"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.
We had a broken green Mercedes
And couldn't drive it in the rain
We had a couple bad flat tires
We pulled off the main road again
To the home where people wait
A waiting room outside the gate
Where you check in
But you don't check out
They had military secrets
Hiding out in people's veins
Killed to cure another victim
Sitting in a chair in chains
That place was real clean
A cross between Mad Magazine
And a strip club
And a house of horrors
They offered me the keys to heaven
So I would stay inside their hell
They chased me right up to the doorway
Because when I left they knew I'd tell
Don't do it brother
No one's ever called me brother before
They had a big bald night watchman
And he was dreaming in my bed
Deprived me of the sleep I needed
So they could dreams my dreams instead
You'll solve the dreams you've dreamed
Since childhood it seemed
Then he got up and went back to work
They offered me the keys to heaven
So I would stay inside their heaven
They chased me right up to the doorway
Because when I left they knew I'd tell
Don't do it brother
No one's ever cared about you before
Don't do it brother
No one's ever escaped that place before
They offered me the keys to heaven
They offered me the keys to heaven
They offered me the keys to heaven
They offered me the keys to heaven
They offered me the keys to heaven
They offered me the keys to heaven
They offered me the keys to heaven
And couldn't drive it in the rain
We had a couple bad flat tires
We pulled off the main road again
To the home where people wait
A waiting room outside the gate
Where you check in
But you don't check out
They had military secrets
Hiding out in people's veins
Killed to cure another victim
Sitting in a chair in chains
That place was real clean
A cross between Mad Magazine
And a strip club
And a house of horrors
They offered me the keys to heaven
So I would stay inside their hell
They chased me right up to the doorway
Because when I left they knew I'd tell
Don't do it brother
No one's ever called me brother before
They had a big bald night watchman
And he was dreaming in my bed
Deprived me of the sleep I needed
So they could dreams my dreams instead
You'll solve the dreams you've dreamed
Since childhood it seemed
Then he got up and went back to work
They offered me the keys to heaven
So I would stay inside their heaven
They chased me right up to the doorway
Because when I left they knew I'd tell
Don't do it brother
No one's ever cared about you before
Don't do it brother
No one's ever escaped that place before
They offered me the keys to heaven
They offered me the keys to heaven
They offered me the keys to heaven
They offered me the keys to heaven
They offered me the keys to heaven
They offered me the keys to heaven
They offered me the keys to heaven
Lyrics submitted by jjgonzo
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