"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.
Reach
For higher ground
About the way you look
The way you scream out loud
Mine
Just like the last time
It's all the same to me
She said
Let's pretend
My January friend
I'm wanting you again
I wanna touch ya
Every single heart that beats pretend
My January friend
I'm wanting you again
I wanna touch ya
Every single heart that beats
Cry
Don't cry out loud
You've gotta bear your cross but never dream too loud
And you're tied
Tied to the next time
You realize
Your crimes
Let's pretend
My January friend
I'm wanting you again
I wanna touch ya
Every single heart that beats pretend
My January friend
I'm wanting you again
I wanna touch ya
Every single heart that beats
Time stood still Monday morning, yeah
Showed me what I had to see
It's not the way I thought it to be, oh yeah
You're my January friend
You're my January friend
You're my January friend
And every heart that beats pretend
My January friend
You're my January friend
You're my January friend
You're my January friend
And every heart that beats tonight's pretend
For higher ground
About the way you look
The way you scream out loud
Mine
Just like the last time
It's all the same to me
She said
Let's pretend
My January friend
I'm wanting you again
I wanna touch ya
Every single heart that beats pretend
My January friend
I'm wanting you again
I wanna touch ya
Every single heart that beats
Cry
Don't cry out loud
You've gotta bear your cross but never dream too loud
And you're tied
Tied to the next time
You realize
Your crimes
Let's pretend
My January friend
I'm wanting you again
I wanna touch ya
Every single heart that beats pretend
My January friend
I'm wanting you again
I wanna touch ya
Every single heart that beats
Time stood still Monday morning, yeah
Showed me what I had to see
It's not the way I thought it to be, oh yeah
You're my January friend
You're my January friend
You're my January friend
And every heart that beats pretend
My January friend
You're my January friend
You're my January friend
You're my January friend
And every heart that beats tonight's pretend
Lyrics submitted by jstalilwyrd
January Friend Lyrics as written by Robbie Takac
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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More Featured Meanings
Fast Car
Tracy Chapman
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Silent Planet
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I think much like another song “Anti-Matter” (that's also on the same album as this song), this one is also is inspired by a horrifying van crash the band experienced on Nov 3, 2022. This, much like the other track, sounds like it's an extension what they shared while huddled in the wreckage, as they helped frontman Garrett Russell stem the bleeding from his head wound while he was under the temporary effects of a concussion. The track speaks of where the mind goes at the most desperate & desolate of times, when it just about slips away to all but disconnect itself, and the aftermath.
When We Were Young
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This is a sequel to 2001's "Reckless Abandon", and features the band looking back on their clumsy youth fondly.
No Surprises
Radiohead
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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.
Punchline
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran sings about missing his former partner and learning important life lessons in the process on “Punchline.” This track tells a story of battling to get rid of emotions for a former lover, whom he now realized might not have loved him the same way. He’s now caught between accepting that fact and learning life lessons from it and going back to beg her for another chance.
This song is so amazing. One of my favourites. And it's just awesome live!! Robby rocks!!!
lol yeah live, its great! mi cousins went to the 4th of July concert in Buffalo and after Robby said "you gotta bear your cross, never dream too loud", he screamed "Screw this rain!!!!!", which got lots of screams and laughs in reply... it was raining like nuggets that night! anyways, it was a great concert! i have the CD and vid of it. you should search the song on Grooveshark.com and it will come up with the live version too. love your username! haha i live 4 music too! :)