"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.
SOMETHING'S WRONG SWITCH THE LIGHTS
MY EYES ARE WEAK I CANT GET BY
IT'S TOO DARK
I CALL YOUR NUMBER I HEAR YOUR VOICE
RECORDED GUESS I'VE GOT NO CHOICE
IT'S SO COLD
WELL DROP THE PEN AND TAP THE WORDS
BOW DOWN TO YOUR ELECTRIC LORD
I HEAR YOUR VOICE BUT I SEE NO FACE
YET I'VE SEEN MEN WALK THROUGH OUTER SPACE
EMPTY ARMS AND SHADOWED FACES.
I WANNA GO WHERE NO LIGHTS SHINE ON DARKENED PLACES.I WANNA GO….
GUESS I NEED IT NOW.
I LIVE ALONE I'VE GOT NO GOALS
I'D KILL FOR MY REMOTE CONTROL
ITS SO COLD
I'VE GOT MY THREE SQUARE FEET OF SPACE
NO NEED TO GET INTO MY FACE
I'M SO BOLD.
I HAVE NO FRIENDS AND SO IT SEEMS
I'M CAPTIVATED BY THE SCREEN
I NEVER WALK I SEE NO NEED
GUESS I'M JUST A SLAVE TO MY MACHINE YEAH.
EMPTY ARMS AND SHADOWED FACES
I WANNA GO WHERE NO LIGHTS SHINE ON DARKENED PLACES. I WANNA GO…
GUESS I NEED IT NOW
MY MIND WAS CLEARED MY SOUL'S DELETED
THESE TOYS ARE GODS WHICH I'VE CREATED
YOU, KNOW WHY, CAUSE I'M POWERFUL
I'M POWERFUL. I'M POWERFUL, I'M POWERLESS.
GUESS I NEED IT…
MY EYES ARE WEAK I CANT GET BY
IT'S TOO DARK
I CALL YOUR NUMBER I HEAR YOUR VOICE
RECORDED GUESS I'VE GOT NO CHOICE
IT'S SO COLD
WELL DROP THE PEN AND TAP THE WORDS
BOW DOWN TO YOUR ELECTRIC LORD
I HEAR YOUR VOICE BUT I SEE NO FACE
YET I'VE SEEN MEN WALK THROUGH OUTER SPACE
EMPTY ARMS AND SHADOWED FACES.
I WANNA GO WHERE NO LIGHTS SHINE ON DARKENED PLACES.I WANNA GO….
GUESS I NEED IT NOW.
I LIVE ALONE I'VE GOT NO GOALS
I'D KILL FOR MY REMOTE CONTROL
ITS SO COLD
I'VE GOT MY THREE SQUARE FEET OF SPACE
NO NEED TO GET INTO MY FACE
I'M SO BOLD.
I HAVE NO FRIENDS AND SO IT SEEMS
I'M CAPTIVATED BY THE SCREEN
I NEVER WALK I SEE NO NEED
GUESS I'M JUST A SLAVE TO MY MACHINE YEAH.
EMPTY ARMS AND SHADOWED FACES
I WANNA GO WHERE NO LIGHTS SHINE ON DARKENED PLACES. I WANNA GO…
GUESS I NEED IT NOW
MY MIND WAS CLEARED MY SOUL'S DELETED
THESE TOYS ARE GODS WHICH I'VE CREATED
YOU, KNOW WHY, CAUSE I'M POWERFUL
I'M POWERFUL. I'M POWERFUL, I'M POWERLESS.
GUESS I NEED IT…
Lyrics submitted by FourDiceS
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Fast Car
Tracy Chapman
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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,
Blue
Ed Sheeran
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American Town
Ed Sheeran
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Page
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
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