"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.
I can hear the soft breathing
Of the girl that I love
As she lies here beside me
Asleep with the night
And her hair, in a fine mist
Floats on my pillow
Reflecting the glow
Of the winter moonlight
She is soft, she is warm
But my heart remains heavy
And I watch as her breasts
Gently rise, gently fall
For I know with the first light of dawn
I'll be leaving
And tonight will be
All I have left to recall
Oh, what have I done?
Why have I done it?
I've committed a crime
I've broken the law
For twenty-five dollars
And pieces of silver
I held up and robbed
A hard liquor store
My life seems unreal
My crime an illusion
A scene badly written
In which I must play
Yet I know as I gaze
At my young love beside me
The morning is just a few hours away
Of the girl that I love
As she lies here beside me
Asleep with the night
And her hair, in a fine mist
Floats on my pillow
Reflecting the glow
Of the winter moonlight
She is soft, she is warm
But my heart remains heavy
And I watch as her breasts
Gently rise, gently fall
For I know with the first light of dawn
I'll be leaving
And tonight will be
All I have left to recall
Oh, what have I done?
Why have I done it?
I've committed a crime
I've broken the law
For twenty-five dollars
And pieces of silver
I held up and robbed
A hard liquor store
My life seems unreal
My crime an illusion
A scene badly written
In which I must play
Yet I know as I gaze
At my young love beside me
The morning is just a few hours away
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
Holiday
Bee Gees
Bee Gees
@[Diderik:33655] "Your a holiday!" Was a popular term used in the 50s/60s to compliment someone on their all around. For example, not only are they beautiful, but they are fun and kind too ... just an all around "holiday".
I think your first comment is closer to being accurate. The singer/song writers state "Millions of eyes can see, yet why am i so blind!? When the someone else is me, its unkind its unkind". I believe hes referring to the girl toying with him and using him. He wants something deeper with her, thats why he allows himself to be as a puppet (even though for her fun and games) as long as it makes her happy. But he knows deep down that she doesnt really want to be serious with him and thats what makes him.
Dreamwalker
Silent Planet
Silent Planet
I think much like another song “Anti-Matter” (that's also on the same album as this song), this one is also is inspired by a horrifying van crash the band experienced on Nov 3, 2022. This, much like the other track, sounds like it's an extension what they shared while huddled in the wreckage, as they helped frontman Garrett Russell stem the bleeding from his head wound while he was under the temporary effects of a concussion. The track speaks of where the mind goes at the most desperate & desolate of times, when it just about slips away to all but disconnect itself, and the aftermath.
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/
Magical
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
How would you describe the feeling of being in love? For Ed Sheeran, the word is “Magical.” in HIS three-minute album opener, he makes an attempt to capture the beauty and delicacy of true love with words. He describes the magic of it all over a bright Pop song produced by Aaron Dessner.
Just reading this makes me want to die.
Yeah.
Simon wrote about breasts alot.
He likes breasts.
Well who doesn't.
When I heard this song for the first time it reminded me very much of the scene of Romeo & Juliet, in which Romeo has to leave Juliet's bed by morning because he has been banished for killing Tybalt. It seemed like such a similar situation that I wondered if it was a deliberate subtle reference, especially when it speaks of a "scene badly written in which I must play". It is indeed a horrible and unreal-feeling situation, and the song is a powerful allegory.
I think it's an allegory for anytime I do something I should not have done (or vice versa), or for any other reason that I might not be looking forward to tomorrow. But while the sun is still hidden, and "... she lies here beside me Asleep with the night", sadness cannot touch me.
"Yet I know as I gaze At my young love beside me, The morning is just a few hours away."
how hard must be for someone to do something REALLY REALLY stupid without realizing consequences. In this case, the dude will lose the girl due to a crime commited. However, the whole song is about time going away, time that never comes back, the time left till the morning, the time spent with her: the whole present time.
i agree with demolition, what a horrible feeling this song evokes.
i agree with demolition, what a horrible feeling this song evokes.
Just reading the comments to Bleecker Street, and it said something about the "30 dollars pays you rent" line being a reference to the thirty pieces of silver paid to Judas.
Twenty five dollars is conspicuously short, but there are pieces of silver involved too?
I think you might be on to something! :)
For me, this song is an amazingly evocative and melancholic description of being in love but having to be parted with your lover for a significant amount of time. It has such a feeling of stillness, as if he is wishing that time would really just stand still in this moment.