"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 dreamin' when I wrote this
Forgive me if it goes astray
But when I woke up this mornin'
Could've sworn it was judgment day
The sky was all purple
There were people runnin' everywhere
Tryin' to run from the destruction
You know I didn't even care
'Cause they say two thousand zero zero
Party over, oops out of time
So tonight I'm gonna party like it's 1999
I was dreamin' when I wrote this
So sue me if I go too fast
But life is just a party
And parties weren't meant to last
War is all around us
My mind says prepare to fight
So if I gotta die
I'm gonna listen to my body tonight
Yeah, they say two thousand zero zero
Party over, oops out of time
So tonight I'm gonna party like it's 1999
Yeah, yeah
Lemme tell ya somethin'
If you didn't come to party
Don't bother knockin' on my door
I got a lion in my pocket
And baby he's ready to roar, yeah yeah
Everybody's got a bomb
We could all die here today, uhh
But before I'll let that happen
I'll dance my life away, oh
They say two thousand zero zero
Party over, oops out of time
We're runnin' outta time
So tonight we gonna, we gonna (tonight I'm gonna party like it's 1999)
Say it one more time
Two thousand zero zero
Party over, oops out of time
Yeah, yeah
So tonight we gonna, we gonna (tonight I'm gonna party like it's 1999)
1999 (1999)
Don't ya want to go (1999)
Don't ya want to go (1999)
We could all die here today (1999)
I don't want to die
I'd rather dance my life away
Forgive me if it goes astray
But when I woke up this mornin'
Could've sworn it was judgment day
The sky was all purple
There were people runnin' everywhere
Tryin' to run from the destruction
You know I didn't even care
'Cause they say two thousand zero zero
Party over, oops out of time
So tonight I'm gonna party like it's 1999
I was dreamin' when I wrote this
So sue me if I go too fast
But life is just a party
And parties weren't meant to last
War is all around us
My mind says prepare to fight
So if I gotta die
I'm gonna listen to my body tonight
Yeah, they say two thousand zero zero
Party over, oops out of time
So tonight I'm gonna party like it's 1999
Yeah, yeah
Lemme tell ya somethin'
If you didn't come to party
Don't bother knockin' on my door
I got a lion in my pocket
And baby he's ready to roar, yeah yeah
Everybody's got a bomb
We could all die here today, uhh
But before I'll let that happen
I'll dance my life away, oh
They say two thousand zero zero
Party over, oops out of time
We're runnin' outta time
So tonight we gonna, we gonna (tonight I'm gonna party like it's 1999)
Say it one more time
Two thousand zero zero
Party over, oops out of time
Yeah, yeah
So tonight we gonna, we gonna (tonight I'm gonna party like it's 1999)
1999 (1999)
Don't ya want to go (1999)
Don't ya want to go (1999)
We could all die here today (1999)
I don't want to die
I'd rather dance my life away
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