"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.
My temper got the best of me
And when I said that I mean I know every single thing that I said was true
And I know that you're mad at me
But if you're thinking like that, I think you'll see that you're mad at you too
And I know the feeling's strong
Strong enough to forget about all that I've been through
And it sounds obscene, but
Loud words never bothered me like they do to you
You're the boy that talks but says nothin'
A big game to the ones that you think will believe you, yeah
But you don't know how to read
The look on my face when it says, "yeah I've read that book too"
And who the hell's impressed by you?
I want names of the people that we know that are fallin' for this
You would sell your own mother out
And then betray your dead brother with another hypocritical kiss
Oh, yeah
And when I said that I mean I know every single thing that I said was true
And I know that you're mad at me
But if you're thinking like that, I think you'll see that you're mad at you too
And I know the feeling's strong
Strong enough to forget about all that I've been through
And it sounds obscene, but
Loud words never bothered me like they do to you
You're the boy that talks but says nothin'
A big game to the ones that you think will believe you, yeah
But you don't know how to read
The look on my face when it says, "yeah I've read that book too"
And who the hell's impressed by you?
I want names of the people that we know that are fallin' for this
You would sell your own mother out
And then betray your dead brother with another hypocritical kiss
Oh, yeah
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Fast Car
Tracy Chapman
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Hayalperest
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Page
Ed Sheeran
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Ouch. I didn't even think about that dead brother line being about Jack...that's some rough introspection on his part!
I don't think the song really gives any clear hints on who those could be about, but I agree that it does seem to be a two person dialogue going on in the song.
nytimes.com/2012/04/08/magazine/jack-white-is-the-savviest-rock-star-of-our-time.html<br /> <br /> He talks about his brother dying last April - who he dedicated the album to - in this article so it could actually be literal and not metaphorical.
Thanks for the link. I just read a passing line somewhere on the internet about his brother dying and never really learned much about it...not that it's any of my business though. <br /> <br /> Does seem quite literal, still a heartbreaking line every time I hear it.