"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.
O, ne moriar bis
Oro supplex
Sometimes I feel like my reason is weakinning
My inner clock's forcing time stand till
I'm breaching borders between life and sanity
That's when it all starts to shatter in front of me
Liberate me
Why don't you liberate me?
Sometimes I feel I'm betraying my memory
This time it seems that I'm losing the fight
Finding it hard to be consciously part of life
That's when awareness and dreams start to separate
Reunite me
It's time to reunite me
As time goes by I hide the truth
Cannot stand myself with a broken shell
As time goes by I try to choose
Don't know where to roam in this private hell
Give me relief
Let me believe between sweet fiction and reality
My train thoughts got lost somewhere along the way
I'm chasing shadows that cross on my path
Repeating visions that dance faster than my mind
Can't stop the rain casting shadows on my parade
Can't defeat me
I will not bot to defeat
As time goes by I hide the truth
Cannot stand myself with a broken shell
As time goes by I try to choose
Don't know where to roam in this private hell
Give me relief
Let me believe between sweet fiction and reality
My train thoughts got lost somewhere along the way
I'm chasing shadows that cross on my path
Repeating visions that dance faster than my mind
Can't stop the rain casting shadows on my parade
Ne moriar bis
Another life, anothe mind close to insanity
Another road, a cryptic code the second stone
All the is left is a cross that's mine to bear
A cruse with no ending drenched in anxiety
O, ne discedam bis
Oro supplex
As time goes by I hide the truth
Cannot stand myself with a broken shell
Give me relief
Let me believe between sweet fiction and reality
As time goes by I try to choose
Don't know where to roam in this private hell
Give me relief
Let me believe between sweet fiction and reality
Ne moriar bis
Oro supplex
Sometimes I feel like my reason is weakinning
My inner clock's forcing time stand till
I'm breaching borders between life and sanity
That's when it all starts to shatter in front of me
Liberate me
Why don't you liberate me?
Sometimes I feel I'm betraying my memory
This time it seems that I'm losing the fight
Finding it hard to be consciously part of life
That's when awareness and dreams start to separate
Reunite me
It's time to reunite me
As time goes by I hide the truth
Cannot stand myself with a broken shell
As time goes by I try to choose
Don't know where to roam in this private hell
Give me relief
Let me believe between sweet fiction and reality
My train thoughts got lost somewhere along the way
I'm chasing shadows that cross on my path
Repeating visions that dance faster than my mind
Can't stop the rain casting shadows on my parade
Can't defeat me
I will not bot to defeat
As time goes by I hide the truth
Cannot stand myself with a broken shell
As time goes by I try to choose
Don't know where to roam in this private hell
Give me relief
Let me believe between sweet fiction and reality
My train thoughts got lost somewhere along the way
I'm chasing shadows that cross on my path
Repeating visions that dance faster than my mind
Can't stop the rain casting shadows on my parade
Ne moriar bis
Another life, anothe mind close to insanity
Another road, a cryptic code the second stone
All the is left is a cross that's mine to bear
A cruse with no ending drenched in anxiety
O, ne discedam bis
Oro supplex
As time goes by I hide the truth
Cannot stand myself with a broken shell
Give me relief
Let me believe between sweet fiction and reality
As time goes by I try to choose
Don't know where to roam in this private hell
Give me relief
Let me believe between sweet fiction and reality
Ne moriar bis
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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,
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.
American Town
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran shares a short story of reconnecting with an old flame on “American Town.” The track is about a holiday Ed Sheeran spends with his countrywoman who resides in America. The two are back together after a long period apart, and get around to enjoying a bunch of fun activities while rekindling the flames of their romance.
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.