"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.
Now of course I want peace on the streets, but realistically
Paintin' perfect pictures ain't never worked, my misery
Was so deep, couldn't sleep through all my pressures
In my quest for cash I learned fast, usin' violent measures
Memories of adolescent years, there was unity
But after puberty we brought war to our community
So many bodies droppin', it's gotta stop, I wanna help
But still I'm steppin', keep my weapon, must protect myself
The promise of a better tomorrow ain't never reached me
Plus my teachers was too petrified in class to teach me
Sippin' Thunderbird and grape Kool-Aid, callin' Earl
Since my stomach was empty, it seduced me to fuck the world
Watch my lil' homies lose they childhoods to guns
Nobody cries no more 'cause we all die for fun
So why you ask me if I want peace, if you can't grant it
Niggas fightin 'cross the whole planet, so it could never be peace
Will there ever be peace, or are we all just
Headed for doom, still consumed by the beast
And I know there'll never be peace (uh-uh)
That's why I keep my pistol when I walk the streets
'Cause there could never be peace
Somebody owes me, will they control me? Nah
I ain't a hater, player, but I want all you got
Y'all babies had babies now we fightin' each other
My dawgs got rabies, they bitin' each other
And it ain't hard to find a friend like mine
Bigfully is a bully and he don't mind dyin'
And I gotta be blind, missed sign after sign
Time after time, half the time, have the time
And I don't like nobody, they don't like me more
And I'm good with that finally but they heard it before
Dawg, we livin' in a prison, losin' our religion
On Thanksgiving, we thankful, just for livin' in hell
Damn, homie, I don't mean to be harsh
But there's a devil in the ghetto tryna tear it apart
And if we make it up out, we still stuck in the dark
Will there ever be peace? Just a piece of my heart, never
Yeah, the only peace we got, is the peace of our heart
Or peace of our mind, or that damn piece
That we hold in our waistline
You feel me, dawg? Come on, uh
So will there ever be peace, or are we all just
Headed for doom, still consumed by the beast
And I know, there'll never be peace (never)
That's why I keep my pistol when I walk the streets
'Cause there'll never be peace
Thangs is changin', nigga, you better read the signs
I'm only concerned about me and mine in these times
The world is a ghetto and peace is not a part of it
We all believe God's new plan to make it out of this
Niggas spendin' too much time hatin' on each other
Niggas buyin' guns, loadin' 'em up, aimin' at each other
And the victim is you and me, it's sick but it's true indeed
The good die, mostly over bullshit, repeatedly
Deep in me there's a part that wants nothin' but love
But the rest of me know war is what's waitin' for us
So I stays ready, keep my pay heavy and boss up
Stack my funds and my guns, never rely on luck
Asking God to point out the impostor
Never let no weapon formed against me prosper
'Cause there'll never be peace, so don't rely on it
Soldiers dyin' for it and in the ghetto
They're cryin' for it, but fuck peace
Will there ever be peace, or are we all just
Headed for doom, still consumed by the beast
And I know, there'll never be peace
That's why I keep my pistol when I walk the streets
Fool, there'll never be peace
Will there ever be peace, or are we all just
Headed for doom, still consumed by the beast
And I know, there'll never be peace
That's why I keep my pistol when I walk the streets
Nigga, there'll never be peace
Will there ever be peace, or are we all just
Headed for doom, still consumed by the beast
And I know, there'll never be peace
That's why I keep my pistol when I walks the streets
Nigga, there'll never be peace
Will there ever be peace?
Shit, fuck peace
On the strength 'til my niggas get a piece, we can't have peace
How the fuck we gon' live happy when we ain't got nuttin'?
You muthafuckas are smilin' but I'm mean muggin'
Why? 'Cause I gotta be thuggin'
It seems drugs done turned this whole muthafuckin' hood out
All us niggas actin' up, wild-ass, muthafuckin' adolescents
These niggas ain't even got no childhoods no more
How the fuck can you have a childhood?
And you at the funeral every muthafuckin' weekend?
Pssh, and you muthafuckas talkin' about peace
Nigga, it ain't no muthafuckin' peace
You ain't seen the news, muthafucka? You ain't heard?
Lil' babies gettin' smoked, muthafuckas killin' they whole family
Lil' kids gettin' thrown off buildings, muthafuckas gettin' abused
Peace? Nigga, is you out your fuckin' mind?
Fuck peace, we can't never have peace
'Til you muthafuckas clean up this mess you made
Till you fuckin' clean up the dirt you dropped
'Til we get a piece, fuck peace, Westside
Paintin' perfect pictures ain't never worked, my misery
Was so deep, couldn't sleep through all my pressures
In my quest for cash I learned fast, usin' violent measures
Memories of adolescent years, there was unity
But after puberty we brought war to our community
So many bodies droppin', it's gotta stop, I wanna help
But still I'm steppin', keep my weapon, must protect myself
The promise of a better tomorrow ain't never reached me
Plus my teachers was too petrified in class to teach me
Sippin' Thunderbird and grape Kool-Aid, callin' Earl
Since my stomach was empty, it seduced me to fuck the world
Watch my lil' homies lose they childhoods to guns
Nobody cries no more 'cause we all die for fun
So why you ask me if I want peace, if you can't grant it
Niggas fightin 'cross the whole planet, so it could never be peace
Will there ever be peace, or are we all just
Headed for doom, still consumed by the beast
And I know there'll never be peace (uh-uh)
That's why I keep my pistol when I walk the streets
'Cause there could never be peace
Somebody owes me, will they control me? Nah
I ain't a hater, player, but I want all you got
Y'all babies had babies now we fightin' each other
My dawgs got rabies, they bitin' each other
And it ain't hard to find a friend like mine
Bigfully is a bully and he don't mind dyin'
And I gotta be blind, missed sign after sign
Time after time, half the time, have the time
And I don't like nobody, they don't like me more
And I'm good with that finally but they heard it before
Dawg, we livin' in a prison, losin' our religion
On Thanksgiving, we thankful, just for livin' in hell
Damn, homie, I don't mean to be harsh
But there's a devil in the ghetto tryna tear it apart
And if we make it up out, we still stuck in the dark
Will there ever be peace? Just a piece of my heart, never
Yeah, the only peace we got, is the peace of our heart
Or peace of our mind, or that damn piece
That we hold in our waistline
You feel me, dawg? Come on, uh
So will there ever be peace, or are we all just
Headed for doom, still consumed by the beast
And I know, there'll never be peace (never)
That's why I keep my pistol when I walk the streets
'Cause there'll never be peace
Thangs is changin', nigga, you better read the signs
I'm only concerned about me and mine in these times
The world is a ghetto and peace is not a part of it
We all believe God's new plan to make it out of this
Niggas spendin' too much time hatin' on each other
Niggas buyin' guns, loadin' 'em up, aimin' at each other
And the victim is you and me, it's sick but it's true indeed
The good die, mostly over bullshit, repeatedly
Deep in me there's a part that wants nothin' but love
But the rest of me know war is what's waitin' for us
So I stays ready, keep my pay heavy and boss up
Stack my funds and my guns, never rely on luck
Asking God to point out the impostor
Never let no weapon formed against me prosper
'Cause there'll never be peace, so don't rely on it
Soldiers dyin' for it and in the ghetto
They're cryin' for it, but fuck peace
Will there ever be peace, or are we all just
Headed for doom, still consumed by the beast
And I know, there'll never be peace
That's why I keep my pistol when I walk the streets
Fool, there'll never be peace
Will there ever be peace, or are we all just
Headed for doom, still consumed by the beast
And I know, there'll never be peace
That's why I keep my pistol when I walk the streets
Nigga, there'll never be peace
Will there ever be peace, or are we all just
Headed for doom, still consumed by the beast
And I know, there'll never be peace
That's why I keep my pistol when I walks the streets
Nigga, there'll never be peace
Will there ever be peace?
Shit, fuck peace
On the strength 'til my niggas get a piece, we can't have peace
How the fuck we gon' live happy when we ain't got nuttin'?
You muthafuckas are smilin' but I'm mean muggin'
Why? 'Cause I gotta be thuggin'
It seems drugs done turned this whole muthafuckin' hood out
All us niggas actin' up, wild-ass, muthafuckin' adolescents
These niggas ain't even got no childhoods no more
How the fuck can you have a childhood?
And you at the funeral every muthafuckin' weekend?
Pssh, and you muthafuckas talkin' about peace
Nigga, it ain't no muthafuckin' peace
You ain't seen the news, muthafucka? You ain't heard?
Lil' babies gettin' smoked, muthafuckas killin' they whole family
Lil' kids gettin' thrown off buildings, muthafuckas gettin' abused
Peace? Nigga, is you out your fuckin' mind?
Fuck peace, we can't never have peace
'Til you muthafuckas clean up this mess you made
Till you fuckin' clean up the dirt you dropped
'Til we get a piece, fuck peace, Westside
Lyrics submitted by SongMeanings
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More Featured Meanings
Fast Car
Tracy Chapman
Tracy Chapman
No Surprises
Radiohead
Radiohead
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.
Blue
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
“Blue” is a song about a love that is persisting in the discomfort of the person experiencing the emotion. Ed Sheeran reflects on love lost, and although he wishes his former partner find happiness, he cannot but admit his feelings are still very much there. He expresses the realization that he might never find another on this stringed instrumental by Aaron Dessner.
Amazing
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran tells a story of unsuccessfully trying to feel “Amazing.” This track is about the being weighed down by emotional stress despite valiant attempts to find some positivity in the situation. This track was written by Ed Sheeran from the perspective of his friend. From the track, we see this person fall deeper into the negative thoughts and slide further down the path of mental torment with every lyric.
Page
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
There aren’t many things that’ll hurt more than giving love a chance against your better judgement only to have your heart crushed yet again. Ed Sheeran tells such a story on “Page.” On this track, he is devastated to have lost his lover and even more saddened by the feeling that he may never move on from this.