"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.
In one flash
I am returned again
It's just something you can't see
The single thing
I fear the most within
Gathers slowly up inside me
Ready to take me
I can feel it burning up inside my head
When I lose in wanting everything I said
Who will there be waiting
As this silence followed
Leads me to its end
Everyday
My only game to win
Brings a prize I can't defend
And in your place
No new instructions sent
Got no plans for where I'm going
No memory where I've been
I am returned again
It's just something you can't see
The single thing
I fear the most within
Gathers slowly up inside me
Ready to take me
I can feel it burning up inside my head
When I lose in wanting everything I said
Who will there be waiting
As this silence followed
Leads me to its end
Everyday
My only game to win
Brings a prize I can't defend
And in your place
No new instructions sent
Got no plans for where I'm going
No memory where I've been
Lyrics submitted by polynotre
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Fast Car
Tracy Chapman
Tracy Chapman
Mental Istid
Ebba Grön
Ebba Grön
This is one of my favorite songs. https://fnfgo.io
Cajun Girl
Little Feat
Little Feat
Overall about difficult moments of disappointment and vulnerability. Having hope and longing, while remaining optimistic for the future. Encourages the belief that with each new morning there is a chance for things to improve.
The chorus offers a glimmer of optimism and a chance at a resolution and redemption in the future.
Captures the rollercoaster of emotions of feeling lost while loving someone who is not there for you, feeling let down and abandoned while waiting for a lover. Lost with no direction, "Now I'm up in the air with the rain in my hair, Nowhere to go, I can go anywhere"
The bridge shows signs of longing and a plea for companionship. The Lyrics express a desire for authentic connection and the importance of Loving someone just as they are. "Just in passing, I'm not asking. That you be anyone but you”
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,
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/
my impression is that this song is about the narrator's greatest fear: losing something by wanting it (too much).
"lose in wanting" = having the object of desire slipping from his grasp, even after having committed 100% to obtaining/attaining it, and then afterward regretting that maybe he could have gotten it if only he hadn't tried "too" hard or wanted it "so" much.
the reason he wouldn't have a plan where he's going or memory where's he's been is that he's spent so much time and emotional effort wanting something, that he never thought beyond that. no plan B, and no recollection of where he's been b/c he's been thinking of nothing but the thing he wants.
imagine if you put so much into getting something, and end up with nothing to show for it. scary and heartbreaking.
i don't get the sense from the lyrics that it's necessarily about a relationship. I think it's meant to be about losing something, anything, in a broader sense. the fear is that he will lose it by wanting it too much. the "you" is whatever object of desire, e.g., fame, love, a red Mustang.