"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.
Got on the bus, 12:30 at night
Smoked a big coner and got high as a kite
Bus #13 is the only way to go,
How could I know cause she didnt show no signs of reefer
I didn't know her fool,
but now I do and I know she's fuckin cool
She's apothead, and she's a drinker
Some guy got his finger stuck up his sphincter
OW, that'd fuckin hurt,
I got her to wear that bomb as skirt
To La Bistro, thats where it's at
Dancing on the tables yeah we never sat down
Is where Fogarty is going,
From me and Laurie and the shots we'll be throwing
Chillin in the room and I start to wonder, does he get fucked over this Crocodile Hunter?
In she walks we were havin a ball
Watchin her twitch all the way down the hall
She freaked, ahhhhh it was rich
Come on everybody do the Dirty Twitch.
Go Smooth, now twitch. (x4)
She was a tour guide with nothin to hide
We hung out with her with the utmost pride.
On the 4th day in we went to Village,
And threw back shooters, which were the cause
Our fun, it was all the liqour
Yeah beers are good but shooters are quicker
We went down, went down the hills
At the hotel i was popping caffeine pills
By the dzen, but I found they sucked
Or maybe it's because I'm a BILINGUAL FUCK!
But honestly, without the guy with the knife
This whole fuckin trip was the best time of my life
If you ever want to go back just tell us when,
All you people lets do it again!
So Laurie, I know this song's trash,
But I wanna see you up there,
SHAKIN THAT ASS!!!
Go smooth, now twitch
Smoked a big coner and got high as a kite
Bus #13 is the only way to go,
How could I know cause she didnt show no signs of reefer
I didn't know her fool,
but now I do and I know she's fuckin cool
She's apothead, and she's a drinker
Some guy got his finger stuck up his sphincter
OW, that'd fuckin hurt,
I got her to wear that bomb as skirt
To La Bistro, thats where it's at
Dancing on the tables yeah we never sat down
Is where Fogarty is going,
From me and Laurie and the shots we'll be throwing
Chillin in the room and I start to wonder, does he get fucked over this Crocodile Hunter?
In she walks we were havin a ball
Watchin her twitch all the way down the hall
She freaked, ahhhhh it was rich
Come on everybody do the Dirty Twitch.
Go Smooth, now twitch. (x4)
She was a tour guide with nothin to hide
We hung out with her with the utmost pride.
On the 4th day in we went to Village,
And threw back shooters, which were the cause
Our fun, it was all the liqour
Yeah beers are good but shooters are quicker
We went down, went down the hills
At the hotel i was popping caffeine pills
By the dzen, but I found they sucked
Or maybe it's because I'm a BILINGUAL FUCK!
But honestly, without the guy with the knife
This whole fuckin trip was the best time of my life
If you ever want to go back just tell us when,
All you people lets do it again!
So Laurie, I know this song's trash,
But I wanna see you up there,
SHAKIN THAT ASS!!!
Go smooth, now twitch
Lyrics submitted by PhaTTy420
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Fast Car
Tracy Chapman
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Blink-182
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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.
Amazing
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran tells a story of unsuccessfully trying to feel “Amazing.” This track is about the being weighed down by emotional stress despite valiant attempts to find some positivity in the situation. This track was written by Ed Sheeran from the perspective of his friend. From the track, we see this person fall deeper into the negative thoughts and slide further down the path of mental torment with every lyric.
Plastic Bag
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
“Plastic Bag” is a song about searching for an escape from personal problems and hoping to find it in the lively atmosphere of a Saturday night party. Ed Sheeran tells the story of his friend and the myriad of troubles he is going through. Unable to find any solutions, this friend seeks a last resort in a party and the vanity that comes with it.
“I overthink and have trouble sleepin’ / All purpose gone and don’t have a reason / And there’s no doctor to stop this bleedin’ / So I left home and jumped in the deep end,” Ed Sheeran sings in verse one. He continues by adding that this person is feeling the weight of having disappointed his father and doesn’t have any friends to rely on in this difficult moment. In the second verse, Ed sings about the role of grief in his friend’s plight and his dwindling faith in prayer. “Saturday night is givin’ me a reason to rely on the strobe lights / The lifeline of a promise in a shot glass, and I’ll take that / If you’re givin’ out love from a plastic bag,” Ed sings on the chorus, as his friend turns to new vices in hopes of feeling better.