"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.
Well this is my back yard
My back gate
I hate to start my parties late
Here's the party cart
Ain't that great?
That ain't the best part baby
Just wait
That's a genuine weathervane
It moves with the breeze
Portable hammock honey
Who needs trees
It's casual entertaining
We aim to please
At my parties
Check out the shingles
It's brand new
Excuse me while I mingle
Hi, how are you
Hey everybody
Let me give you a toast
This one's for me
The host with the most
It's getting a trifle colder
Step inside my home
That's a brass toilet tissue holder with it's own telephone
That's musical doorbell
It don't ring, I ain't kiddin'
It plays America the beautiful and tie a yellow ribbon
Boy, this punch is a trip
It's okay in my book
Here, take a sip
Maybe little heaven on the fruit
Ah, here comes the dip
You may kiss the cook
Let me show you honey
It's easy, look
You take a fork and spire 'em
Say, did you try these ?
So glad you like 'em
The secret's in the cheese
It's casual entertaining
We aim to please
At my parties
Now don't talk to me about the polar bear
Don't talk to me about ozone layer
Ain't so much of anything these days, even the air
They're running out of rhinos
What do I care?
Let's hear it for the dolphin
Let's hear it for the trees
Ain't runnin' out of nothin' in my deep freeze
It's casual entertaining
We aim to please
At my parties
My back gate
I hate to start my parties late
Here's the party cart
Ain't that great?
That ain't the best part baby
Just wait
That's a genuine weathervane
It moves with the breeze
Portable hammock honey
Who needs trees
It's casual entertaining
We aim to please
At my parties
Check out the shingles
It's brand new
Excuse me while I mingle
Hi, how are you
Hey everybody
Let me give you a toast
This one's for me
The host with the most
It's getting a trifle colder
Step inside my home
That's a brass toilet tissue holder with it's own telephone
That's musical doorbell
It don't ring, I ain't kiddin'
It plays America the beautiful and tie a yellow ribbon
Boy, this punch is a trip
It's okay in my book
Here, take a sip
Maybe little heaven on the fruit
Ah, here comes the dip
You may kiss the cook
Let me show you honey
It's easy, look
You take a fork and spire 'em
Say, did you try these ?
So glad you like 'em
The secret's in the cheese
It's casual entertaining
We aim to please
At my parties
Now don't talk to me about the polar bear
Don't talk to me about ozone layer
Ain't so much of anything these days, even the air
They're running out of rhinos
What do I care?
Let's hear it for the dolphin
Let's hear it for the trees
Ain't runnin' out of nothin' in my deep freeze
It's casual entertaining
We aim to please
At my parties
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This what what knopfler is best at - wry and witty social commenary. Long may that continue.
Nice song, musically captures the sort of party he's singing about. The classic Knopfler singing annunciation adds even more humour to it ("The secret's in the cheese").
Classic Knopfler, parodying a materialistic hipster that literally cares about nothing in life except flaunting his wealth.
I just saw MK on the 2008 leg of KTGC in Oregon USA. (Saw him in 2005 as well) My 70 something year old folks came up for the two shows in Oregon, and never having heard him or of him before, they were blown away by what a great performer he is live.
Putting together a mixed MP3 CD for their 900 mile road trip home, I went back and re-listened to some of the studio stuff to winnow out what made it and not unto the CD. I forgot just how good so many of the songs off of On Every Street was, including this one with the haunting melody.
Many of the early DS studio didn't make it on CD, for lets face it, he is so much better live, especially on the early stuff, but the last two albums, On Every Street and Brothers in Arms has more of the sound MK solo evolved into.
This song, rarely played on live boots I've add access to, stayed just because of various under tones of the story, like what followed in Boom Like That, Done with Bonaparte, Imelda, Sailing to Philadelphia to name but a few