"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.
So tell me, when you took the practice scholastic aptitude test
Did you know the answers or did you just guess?
You rely on gimmicks to amuse your fans
And act all urban to jack-up your sound-scan
What's the matter with you? How come you rhyme monosyllabically?
Is atrophy shrinking your entire vocabulary?
Your style's like garbage cans meant to be taken out on a weekly basis
Ever since your first record you've been in a state of suspended animation
You look like snuffaluffagus and australopithecus
Me cray, you abacus
Enough about you, let's talk about me
And how single-handedly I redefined the science of radio astronomy
Making nobel prize winners question their notions of reality
Oh, but I digress, you play sorry, I play chess
King's pawn to b3, checkmate, go get some percocets
Careful with that mic, weezy
Do you really think it's that easy?
Mmmm, this is really good ice cream! You want some of it?
Oh, my bad I didn't know you were lactose intolerant
Makes you pass gas, frightens all the girls away
Only friends you keep are those you pay
Always on the ready for the wack snack attack
I carry sandwiches around in a straight-edge style jansport backpack
Got the gadget q gave bond. Take control of your mind and make you jump in a pond
Go "quack quack" and flap your arms, leave you confused, but completely unharmed
Ahaha haha
Careful with that mic, weezy.
Do you really think it's that easy?
Do you really think it's true
That up above they can't hear you?
Ahaha haha
Now look here
Now both you and I know that the past ten years have been rather intense
I'm ashamed to admit that I've been fooled by the seductions of violence
People walking around with ugly auras
At times I'm even tempted to seek the advice of dr. Laura
But I ignore her
And I take a deep breath and count to ten
Ain't gonna let it get under my skin
Take a deep breath and count to ten
Think of all the nice places that I been
Like back when I was waging peace against the visigoths,
I was tutored in the ancient mysteries by a wizened philosoph
Learned the polyrhythm of celestial time
And wait for the one to come and get it done to finish the rhyme, ahaha
Careful with that mic, weezy.
Do you really think it's that easy?
Do you really think it's true
That up above they can't hear you?
Ahaha haha
Hmm
Ahaha haha
Hmm
Ahaha haha
Hmm
Ahaha haha
Did you know the answers or did you just guess?
You rely on gimmicks to amuse your fans
And act all urban to jack-up your sound-scan
What's the matter with you? How come you rhyme monosyllabically?
Is atrophy shrinking your entire vocabulary?
Your style's like garbage cans meant to be taken out on a weekly basis
Ever since your first record you've been in a state of suspended animation
You look like snuffaluffagus and australopithecus
Me cray, you abacus
Enough about you, let's talk about me
And how single-handedly I redefined the science of radio astronomy
Making nobel prize winners question their notions of reality
Oh, but I digress, you play sorry, I play chess
King's pawn to b3, checkmate, go get some percocets
Careful with that mic, weezy
Do you really think it's that easy?
Mmmm, this is really good ice cream! You want some of it?
Oh, my bad I didn't know you were lactose intolerant
Makes you pass gas, frightens all the girls away
Only friends you keep are those you pay
Always on the ready for the wack snack attack
I carry sandwiches around in a straight-edge style jansport backpack
Got the gadget q gave bond. Take control of your mind and make you jump in a pond
Go "quack quack" and flap your arms, leave you confused, but completely unharmed
Ahaha haha
Careful with that mic, weezy.
Do you really think it's that easy?
Do you really think it's true
That up above they can't hear you?
Ahaha haha
Now look here
Now both you and I know that the past ten years have been rather intense
I'm ashamed to admit that I've been fooled by the seductions of violence
People walking around with ugly auras
At times I'm even tempted to seek the advice of dr. Laura
But I ignore her
And I take a deep breath and count to ten
Ain't gonna let it get under my skin
Take a deep breath and count to ten
Think of all the nice places that I been
Like back when I was waging peace against the visigoths,
I was tutored in the ancient mysteries by a wizened philosoph
Learned the polyrhythm of celestial time
And wait for the one to come and get it done to finish the rhyme, ahaha
Careful with that mic, weezy.
Do you really think it's that easy?
Do you really think it's true
That up above they can't hear you?
Ahaha haha
Hmm
Ahaha haha
Hmm
Ahaha haha
Hmm
Ahaha haha
Lyrics submitted by joshbert13
Careful With That Mic Lyrics as written by Jean-paul Gaster Dan Maines
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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Anyone who thinks Neil Fallon wrote & recorded a song in 2000 or so about Lil Wayne has a very powerful imagination.
The line "And act all urban to jack-up your sound-scan" sure makes it seem like it's directed at a nu-metal rap/rocker and Fred Durst seems as good a guess as any, especially as they toured together in 1998.