"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.
Papa take a look at your boy
He's a military man
Papa take a look at your boy
He's crying
Papa take a look at your boy
He's a soldier
Papa take a look in his eyes
They're colder
Papa take a look at your boy
He's a military man
Mama take a look at your boy
He's dying
Mama take a look at your boy
He's fighting
Mama take a look at your boy
He's frightened
They have trained your boy to kill
And kill someday he will
They have trained your boy to die
And ask no questions why
Papa take a look at your boy
Take a look at your boy
Take a look at your boy
He's a killer, yeah
Mama take a look at your boy
Take a look at him now
Take a look at your boy
He's a soldier, he's colder, he's older, mama
Mama take a look at your boy
Obey the order
Mama take a look at your boy
Like a lamb to the slaughter
They have trained your boy to kill
And kill someday he will
They have trained your boy to die
And ask no questions why
One day, I will write for you a love song mother
As the children say, I love you, please hold me
And you and I, we will live our life together
Until that day when we die, I will love you mother
I will always love you
I'm writing from this war
Oh mama, I don't know what I'm fighting for
And have you seen my children?
God bless them, kiss them
And tell them that I miss them
See I'm frightened in the dark
Mama, mama
The blood is ankle-deep
They have trained your boy to kill
And kill someday he will
They have trained your boy to die
Mama take a look at your boy
Take a look at him now
Take a look at your boy
He's marching
He's a soldier
Oh brother, oh mama
He's on the street
He's marching to the back beat
He's a military man
Papa take a look at your boy
He's crying
Papa take a look at your boy
He's a soldier
Papa take a look in his eyes
They're colder
Papa take a look at your boy
He's a military man
Mama take a look at your boy
He's dying
Mama take a look at your boy
He's fighting
Mama take a look at your boy
He's frightened
They have trained your boy to kill
And kill someday he will
They have trained your boy to die
And ask no questions why
Papa take a look at your boy
Take a look at your boy
Take a look at your boy
He's a killer, yeah
Mama take a look at your boy
Take a look at him now
Take a look at your boy
He's a soldier, he's colder, he's older, mama
Mama take a look at your boy
Obey the order
Mama take a look at your boy
Like a lamb to the slaughter
They have trained your boy to kill
And kill someday he will
They have trained your boy to die
And ask no questions why
One day, I will write for you a love song mother
As the children say, I love you, please hold me
And you and I, we will live our life together
Until that day when we die, I will love you mother
I will always love you
I'm writing from this war
Oh mama, I don't know what I'm fighting for
And have you seen my children?
God bless them, kiss them
And tell them that I miss them
See I'm frightened in the dark
Mama, mama
The blood is ankle-deep
They have trained your boy to kill
And kill someday he will
They have trained your boy to die
Mama take a look at your boy
Take a look at him now
Take a look at your boy
He's marching
He's a soldier
Oh brother, oh mama
He's on the street
He's marching to the back beat
Add your thoughts
Log in now to tell us what you think this song means.
Don’t have an account? Create an account with SongMeanings to post comments, submit lyrics, and more. It’s super easy, we promise!
More Featured Meanings
Fast Car
Tracy Chapman
Tracy Chapman
The Night We Met
Lord Huron
Lord Huron
This is a hauntingly beautiful song about introspection, specifically about looking back at a relationship that started bad and ended so poorly, that the narrator wants to go back to the very beginning and tell himself to not even travel down that road. I believe that the relationship started poorly because of the lines:
"Take me back to the night we met:When the night was full of terrors: And your eyes were filled with tears: When you had not touched me yet"
So, the first night was not a great start, but the narrator pursued the relationship and eventually both overcame the rough start to fall in love with each other:
"I had all and then most of you"
Like many relationships that turn sour, it was not a quick decline, but a gradual one where the narrator and their partner fall out of love and gradually grow apart
"Some and now none of you"
Losing someone who was once everything in your world, who you could confide in, tell your secrets to, share all the most intimate parts of your life, to being strangers with that person is probably one of the most painful experiences a person can go through. So Painful, the narrator wants to go back in time and tell himself to not even pursue the relationship.
This was the perfect song for "13 Reasons Why"
Just A Little Lovin'
Dusty Springfield
Dusty Springfield
I don't think it's necessarily about sex. It's about wanting to start the day with some love and affection. Maybe a warm cuddle. I'm not alone in interpreting it that way! For example:
"'Just a Little Lovin’ is a timeless country song originally recorded by Eddy Arnold in 1954. The song, written by Eddie Miller and Jimmy Campbell, explores the delicate nuances of love and showcases Arnold’s emotive vocals. It delves into the universal theme of love and how even the smallest gesture of affection can have a profound impact on our lives." https://oldtimemusic.com/the-meaning-behind-the-song-just-a-little-lovin-by-eddy-arnold/
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.
Head > Heels
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
“Head > Heels” is a track that aims to capture what it feels like to experience romance that exceeds expectations. Ed Sheeran dedicates his album outro to a lover who has blessed him with a unique experience that he seeks to describe through the song’s nuanced lyrics.
Great song, but I'm not sure about the ending, what does mean blackbeat?