"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.
O Superman.
O judge.
O Mom and Dad.
Mom and Dad.
O Superman.
O judge.
O Mom and Dad.
Mom and Dad.
Hi.
I'm not home right now.
But if you want to leave a message, just start talking at the sound of the tone.
Hello?
This is your Mother.
Are you there?
Are you coming home?
Hello?
Is anybody home?
Well, you don't know me, but I know you.
And I've got a message to give to you.
Here come the planes.
So you better get ready.
Ready to go.
You can come as you are, but pay as you go.
Pay as you go.
And I said: OK.
Who is this really?
And the voice said: This is the hand, the hand that takes.
This is the hand, the hand that takes.
This is the hand, the hand that takes.
Here come the planes.
They're American planes.
Made in America.
Smoking or non-smoking?
And the voice said: Neither snow nor rain nor gloom of night shall stay these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds.
'Cause when love is gone, there's always justice. And when justive is gone, there's always force. And when force is gone, there's always Mom.
Hi Mom!
So hold me, Mom, in your long arms.
So hold me, Mom, in your long arms.
In your automatic arms.
Your electronic arms.
In your arms.
So hold me, Mom, in your long arms.
Your petrochemical arms.
Your military arms.
In your electronic arms.
O judge.
O Mom and Dad.
Mom and Dad.
O Superman.
O judge.
O Mom and Dad.
Mom and Dad.
Hi.
I'm not home right now.
But if you want to leave a message, just start talking at the sound of the tone.
Hello?
This is your Mother.
Are you there?
Are you coming home?
Hello?
Is anybody home?
Well, you don't know me, but I know you.
And I've got a message to give to you.
Here come the planes.
So you better get ready.
Ready to go.
You can come as you are, but pay as you go.
Pay as you go.
And I said: OK.
Who is this really?
And the voice said: This is the hand, the hand that takes.
This is the hand, the hand that takes.
This is the hand, the hand that takes.
Here come the planes.
They're American planes.
Made in America.
Smoking or non-smoking?
And the voice said: Neither snow nor rain nor gloom of night shall stay these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds.
'Cause when love is gone, there's always justice. And when justive is gone, there's always force. And when force is gone, there's always Mom.
Hi Mom!
So hold me, Mom, in your long arms.
So hold me, Mom, in your long arms.
In your automatic arms.
Your electronic arms.
In your arms.
So hold me, Mom, in your long arms.
Your petrochemical arms.
Your military arms.
In your electronic arms.
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Fast Car
Tracy Chapman
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Hayalperest
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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.
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”
Mountain Song
Jane's Addiction
Jane's Addiction
Jane's Addiction vocalist Perry Farrell gives Adam Reader some heartfelt insight into Jane’s Addiction's hard rock manifesto "Mountain Song", which was the second single from their revolutionary album Nothing's Shocking. Mountain song was first recorded in 1986 and appeared on the soundtrack to the film Dudes starring Jon Cryer. The version on Nothing's Shocking was re-recorded in 1988.
"'Mountain Song' was actually about... I hate to say it but... drugs. Climbing this mountain and getting as high as you can, and then coming down that mountain," reveals Farrell. "What it feels to descend from the mountain top... not easy at all. The ascension is tough but exhilarating. Getting down is... it's a real bummer. Drugs is not for everybody obviously. For me, I wanted to experience the heights, and the lows come along with it."
"There's a part - 'Cash in now honey, cash in Miss Smith.' Miss Smith is my Mother; our last name was Smith. Cashing in when she cashed in her life. So... she decided that, to her... at that time, she was desperate. Life wasn't worth it for her, that was her opinion. Some people think, never take your life, and some people find that their life isn't worth living. She was in love with my Dad, and my Dad was not faithful to her, and it broke her heart. She was very desperate and she did something that I know she regrets."
Mountain Song
Jane's Addiction
Jane's Addiction
Jane's Addiction vocalist Perry Farrell gives Adam Reader some heartfelt insight into Jane’s Addiction's hard rock manifesto "Mountain Song", which was the second single from their revolutionary album Nothing's Shocking. Mountain song was first recorded in 1986 and appeared on the soundtrack to the film Dudes starring Jon Cryer. The version on Nothing's Shocking was re-recorded in 1988.
"'Mountain Song' was actually about... I hate to say it but... drugs. Climbing this mountain and getting as high as you can, and then coming down that mountain," reveals Farrell. "What it feels to descend from the mountain top... not easy at all. The ascension is tough but exhilarating. Getting down is... it's a real bummer. Drugs is not for everybody obviously. For me, I wanted to experience the heights, and the lows come along with it."
"There's a part - 'Cash in now honey, cash in Miss Smith.' Miss Smith is my Mother; our last name was Smith. Cashing in when she cashed in her life. So... she decided that, to her... at that time, she was desperate. Life wasn't worth it for her, that was her opinion. Some people think, never take your life, and some people find that their life isn't worth living. She was in love with my Dad, and my Dad was not faithful to her, and it broke her heart. She was very desperate and she did something that I know she regrets."
When she says, "This is the hand, the hand that takes" it creeps me out. Just the thought of talking on the phone with God or Death or something like that is eerie.
@judyg13 The "hand that takes", is the USA gov't. And society, who didn't want to spend the time watching their gov't.<br /> <br /> USA gov't, now, is working hard to kill the entire planet-- so a small group of sociopaths can brag to each other. True.
I'm surprised nobody has pointed this out yet. The title of this song is a (very) loose translation of the aria "O Souverain, o juge, o père" from Jules Massenet's opera "Le Cid". The original title means "O sovereign, O judge, O father", and it is a prayer sung by the hero as he is about to go into battle against overwhelming odds. I don't think I see that exact theme in "O Superman", but there is definitely the feel of the military-industrial complex.
In fact, David Bowie just standing around is far more profound than most entire musical careers. But I digress...
I saw Laurie perform this in a tiny theater about 5 days after Sept. 11, in Boston. I think the theater at Harvard. When she got to 'here come the planes', I think the majority of listeners were overcome emotionally. I cried for the rest of the song. Never thought I would hear that song that way, and I can't listen to it now....
I wonder if she knows that she's a prophet? I'm sure she understands that she's at least a genius.
@rainwalk \r\nHere come the planes ...
@rainwalk \r\nHere come the planes ...
I have loved this song for years ever since I heard it on the old Night Flights before it sold out. All the people she sings about are authority figures. Mom and dad, the judge, the pilot, the postman. The postman might be a stretch, but I think it is authority figures to a child.
I believe the cliche is "eerily prescient."
There are ghosts of future planes in this song, recorded in 1990, part of her Live in America concent/performence art tour a couple of years earlier than even that.
Also, the foreshadowing of the first stirrings of the rough beast of techno-militaristic fascism, and the seemingly inexorable logic of its ascendency.
And cool vocorder sounds.
@amoebius Language Is A Virus also has 911 in zooming numbers on a stage screen. Of course it means the emergency number, but they\'re also 3 numbers for a particularly infamous date
@amoebius Language Is A Virus also has 911 in zooming numbers on a stage screen. Of course it means the emergency number, but they\'re also 3 numbers for a particularly infamous date
This song is obviously about War
'Cause when love is gone, there's always justice. And when justice is gone, there's always force.
This is a nation that is running the world and destroying it at the same time, Here come the planes, they're American planes....has this more to do with America going to war...with other countries for resources like Electronics/Petrochemical....OIL
Mom, in your long arms. In your automatic arms. Your electronic arms. In your arms. So hold me, Mom, in your long arms. Your petrochemical arms. Your military arms. In your electronic arms.
Its about War and Greed
This is the hand, the hand that takes. This is the hand, the hand that takes.
I love that the rather deep "Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night stays these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds" is the motto of the US Postal Service. Not being American, I've only just found that out.
But I agree 100% with those for whom "here comes the planes" has a chilling edge now. I like this song and I like people who like it as well.
Actually, it's not the motto of the US Postal Service. The line appears above a certain post office (I think) in New York, but actually came from Herodotus' Histories, referring to the courier service of the Persian Empire. The USPS doesn't have an official "creed."
Not being a very deep person, I take a simplistic view on this song. No doubt it's beautiful, but I definately think that it's about death, ("The hand that takes"), adversity and struggle ("'Cause when love is gone, there's always justice. And when justice is gone, there's always force.And when force is gone, there's always Mom. Hi Mom!"). Definately one of the most profound and beautiful songs ever.
I think this song is about war and how we cannot actually stop it no matter what we do. Neither Superman, the Judge or our Mum and Dad can stop war.
Just a note, she performed this song live with David Bowie once... I'm not sure exactly what part he played though. Eh, he could've stood around being awesome. He's cool like that.
@ashre_ashre he played harlequin
@ashre_ashre he played harlequin