"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.
Quieres chingaso, conmigo, tu lo tienes
Por vida why por muerte Holmes
Breakdown a motherfuckin' breakdown
Breakdown ain't that a bitch
If you like magic, here's a trick
Snap my fingers now I'm a lunatic breakdown
Ain't no threat straight out fact
Go head up and you'll get jacked, breakdown
Went to school at you of Hell
Favorite course was kill and tell
Graduated head of class, majored in kickin' ass
Did hard time to get my Master
Wrote the book on personal disaster
I don't need no PHD to be a doctor fuckin' misery
Psycho's insane
They say I lost my brain, but I gave it away
If my mind's gone bad don't go off feeling sad
'Cause I chose it that way
'Cause it's a breakdown, I'm go'n breakdown
I'm gonna break, ain't no you can do
'Cause it's a breakdown, a motherfuckin' breakdown
Gonna break you in fuckin' two
What you got, come and show me
Think I won't, you don't know me
Live or die, it's all the same
Life or death, is just a game
Make you an offer you can't refuse
Pull out the gat, sorry you lose
Put a disclaimer on the crypt
Sorry Holmes, finger slipped
I broke a main now it's headed for my brain
And my mind goes thumpty thump thump
Pinned shot eyes, don't come as no surprise
No dance the bump and the dump
'Cause it's a breakdown, I'm go'n breakdown
I'm gonna break, ain't no you can do
It's a breakdown, I'm go'n breakdown
Who said that nightmares don't come true
Breakdown, yea, yea, yea
Breakdown, yea, yea, yea
Breakdown, yea, yea, yea
Stick it to your hand I'll stick out my finger
Kick you in the balls now you're a soprano singer, breakdown
Rush to my head, whacked and hyper
Now it's time to pay the piper, breakdown
Thought you were smart, now you're lying in a cart
You ain't resting six feet below
Your reservation ain't got no hesitations
You don't need to pack no bag where you go
Breakdown, I'm gonna breakdown
I'm gonna break ain't no you can do
Cause it's a breakdown, a motherfuckin' breakdown
I'm gonna break you in fuckin' two
Cruise the streets on a hustle
Show 'em what's up, break some muscle
Whacked out mind on a roll, livin' behind a violent toll
Don't take no chemist to understand the equation
AK47, a little persuasion
Your fear is like my compliment
Now you're the production of my environment
Don't flap no lip, don't shoot that crap
Time bomb for brain don't know when I snap, breakdown
My strategy I do a psycho attack
You know my set I'm a maniac, breakdown
Do as they say when in Rome
Blast the sucka then get home, breakdown
Concussion to the skull
Jugular severed chalk it up another 187, breakdown
Breakdown, breakdown, breakdown, breakdown
Jack be nimble, Jack be quick, fuck you Jack, I be a lunatic
Por vida why por muerte Holmes
Breakdown a motherfuckin' breakdown
Breakdown ain't that a bitch
If you like magic, here's a trick
Snap my fingers now I'm a lunatic breakdown
Ain't no threat straight out fact
Go head up and you'll get jacked, breakdown
Went to school at you of Hell
Favorite course was kill and tell
Graduated head of class, majored in kickin' ass
Did hard time to get my Master
Wrote the book on personal disaster
I don't need no PHD to be a doctor fuckin' misery
Psycho's insane
They say I lost my brain, but I gave it away
If my mind's gone bad don't go off feeling sad
'Cause I chose it that way
'Cause it's a breakdown, I'm go'n breakdown
I'm gonna break, ain't no you can do
'Cause it's a breakdown, a motherfuckin' breakdown
Gonna break you in fuckin' two
What you got, come and show me
Think I won't, you don't know me
Live or die, it's all the same
Life or death, is just a game
Make you an offer you can't refuse
Pull out the gat, sorry you lose
Put a disclaimer on the crypt
Sorry Holmes, finger slipped
I broke a main now it's headed for my brain
And my mind goes thumpty thump thump
Pinned shot eyes, don't come as no surprise
No dance the bump and the dump
'Cause it's a breakdown, I'm go'n breakdown
I'm gonna break, ain't no you can do
It's a breakdown, I'm go'n breakdown
Who said that nightmares don't come true
Breakdown, yea, yea, yea
Breakdown, yea, yea, yea
Breakdown, yea, yea, yea
Stick it to your hand I'll stick out my finger
Kick you in the balls now you're a soprano singer, breakdown
Rush to my head, whacked and hyper
Now it's time to pay the piper, breakdown
Thought you were smart, now you're lying in a cart
You ain't resting six feet below
Your reservation ain't got no hesitations
You don't need to pack no bag where you go
Breakdown, I'm gonna breakdown
I'm gonna break ain't no you can do
Cause it's a breakdown, a motherfuckin' breakdown
I'm gonna break you in fuckin' two
Cruise the streets on a hustle
Show 'em what's up, break some muscle
Whacked out mind on a roll, livin' behind a violent toll
Don't take no chemist to understand the equation
AK47, a little persuasion
Your fear is like my compliment
Now you're the production of my environment
Don't flap no lip, don't shoot that crap
Time bomb for brain don't know when I snap, breakdown
My strategy I do a psycho attack
You know my set I'm a maniac, breakdown
Do as they say when in Rome
Blast the sucka then get home, breakdown
Concussion to the skull
Jugular severed chalk it up another 187, breakdown
Breakdown, breakdown, breakdown, breakdown
Jack be nimble, Jack be quick, fuck you Jack, I be a lunatic
Lyrics submitted by x_melancholy_x
Go 'N Breakdown Lyrics as written by Muir Clark
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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More Featured Meanings
Fast Car
Tracy Chapman
Tracy Chapman
Dreamwalker
Silent Planet
Silent Planet
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.
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.
Just A Little Lovin'
Dusty Springfield
Dusty Springfield
I don't think it's necessarily about sex. It's about wanting to start the day with some love and affection. Maybe a warm cuddle. I'm not alone in interpreting it that way! For example:
"'Just a Little Lovin’ is a timeless country song originally recorded by Eddy Arnold in 1954. The song, written by Eddie Miller and Jimmy Campbell, explores the delicate nuances of love and showcases Arnold’s emotive vocals. It delves into the universal theme of love and how even the smallest gesture of affection can have a profound impact on our lives." https://oldtimemusic.com/the-meaning-behind-the-song-just-a-little-lovin-by-eddy-arnold/
P.S. this song is a masterpiece