"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.
The cuckoo sleeps, hungry and wild and crawling
Through the storm that breaks
Clears away the vicious and violent heat
Breathe deep, breathe long and hard
Kiss and caress the hands that feed
Love me primitive, betray my lips
And the treacherous heart, the savage breed
Hollow eyes only cry hollow tears
And the tinselling flesh melts away
The scars and fears that the shameless years
Leave laughing and dancing
On a wasted and tattered dream
Cry hollow tears, stifle the tortured kiss and scream
Screaming in the darkness, torn and ravaged
Spinning round in circles
And in the crazy and the howl of the naked and savage
The cuckoo sleeps, hungry and wild and crawling
Through the storm that breaks
Clears away the vicious and violent heat
Breathe deep, breathe long and hard
Kiss and caress the hands that feed
Love me primitive, betray my lips
And the treacherous heart, the savage breed
Screaming in the darkness, torn and ravaged
Spinning round in circles
And in the crazy and the howl of the naked and savage
Tarnish, taint and punish me softly
Kiss the heavens where the angels tread
Love is the corpse that crawls on dreams
Rips them apart and tears them to shreds
Screaming in the darkness, torn and ravaged
Spinning round in circles
And in the crazy and the howl of the naked and savage
Savage, savage, savage, savage
Through the storm that breaks
Clears away the vicious and violent heat
Breathe deep, breathe long and hard
Kiss and caress the hands that feed
Love me primitive, betray my lips
And the treacherous heart, the savage breed
Hollow eyes only cry hollow tears
And the tinselling flesh melts away
The scars and fears that the shameless years
Leave laughing and dancing
On a wasted and tattered dream
Cry hollow tears, stifle the tortured kiss and scream
Screaming in the darkness, torn and ravaged
Spinning round in circles
And in the crazy and the howl of the naked and savage
The cuckoo sleeps, hungry and wild and crawling
Through the storm that breaks
Clears away the vicious and violent heat
Breathe deep, breathe long and hard
Kiss and caress the hands that feed
Love me primitive, betray my lips
And the treacherous heart, the savage breed
Screaming in the darkness, torn and ravaged
Spinning round in circles
And in the crazy and the howl of the naked and savage
Tarnish, taint and punish me softly
Kiss the heavens where the angels tread
Love is the corpse that crawls on dreams
Rips them apart and tears them to shreds
Screaming in the darkness, torn and ravaged
Spinning round in circles
And in the crazy and the howl of the naked and savage
Savage, savage, savage, savage
Lyrics submitted by [inactive account]
Naked and Savage Lyrics as written by Mick Brown Craig David Adams
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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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
Holiday
Bee Gees
Bee Gees
@[Diderik:33655] "Your a holiday!" Was a popular term used in the 50s/60s to compliment someone on their all around. For example, not only are they beautiful, but they are fun and kind too ... just an all around "holiday".
I think your first comment is closer to being accurate. The singer/song writers state "Millions of eyes can see, yet why am i so blind!? When the someone else is me, its unkind its unkind". I believe hes referring to the girl toying with him and using him. He wants something deeper with her, thats why he allows himself to be as a puppet (even though for her fun and games) as long as it makes her happy. But he knows deep down that she doesnt really want to be serious with him and thats what makes him.
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,
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.
From experience, I think it's about a narcissist taking advantage of someone innocent and pretending to love them, in return for what they can get out of them materially:
The cuckoo - someone who infiltrates another's life purely for their own advantage, not love.
Kiss and caress the hands that feed - act obsequiously, flatter, hug, f*ck and tell someone what a good person they are in order to boost their ego and pay you attention.
The treacherous heart, the savage breed - someone who'll dump you for another that gives them more advantage without thought or guilt.
Hollow eyes only cry hollow tears - narcissists are notoriously empty inside, and need to be around others who flatter them to prop up their vacuous egos, pretend to be hurt when it suits them to gain advantage or attention. They can attract each other as well as innocents.
On a wasted and tattered dream - On a wasted and tattered life. A pointless, self hate fuelled life that didn't work out as it should have, because of the way you treated others supposedly close to you.
Stifle the tortured kiss - narcissists will kiss and bed anyone for their gain, knowing they feel nothing for them, screwing someone they hate the sight of, just for personal gain.
Screaming in the darkness, torn and ravaged - torn between wanting to love someone, but having a relationship with someone who can make them feel real through the material and social gain they hold, even though they're not loved.
Spinning round in circles - spinning in circles, making the same relationship mistakes again and again and again. Not learning from their mistakes, because that would involve admitting they're wrong and saying sorry.
And in the crazy and the howl of the naked and savage - the howl of the pain inside them as they realise they have screwed up yet another potentially good relationship with their avarice and lies. But narcissists are NEVER wrong and will fly into a rage when you suggest they may be less than perfect, so they know deep down they have messed up another relationship, but will always blame the other person for it. It's never their fault.
Tarnish, taint and punish me softly - hurt me for being so bad, I deserve to suffer for my deeds against other genuinely good people. Not "my" kind of good.
Kiss the heavens where the angels tread - I can only kiss goodness, never possess it in my narcissistic heart as I cannot love someone for being them.
Love is the corpse that crawls on dreams, rips them apart and tears them to shreds - my dreams are of the material, I cannot love someone for being them, only pretend to love someone who can give me social status. True love rips apart those dreams of material avarice, I can never love someone for being them, only for giving me what I want to fill my emotionally shallow, empty shell of a persona.
Savage, savage, savage, savage - yes, these emotionally empty people are utterly, devastatingly savage and have no care for what they do to genuinely good people. They will even lie to class themselves as good, when they know they are truly evil gold diggers.
And yes, I have known two people like this in my life, but thankfully spotted them before they damaged me. The lesson from Naked and Savage: Identify and avoid anyone who seems overly keen on you once they know what you're worth, or is interested in it. And if you have the nerve...play games with them.
CE->CN <:-)
Jon Reade, June 2019.
I think it's about a loveless sexual encounter like a one night stand