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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More Featured Meanings
Fast Car
Tracy Chapman
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Holiday
Bee Gees
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@[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.
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Blink-182
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This is a sequel to 2001's "Reckless Abandon", and features the band looking back on their clumsy youth fondly.
Just A Little Lovin'
Dusty Springfield
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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.