"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.
I hate the skydome and the CN tower too,
I hate Nathan Phillip's square and the Ontario Zoo,
The rent's too high, the air's unclean,
The beaches are dirty and the people are mean,
And the women are big and the men are dumb,
And the children are loopy cuz they live in a slum!
The water is polluted and their mayor's a dork,
They dress real bad and they think they're New York,
In Toronto, Ontario-o-o
-Ya know actually I, I think I pretty much hate all of Ontario-
(Oh yeah, me too!)
I hate Thunder Bay and Ottawa, Kitchener, Windsor and Oshawa
London sucks and the Great Lakes suck and Sarnia sucks and Turkey point sucks
I took a trip to Ontario to visit Brian Mulruney,
He beat me up and he stole my pants and he put me in a tree,
I went to see the Maple-Leafs and got hit in the head with a puck,
(Ah, I-I don't evenknow how they did it really, I mean I was playing the organ at the time!)
ONTARIO-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O SUCKS,
Yep, actually now that I think about it,
I think I pretty much hate every gosh darn province and territory in our country,
Oh yeah-except Alberta! Oh yeah, I love Alberta, Yeah it's really nice, lots of cows, and trees, and rocks and dirt!
(moo moo moo)
But,
I hate Newfoundland cuz they talk so wierd, and Prince Edward Island is-Too Small,
Nova Scotia's dumb cuz it's the name of a bank, New Bruinswick doesn't have a good mall!
Quebec is revolting and it makes me mad, Ontario Sucks, Ontario Sucks!
(Manitoba's population density is 1.9 people per square kilometre,
Isn't that stupid!)
Saskatchewan is boring and the people are old,
And as for the territories,( they're too cold!)
And the only really good thing about the province of British Columbia is that
it's right next to us,
Cuz Alberta, doesn't suck, but Calgary doesssssss!
I hate Nathan Phillip's square and the Ontario Zoo,
The rent's too high, the air's unclean,
The beaches are dirty and the people are mean,
And the women are big and the men are dumb,
And the children are loopy cuz they live in a slum!
The water is polluted and their mayor's a dork,
They dress real bad and they think they're New York,
In Toronto, Ontario-o-o
-Ya know actually I, I think I pretty much hate all of Ontario-
(Oh yeah, me too!)
I hate Thunder Bay and Ottawa, Kitchener, Windsor and Oshawa
London sucks and the Great Lakes suck and Sarnia sucks and Turkey point sucks
I took a trip to Ontario to visit Brian Mulruney,
He beat me up and he stole my pants and he put me in a tree,
I went to see the Maple-Leafs and got hit in the head with a puck,
(Ah, I-I don't evenknow how they did it really, I mean I was playing the organ at the time!)
ONTARIO-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O SUCKS,
Yep, actually now that I think about it,
I think I pretty much hate every gosh darn province and territory in our country,
Oh yeah-except Alberta! Oh yeah, I love Alberta, Yeah it's really nice, lots of cows, and trees, and rocks and dirt!
(moo moo moo)
But,
I hate Newfoundland cuz they talk so wierd, and Prince Edward Island is-Too Small,
Nova Scotia's dumb cuz it's the name of a bank, New Bruinswick doesn't have a good mall!
Quebec is revolting and it makes me mad, Ontario Sucks, Ontario Sucks!
(Manitoba's population density is 1.9 people per square kilometre,
Isn't that stupid!)
Saskatchewan is boring and the people are old,
And as for the territories,( they're too cold!)
And the only really good thing about the province of British Columbia is that
it's right next to us,
Cuz Alberta, doesn't suck, but Calgary doesssssss!
Lyrics submitted by godisajunkie
Add your thoughts
Log in now to tell us what you think this song means.
Don’t have an account? Create an account with SongMeanings to post comments, submit lyrics, and more. It’s super easy, we promise!
More Featured Meanings
Fast Car
Tracy Chapman
Tracy Chapman
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,
Blue
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
“Blue” is a song about a love that is persisting in the discomfort of the person experiencing the emotion. Ed Sheeran reflects on love lost, and although he wishes his former partner find happiness, he cannot but admit his feelings are still very much there. He expresses the realization that he might never find another on this stringed instrumental by Aaron Dessner.
Page
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
There aren’t many things that’ll hurt more than giving love a chance against your better judgement only to have your heart crushed yet again. Ed Sheeran tells such a story on “Page.” On this track, he is devastated to have lost his lover and even more saddened by the feeling that he may never move on from this.
Plastic Bag
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
“Plastic Bag” is a song about searching for an escape from personal problems and hoping to find it in the lively atmosphere of a Saturday night party. Ed Sheeran tells the story of his friend and the myriad of troubles he is going through. Unable to find any solutions, this friend seeks a last resort in a party and the vanity that comes with it.
“I overthink and have trouble sleepin’ / All purpose gone and don’t have a reason / And there’s no doctor to stop this bleedin’ / So I left home and jumped in the deep end,” Ed Sheeran sings in verse one. He continues by adding that this person is feeling the weight of having disappointed his father and doesn’t have any friends to rely on in this difficult moment. In the second verse, Ed sings about the role of grief in his friend’s plight and his dwindling faith in prayer. “Saturday night is givin’ me a reason to rely on the strobe lights / The lifeline of a promise in a shot glass, and I’ll take that / If you’re givin’ out love from a plastic bag,” Ed sings on the chorus, as his friend turns to new vices in hopes of feeling better.
This song is fucking awesome. Truly amazing and hilarious. I was born in Toronto to, HA!