"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.
In my mourning
I stopped caring
About this place
And its loneliness, it's endless
You are the crow
Blood of my blood
An unmarked grave
A burning field for me
To find home
Lead me from the cross
I believe in nothing
A marriage, a casket
The winter follows me
follow me
Lead me from the cross
I believe in nothing
A marriage, a casket
The winter follows me
In the longest night of my life
I was a ghost, the day we met
The sea had taken me
All that is love, all that is not, all that I am
All that is love
Be something for me to believe in
Keep me awake on this death bed, for as long as you can
All that is love, all that is not, all that I am
All that is love, all that is not, all that I am
Grieve the loss of this
Grieve all I am
All I was, for you to forget
Standing in the room of my passing
Standing in the room of my passing
Grieve the loss of this, of all I am
Sleeping in the hour of your witching
Sleeping in the hour of your witching
Grieve the loss of this, of all I am
Sleeping in the hour of your witching
Sleeping in the hour of your witching
Grieve the loss of this, of all I am
I stopped caring
About this place
And its loneliness, it's endless
You are the crow
Blood of my blood
An unmarked grave
A burning field for me
To find home
Lead me from the cross
I believe in nothing
A marriage, a casket
The winter follows me
follow me
Lead me from the cross
I believe in nothing
A marriage, a casket
The winter follows me
In the longest night of my life
I was a ghost, the day we met
The sea had taken me
All that is love, all that is not, all that I am
All that is love
Be something for me to believe in
Keep me awake on this death bed, for as long as you can
All that is love, all that is not, all that I am
All that is love, all that is not, all that I am
Grieve the loss of this
Grieve all I am
All I was, for you to forget
Standing in the room of my passing
Standing in the room of my passing
Grieve the loss of this, of all I am
Sleeping in the hour of your witching
Sleeping in the hour of your witching
Grieve the loss of this, of all I am
Sleeping in the hour of your witching
Sleeping in the hour of your witching
Grieve the loss of this, of all I am
Lyrics submitted by Metaler
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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,
Punchline
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran sings about missing his former partner and learning important life lessons in the process on “Punchline.” This track tells a story of battling to get rid of emotions for a former lover, whom he now realized might not have loved him the same way. He’s now caught between accepting that fact and learning life lessons from it and going back to beg her for another chance.
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.
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.
I think it is about loss of someone who means a lot to you And the emptiness they left behind