"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.
I would swallow my pride
I would choke on the rinds, but the lack thereof would leave me empty inside
Swallow my doubt, turn it inside out
Find nothing but faith in nothing
Want to put my tender
Heart in a blender
Watch it spin round to a beautiful oblivion
Rendezvous, then I'm through with you
I burn, burn like a wicker cabinet
Chalk white and oh-so-frail
I see our time has gotten stale
The tick-tock of the clock is painful, all sane and logical
I want to tear it off the wall
I hear words in clips and phrases
I think sick like ginger ale
My stomach turns and I exhale
I would swallow my pride
I would choke on the rinds, but the lack thereof would leave me empty inside
I would swallow my doubt, turn it inside out
Find nothing but faith in nothing
Want to put my tender
Heart in a blender
Watch it spin round to a beautiful oblivion
Rendezvous, then I'm through with you
So Cal is where my mind states
But it's not my state of mind
I'm not as ugly sad as you
Or am I origami, fold it up and just pretend
Demented as the motives in your head
I would swallow my pride
I would choke on the rinds, but the lack thereof would leave me empty inside
I would swallow my doubt, turn it inside out
Find nothing but faith in nothing
Want to put my tender
Heart in a blender
Watch it spin round to a beautiful oblivion
Rendezvous, then I'm through with you
(Rendezvous)
I alone am the one you don't know you need
Take heed, feed your ego
Make me blind when your eyes close
Sink when you get close, tie me to the bedpost
I alone am the one you don't know you need
You don't know you need me
Make me blind when your eyes close
Tie me to the bedpost
I would swallow my pride
I would choke on the rinds, the lack thereof would leave me empty inside
Swallow my doubt, turn it inside out
Find nothing but faith in nothing
Want to put my tender
Heart in a blender
Watch it spin round to a beautiful oblivion
Rendezvous, then I'm through
Now I'm through with you
Through with you
Rendezvous, then I'm through with you
I would choke on the rinds, but the lack thereof would leave me empty inside
Swallow my doubt, turn it inside out
Find nothing but faith in nothing
Want to put my tender
Heart in a blender
Watch it spin round to a beautiful oblivion
Rendezvous, then I'm through with you
I burn, burn like a wicker cabinet
Chalk white and oh-so-frail
I see our time has gotten stale
The tick-tock of the clock is painful, all sane and logical
I want to tear it off the wall
I hear words in clips and phrases
I think sick like ginger ale
My stomach turns and I exhale
I would swallow my pride
I would choke on the rinds, but the lack thereof would leave me empty inside
I would swallow my doubt, turn it inside out
Find nothing but faith in nothing
Want to put my tender
Heart in a blender
Watch it spin round to a beautiful oblivion
Rendezvous, then I'm through with you
So Cal is where my mind states
But it's not my state of mind
I'm not as ugly sad as you
Or am I origami, fold it up and just pretend
Demented as the motives in your head
I would swallow my pride
I would choke on the rinds, but the lack thereof would leave me empty inside
I would swallow my doubt, turn it inside out
Find nothing but faith in nothing
Want to put my tender
Heart in a blender
Watch it spin round to a beautiful oblivion
Rendezvous, then I'm through with you
(Rendezvous)
I alone am the one you don't know you need
Take heed, feed your ego
Make me blind when your eyes close
Sink when you get close, tie me to the bedpost
I alone am the one you don't know you need
You don't know you need me
Make me blind when your eyes close
Tie me to the bedpost
I would swallow my pride
I would choke on the rinds, the lack thereof would leave me empty inside
Swallow my doubt, turn it inside out
Find nothing but faith in nothing
Want to put my tender
Heart in a blender
Watch it spin round to a beautiful oblivion
Rendezvous, then I'm through
Now I'm through with you
Through with you
Rendezvous, then I'm through with you
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More Featured Meanings
Fast Car
Tracy Chapman
Tracy Chapman
Bron-Y-Aur Stomp
Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin
This is about bronies. They communicate by stomping.
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,
I Can't Go To Sleep
Wu-Tang Clan
Wu-Tang Clan
This song is written as the perspective of the boys in the street, as a whole, and what path they are going to choose as they get older and grow into men. (This is why the music video takes place in an orphanage.) The seen, and unseen collective suffering is imbedded in the boys’ mind, consciously or subconsciously, and is haunting them. Which path will the boys choose? Issac Hayes is the voice of reason, maybe God, the angel on his shoulder, or the voice of his forefathers from beyond the grave who can see the big picture and are pleading with the boys not to continue the violence and pattern of killing their brothers, but to rise above. The most beautiful song and has so many levels. Racism towards African Americans in America would not exist if everyone sat down and listened to this song and understood the history behind the words. The power, fear, pleading in RZA and Ghostface voices are genuine and powerful. Issac Hayes’ strong voice makes the perfect strong father figure, who is possibly from beyond the grave.
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.
Ok, let me defend that before everyone hates me -- what's this about choking on rhines? Are they serious? What would that even possibly mean, metaphorically, if the aren't even really there ("the lack thereof")? And that is in the refrain! How can one even "swallow doubt"? that doesn't make sense. And if you could swallow, or eliminate doubt, you would not have "faith in nothing," you would have faith in whatever you were doubting. Come on. This is stupid.
He's saying if he would swallow his doubt and try to forget that this relationship sucks but then he would just find faith in nothing true. Because the truth is the relationship sucks and he needs to leave.