"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 was always here in the silence
But I was never under your eye
Gather up your love in some wiseness
For every memory shall always survive
And you will see me
I am an animal
My teeth are sharp and my mouth is full
And the passion is so strong when I'm alone
Loneliness will change me
I am a vegetable
I get my body badly pulled
And I'm rooted to the spot
Nothing will rearrange me
I'm looking back
And I can't see the past anymore, so hazy
I'm on a track and I'm traveling so fast
Oh, for sure I'm crazy
I am a human being
And I don't believe all the things I'm seeing
I got nowhere to hide anymore
I'm losing my way
I am an angel
I booked in here, I came straight from hell
And I don't know how to lie anymore
I'm boozing to pray
I'm looking back
And I can't see the past anymore, so hazy
I'm on a track and I'm traveling so fast
Oh, for sure I'm crazy
I was always here in the silence
But I was never under your eye
Gather up your love in some wiseness
For every memory shall always survive
And you will see me
I will be immersed
Queen of the fucking universe
And I don't know what I have anymore
Anymore than you do
I am a nothing king
Been right around on a golden ring
And I don't know where you are anymore
I've got no clue
I'm looking back
And I can't see the past anymore, so hazy
I'm on a track and I'm traveling so fast
Oh, for sure I'm crazy
I am an animal
But I was never under your eye
Gather up your love in some wiseness
For every memory shall always survive
And you will see me
I am an animal
My teeth are sharp and my mouth is full
And the passion is so strong when I'm alone
Loneliness will change me
I am a vegetable
I get my body badly pulled
And I'm rooted to the spot
Nothing will rearrange me
I'm looking back
And I can't see the past anymore, so hazy
I'm on a track and I'm traveling so fast
Oh, for sure I'm crazy
I am a human being
And I don't believe all the things I'm seeing
I got nowhere to hide anymore
I'm losing my way
I am an angel
I booked in here, I came straight from hell
And I don't know how to lie anymore
I'm boozing to pray
I'm looking back
And I can't see the past anymore, so hazy
I'm on a track and I'm traveling so fast
Oh, for sure I'm crazy
I was always here in the silence
But I was never under your eye
Gather up your love in some wiseness
For every memory shall always survive
And you will see me
I will be immersed
Queen of the fucking universe
And I don't know what I have anymore
Anymore than you do
I am a nothing king
Been right around on a golden ring
And I don't know where you are anymore
I've got no clue
I'm looking back
And I can't see the past anymore, so hazy
I'm on a track and I'm traveling so fast
Oh, for sure I'm crazy
I am an animal
Lyrics submitted by lennonfan0
I Am an Animal Lyrics as written by Peter Dennis Blandfor Townshend
Lyrics © Spirit Music Group
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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
Cajun Girl
Little Feat
Little Feat
Overall about difficult moments of disappointment and vulnerability. Having hope and longing, while remaining optimistic for the future. Encourages the belief that with each new morning there is a chance for things to improve.
The chorus offers a glimmer of optimism and a chance at a resolution and redemption in the future.
Captures the rollercoaster of emotions of feeling lost while loving someone who is not there for you, feeling let down and abandoned while waiting for a lover. Lost with no direction, "Now I'm up in the air with the rain in my hair, Nowhere to go, I can go anywhere"
The bridge shows signs of longing and a plea for companionship. The Lyrics express a desire for authentic connection and the importance of Loving someone just as they are. "Just in passing, I'm not asking. That you be anyone but you”
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.
Mountain Song
Jane's Addiction
Jane's Addiction
Jane's Addiction vocalist Perry Farrell gives Adam Reader some heartfelt insight into Jane’s Addiction's hard rock manifesto "Mountain Song", which was the second single from their revolutionary album Nothing's Shocking. Mountain song was first recorded in 1986 and appeared on the soundtrack to the film Dudes starring Jon Cryer. The version on Nothing's Shocking was re-recorded in 1988.
"'Mountain Song' was actually about... I hate to say it but... drugs. Climbing this mountain and getting as high as you can, and then coming down that mountain," reveals Farrell. "What it feels to descend from the mountain top... not easy at all. The ascension is tough but exhilarating. Getting down is... it's a real bummer. Drugs is not for everybody obviously. For me, I wanted to experience the heights, and the lows come along with it."
"There's a part - 'Cash in now honey, cash in Miss Smith.' Miss Smith is my Mother; our last name was Smith. Cashing in when she cashed in her life. So... she decided that, to her... at that time, she was desperate. Life wasn't worth it for her, that was her opinion. Some people think, never take your life, and some people find that their life isn't worth living. She was in love with my Dad, and my Dad was not faithful to her, and it broke her heart. She was very desperate and she did something that I know she regrets."
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.
I believe this wonderful, moving song is part and parcel of what Pete Townshend was going through at that time in 1979-1980. He was dealing with substance use and the death of his friend and drummer Keith Moon. From, "I was always here in the silence" to "And you will see me..." at the end of the 7th verse, it sounds to me as though he is struggling with who he was and who he has become and how to deal with that in the context of larger world. Then, from the cry of, "I will be immersed, Queen of the fucking universe!" to the last line, he is talking about feeling empty and that he just can't figure out what is next. He ends with the last line... ..."I am an animal" because, that is all that there is.
If you agree or disagree, I would love to hear what your opinion is. Thank you.
I love this ong so much! No idea what it means, bu I love it!
I agree. This is trult a Pete Townshend masterpiece. He sings it so brilliantly. I think it's the best song on the Album.
Can somebody tell me what albom this song is on?
Great song from the album 'Empty Glass' (1980).