"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 asked you for a ride I was lonely
And hoping to see you before you left town
You said "I'm sorry I'd like to
If only I had had the time maybe next time around"
And I walked for miles and carried my bags
On streets with no sidewalks in search of a ride
It was me and a Baby Ruth
A chewy chunk of chocolate truth
And here from the bus I would like to say thanks
Thank you
I had imagined a breakfast of coffee
And muffins maybe some cinnamon toast
If I believed I'd gain your attendance
I could have provided the ho-holy host
And I walked for miles in search of a ride
On streets with no sidewalks and carried my bags
It was me and a Baby Ruth
A chewy chunk of chocolate truth
And here from the bus I'd just like to say thanks
Thank you
Thanks a lot
Thank you - not
Two seats behind me reclining
An angel is peering at me now from under a book
She catches me staring and smiles to the window
Again I'm in love and with only a look
And it must be it's true I am free
And last night a bird you know who spoke to me
Saying welcome the solitude it's your family tree
And you would've been
Only a heaven
At noon I will fly to my city my prison
And you will be forever gone from my life
And soon I'll deny any lingering vision
Of me in some catalogue and you as my wife
'Cause I walked for miles in search of a ride
On streets with no sidewalks and steep muddy banks
It was me and a Baby Ruth
A chewy chunk of chocolate truth
And here from the bus I'd just like to say thanks
Thank you
Thank you
Thanks a lot
Thank you
I was walkin' down the road carryin' a heavy load
Feelin' and believin' that might've been a prince toad
But no
And hoping to see you before you left town
You said "I'm sorry I'd like to
If only I had had the time maybe next time around"
And I walked for miles and carried my bags
On streets with no sidewalks in search of a ride
It was me and a Baby Ruth
A chewy chunk of chocolate truth
And here from the bus I would like to say thanks
Thank you
I had imagined a breakfast of coffee
And muffins maybe some cinnamon toast
If I believed I'd gain your attendance
I could have provided the ho-holy host
And I walked for miles in search of a ride
On streets with no sidewalks and carried my bags
It was me and a Baby Ruth
A chewy chunk of chocolate truth
And here from the bus I'd just like to say thanks
Thank you
Thanks a lot
Thank you - not
Two seats behind me reclining
An angel is peering at me now from under a book
She catches me staring and smiles to the window
Again I'm in love and with only a look
And it must be it's true I am free
And last night a bird you know who spoke to me
Saying welcome the solitude it's your family tree
And you would've been
Only a heaven
At noon I will fly to my city my prison
And you will be forever gone from my life
And soon I'll deny any lingering vision
Of me in some catalogue and you as my wife
'Cause I walked for miles in search of a ride
On streets with no sidewalks and steep muddy banks
It was me and a Baby Ruth
A chewy chunk of chocolate truth
And here from the bus I'd just like to say thanks
Thank you
Thank you
Thanks a lot
Thank you
I was walkin' down the road carryin' a heavy load
Feelin' and believin' that might've been a prince toad
But no
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Fast Car
Tracy Chapman
Tracy Chapman
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Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin
This is about bronies. They communicate by stomping.
No Surprises
Radiohead
Radiohead
Same ideas expressed in Fitter, Happier are expressed in this song. We're told to strive for some sort of ideal life, which includes getting a good job, being kind to everyone, finding a partner, getting married, having a couple kids, living in a quiet neighborhood in a nice big house, etc. But in Fitter, Happier the narrator(?) realizes that it's incredibly robotic to live this life. People are being used by those in power "like a pig in a cage on antibiotics"--being pacified with things like new phones and cool gadgets and houses while being sucked dry. On No Surprises, the narrator is realizing how this life is killing him slowly. In the video, his helmet is slowly filling up with water, drowning him. But he's so complacent with it. This is a good summary of the song. This boring, "perfect" life foisted upon us by some higher powers (not spiritual, but political, economic, etc. politicians and businessmen, perhaps) is not the way to live. But there is seemingly no way out but death. He'd rather die peacefully right now than live in this cage. While our lives are often shielded, we're in our own protective bubbles, or protective helmets like the one Thom wears, if we look a little harder we can see all the corruption, lies, manipulation, etc. that is going on in the world, often run by huge yet nearly invisible organizations, corporations, and 'leaders'. It's a very hopeless song because it reflects real life.
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.
Blue
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
“Blue” is a song about a love that is persisting in the discomfort of the person experiencing the emotion. Ed Sheeran reflects on love lost, and although he wishes his former partner find happiness, he cannot but admit his feelings are still very much there. He expresses the realization that he might never find another on this stringed instrumental by Aaron Dessner.