"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.
Well I've always been a dreamer
And I sometimes play the fool
But when the lights go down
And I hear the crowd then I'm cool
Then I sing my song of freedom
And I sing my songs of love
But there's nothing changed
'Cause I'm still the same as I was
You gotta keep on keep on searching
You gotta keep on searching
And I believe I've found the way
Along the road along the road of freedom
You gotta keep on trying to belong
Come sing the song be strong
I sometimes think that the world's gonna pass me by
In my mind I ask myself the reason why
And before I know the answer's come and gone
And before I know the music's turned me on
You gotta keep on keep on searching
You gotta keep on searching
And I believe I've found the way
Along the road along the road of freedom
You gotta keep on trying to belong
Come sing the song be strong
Well I sometimes stop and wonder
Just what we are doing now
Life has got to change
Maybe we can arrange it somehow
But then I've always been a dreamer
And I sometimes play the fool
But when the lights go down
And I hear the crowd then I'm cool
You gotta keep on keep on searching
You gotta keep on searching
And I believe I've found the way
Along the road along the road of freedom
You gotta keep on trying to belong
Come sing the song be strong
We gotta keep on searching
We gotta find a way (gotta find a way)
Along the road of freedom (along the road of freedom)
We'll be there someday (we'll be there someday)
We gotta keep on searching (we gotta keep on searching)
We gonna find a way (gonna find a way)
Along the road of freedom (along the road of freedom)
We'll be there someday (we'll be there someday)
And I sometimes play the fool
But when the lights go down
And I hear the crowd then I'm cool
Then I sing my song of freedom
And I sing my songs of love
But there's nothing changed
'Cause I'm still the same as I was
You gotta keep on keep on searching
You gotta keep on searching
And I believe I've found the way
Along the road along the road of freedom
You gotta keep on trying to belong
Come sing the song be strong
I sometimes think that the world's gonna pass me by
In my mind I ask myself the reason why
And before I know the answer's come and gone
And before I know the music's turned me on
You gotta keep on keep on searching
You gotta keep on searching
And I believe I've found the way
Along the road along the road of freedom
You gotta keep on trying to belong
Come sing the song be strong
Well I sometimes stop and wonder
Just what we are doing now
Life has got to change
Maybe we can arrange it somehow
But then I've always been a dreamer
And I sometimes play the fool
But when the lights go down
And I hear the crowd then I'm cool
You gotta keep on keep on searching
You gotta keep on searching
And I believe I've found the way
Along the road along the road of freedom
You gotta keep on trying to belong
Come sing the song be strong
We gotta keep on searching
We gotta find a way (gotta find a way)
Along the road of freedom (along the road of freedom)
We'll be there someday (we'll be there someday)
We gotta keep on searching (we gotta keep on searching)
We gonna find a way (gonna find a way)
Along the road of freedom (along the road of freedom)
We'll be there someday (we'll be there someday)
Lyrics submitted by Chris_Gough
Keep on Searching Lyrics as written by Ray Thomas Nicky James
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
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
Mental Istid
Ebba Grön
Ebba Grön
This is one of my favorite songs. https://fnfgo.io
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,
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.