"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.
Sprawling on the fringes of the city
In geometric order
An insulated border
In-between the bright lights
And the far, unlit unknown
Growing up, it all seems so one-sided
Opinions all provided
The future pre-decided
Detached and subdivided
In the mass-production zone
Nowhere is the dreamer
Or the misfit so alone
Subdivisions
In the high school halls
In the shopping malls
Conform or be cast out
Subdivisions
In the basement bars
In the backs of cars
Be cool or be cast out
Any escape might help to smooth
The unattractive truth
But the suburbs have no charms to soothe
The restless dreams of youth
Drawn like moths, we drift into the city
The timeless old attraction
Cruising for the action
Lit up like a firefly
Just to feel the living night
Some will sell their dreams for small desires
Or lose the race to rats
Get caught in ticking traps
And start to dream of somewhere
To relax their restless flight
Somewhere out of a memory
Of lighted streets on quiet nights
Subdivisions
In the high school halls
In the shopping malls
Conform or be cast out
Subdivisions
In the basement bars
In the backs of cars
Be cool or be cast out
Any escape might help to smooth
The unattractive truth
But the suburbs have no charms to soothe
The restless dreams of youth
In geometric order
An insulated border
In-between the bright lights
And the far, unlit unknown
Growing up, it all seems so one-sided
Opinions all provided
The future pre-decided
Detached and subdivided
In the mass-production zone
Nowhere is the dreamer
Or the misfit so alone
Subdivisions
In the high school halls
In the shopping malls
Conform or be cast out
Subdivisions
In the basement bars
In the backs of cars
Be cool or be cast out
Any escape might help to smooth
The unattractive truth
But the suburbs have no charms to soothe
The restless dreams of youth
Drawn like moths, we drift into the city
The timeless old attraction
Cruising for the action
Lit up like a firefly
Just to feel the living night
Some will sell their dreams for small desires
Or lose the race to rats
Get caught in ticking traps
And start to dream of somewhere
To relax their restless flight
Somewhere out of a memory
Of lighted streets on quiet nights
Subdivisions
In the high school halls
In the shopping malls
Conform or be cast out
Subdivisions
In the basement bars
In the backs of cars
Be cool or be cast out
Any escape might help to smooth
The unattractive truth
But the suburbs have no charms to soothe
The restless dreams of youth
Lyrics submitted by MasterDuncan03, edited by loseros
Subdivisions Lyrics as written by Gary Lee Weinrib Alex Zivojinovich
Lyrics © OLE MEDIA MANAGEMENT LP
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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Fast Car
Tracy Chapman
Tracy Chapman
The Night We Met
Lord Huron
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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"
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”
Gentle Hour
Yo La Tengo
Yo La Tengo
This song was originally written by a guy called Peter Gutteridge. He was one of the founders of the "Dunedin Sound" a musical scene in the south of New Zealand in the early 80s. From there it was covered by "The Clean" one of the early bands of that scene (he had originally been a member of in it's early days, writing a couple of their best early songs). The Dunedin sound, and the Clean became popular on american college radio in the mid to late 80s. I guess Yo La Tengo heard that version.
Great version of a great song,
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.
I am really interested to here how others interpret the lines of the last verse…
'Some will sell their dreams for small desires'
'Or lose the race to rats'
'Get caught in ticking traps'
'And start to dream of somewhere To relax their restless flight '
'Somewhere out of a memory, Of lighted streets on quiet nights' The memory of the quiet suburb comes back to the person that drifted into the city.
This doesn’t all make sense, but I'd like to here what others think.
I have a little more clarity on these last two verses… The entire last two verses are related to the attraction of city life, including both the excitement that youths feel when going out on the town, and the humdrum way that adults have going to their jobs. <br /> <br /> 'Lit up like a firefly' - lit up store fronts, signs etcetera of a city at nighttime. Just as moths are attracted to lights at night, so too are youths seeking excitement, referenced by 'Just to feel the living night'.<br /> <br /> 'Some will sell their dreams for small desires' - the desire for income, a new car, a new material item that can only be obtained with the money earned from a job. Committing to that job meant sacrificing a dream, or 'sell their dreams'.<br /> <br /> 'Or lose the race to rats' - lose precious spirit and time to enjoy life by travelling a depressing commute, to and from the job. <br /> <br /> 'Get caught in ticking traps' - I have to admit, seeing the Subdivisions video gave me more clarity on what was meant by this line…. ticking traps are basically time commitments, that cause you miss out on valuable experiences in life. You scramble to get to a train by a certain time everyday, or complete your work tasks on a strict schedule. You are bound to these commitments, causing you to miss out on other valuable experiences.<br /> <br /> 'And start to dream of somewhere To relax their restless flight ' - The tedium of the daily commute leaves you longing for your suburban, subdivided home, where you can just go and relax. <br /> <br /> 'Somewhere out of a memory Of lighted streets on quiet nights' - The longing get to your suburban home, is not just a current thought but also deeply engrained in your memory, from having been raised in the same type of subdivision for example. <br />
@GregJ8787 I feel like this one is very obvious: <br /> <br /> 'Some will sell their dreams for small desires' :<br /> Husbands or wives that sacrifice a happy marriage for a one night stand of the legal or 'solicited' variety. Or A person who gives up a promising future for a drug addiction, one high at a time.<br /> <br /> The part of the song after all is about people from the suburbs, a peaceful place going into the city and being overwhelmed by it
@GregJ8787 I think it means that while chasing your dreams in the city, you get caught up in a lot of bullshit and the pace is fast, and you begin to remember “the lighted streets on quiet nights” and long to be back in that environment again
@GregJ8787 I think it means that while chasing your dreams in the city, you get caught up in a lot of bullshit and the pace is fast, and you begin to remember “the lighted streets on quiet nights” and long to be back in that environment again
@GregJ8787 I think it means that while chasing your dreams in the city, you get caught up in a lot of bullshit and the pace is fast, and you begin to remember “the lighted streets on quiet nights” and long to be back in that environment again