"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.
You're so much different than me
Yes I know
And I'm only enemy
Pain is all that I can see oh
I see you're climbing a tree
And I know
That it's easier to be up high in
The air than on the ground
And it's love, etc
You say you can't say anymore
You've already said it before
In a million different ways
Which where all not quite right
The rain is loud on the ground
Yes I know
But I don't even make a sound when
I come around oh
And you say I'd be better of dead
Well I know
But its no use hiding this pretty
Head in the ground
And it's love, etc
And we can do the zarathustra
We can do the broken fist
We can tear down all the borders
Or abbreviate the list
And when finally the finish line
Emerges from the mist
We'll sound a soft alarm
Woah oh
Yes I know
And I'm only enemy
Pain is all that I can see oh
I see you're climbing a tree
And I know
That it's easier to be up high in
The air than on the ground
And it's love, etc
You say you can't say anymore
You've already said it before
In a million different ways
Which where all not quite right
The rain is loud on the ground
Yes I know
But I don't even make a sound when
I come around oh
And you say I'd be better of dead
Well I know
But its no use hiding this pretty
Head in the ground
And it's love, etc
And we can do the zarathustra
We can do the broken fist
We can tear down all the borders
Or abbreviate the list
And when finally the finish line
Emerges from the mist
We'll sound a soft alarm
Woah oh
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
Mental Istid
Ebba Grön
Ebba Grön
This is one of my favorite songs. https://fnfgo.io
Son Şansın - Şarkı Sözleri
Hayalperest
Hayalperest
This song seemingly tackles the methods of deception those who manipulate others use to get victims to follow their demands, as well as diverting attention away from important issues. They'll also use it as a means to convince people to hate or kill others by pretending acts of terrorism were committed by the enemy when the acts themselves were done by the masters of control to promote discrimination and hate. It also reinforces the idea that these manipulative forces operate in various locations, infiltrating everyday life without detection, and propagate any and everywhere.
In general, it highlights the danger of hidden agendas, manipulation, and distraction, serving as a critique of those who exploit chaos and confusion to control and gain power, depicting a cautionary tale against falling into their traps. It encourages us to question the narratives presented to us and remain vigilant against manipulation in various parts of society.
Punchline
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran sings about missing his former partner and learning important life lessons in the process on “Punchline.” This track tells a story of battling to get rid of emotions for a former lover, whom he now realized might not have loved him the same way. He’s now caught between accepting that fact and learning life lessons from it and going back to beg her for another chance.
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.
There's such a backlash going on against these guys right now.... but I think it's quite unfounded. People are saying they're derivative....too much like the Talking Heads, in fact, I saw them live recently and someone in the back yelled out "Pyscho Killer" in between songs! And I was pissed because.... I don't know. I don't think their music really sounds Talking Heads'-esque. The sound is fresh. Alec Ounsworth's voice is worlds away from David Byrne in my opinion. He might be a little all over the place the same way Byrne was.... but... still. This song is a great example of how different Clap Your Hands is from anything else out there right now. The melodious "ohhhs" and "ahhhs" and the danceable rhythms. I don't know. Can't get anough of these guys. If you like Clap Your Hands, you should check out Alec Ounsworth's (the lead singer's) solo stuff.... he has some stuff available for download at flashypython.com "Underwater" was like my favorite song of the summer, despite how low-budget it is/was.
Besides, Talking Heads are great. And there is certainly nothing I've heard since the Heads that I've liked as much as Clap Your Hands =P
what does : zarathustra : mean ?
zarathustra is a reference to the nietzsche's book "thus spake zarathustra". i'm guessing.
Okay. I tried to look up zarathustra. Because I am lazy I did that stupid smarterchild thing.
sarahluvsu182 (6:48:25 AM): define zarathustra SmarterChild (6:48:25 AM): Zarathustra: See Zoroaster. SmarterChild (6:48:37 AM): Zoroaster: Persian prophet who founded Zoroastrianism. SmarterChild (6:48:53 AM): Zoroastrianism: Noun The religious system founded by Zoroaster and set forth in the Avesta, teaching the worship of Ahura Mazda in the context of a universal struggle between the forces of light and of darkness.
Maybe it's a stretch but it's interesting.. Also, spell check doesn't believe zarathustra is a word, if that means anything.
is it about troubled lovers?
he keeps talking as if she's telling him to leave and stuff, that theyre better off seperate, but he's convinced they can keep going. thats why he asks if its love.
the last few lines before the outro sound like he's saying 'we can go through all the motions but we'll end up together again'.
analogue's right. In the book Zarathustra is more or less a sage that goes into the wilderness for 30 years and "goes under" and eventually becomes the ubermensch. He returns to civilization to teach his philosophy and guide humanity from the current stage of human consciousness to a more advanced stage. Knowing this, I'm still not sure exactly how it fits into this song...
This is my favorite song on the album!
I just love the line
"And you say I'd be better of dead this I know But it's no use hiding this pretty head in the ground"
the opening guitar reminds me of pavement's "box elder"
I agree with blanktom in that this is about a guy who's either too stubborn or too naive to realize that the girl he's going after isn't into him. The wavering chorus goes from the rhetorical question "is this love?" to various positive affirmations persuading himself that this girl truly likes him.
I have no idea what the Zarathustra or Broken Fist has to do with anything though unless he's suggesting they either read Nietzsche together or do whatever has to do with Broken Fist.