"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 had a friend named Victor
The two of us used hang every single day
And it seemed like overnight that his whole life just changed
I know when his mom and his dad broke up it didn't make sense
But I know that his dad was a drunk and he gambled away the rent
Pretty soon Vic was seeing red, pissed off, but instead
He'd drink every night 'til he passed out
Then he'd do it all again
The whole time smiling on the outside to cover the pain
But on the inside all he was trying to do was get away
Yo, funny how things change color
Then fade to another shade, when you had it made
It was all good, but now look, just another day
It was so fresh, it was so clean
Now it's all gone, one, two, three
Lights out, which way to turn
Can't get a grip, all alone in a big white house
Every day gets worse and you just curse 'til your head bursts
And it hurts so bad, she left, now you suffer
Should've thought of that one first
No family, no kids, can't accept what you did, now you wanna
Run away but you can't cause the past comes back again
Slippin' through the cracks, sip a little Jack
Go to bed half dead
What about a rent? Why does every cent gotta be a bet
When's it gonna end
Oh my God, we don't got a penny left
My mom's gotta find a way to get a job
Outta debt, outta dodge, out of breath, out of this big problem
My pop's wanna get away from the pain
In a better place in his brain
But the medication he takes makes him wasted
So sick if he's gonna think the good Lord would come to take him
I'm shaking him
Wake up you son of a bitch
He's dying to get away
Let the pain of yesterday
Go slipping through the cracks
Hiding himself away
Watching all the memories fade away
From red to black
The two of us used hang every single day
And it seemed like overnight that his whole life just changed
I know when his mom and his dad broke up it didn't make sense
But I know that his dad was a drunk and he gambled away the rent
Pretty soon Vic was seeing red, pissed off, but instead
He'd drink every night 'til he passed out
Then he'd do it all again
The whole time smiling on the outside to cover the pain
But on the inside all he was trying to do was get away
Yo, funny how things change color
Then fade to another shade, when you had it made
It was all good, but now look, just another day
It was so fresh, it was so clean
Now it's all gone, one, two, three
Lights out, which way to turn
Can't get a grip, all alone in a big white house
Every day gets worse and you just curse 'til your head bursts
And it hurts so bad, she left, now you suffer
Should've thought of that one first
No family, no kids, can't accept what you did, now you wanna
Run away but you can't cause the past comes back again
Slippin' through the cracks, sip a little Jack
Go to bed half dead
What about a rent? Why does every cent gotta be a bet
When's it gonna end
Oh my God, we don't got a penny left
My mom's gotta find a way to get a job
Outta debt, outta dodge, out of breath, out of this big problem
My pop's wanna get away from the pain
In a better place in his brain
But the medication he takes makes him wasted
So sick if he's gonna think the good Lord would come to take him
I'm shaking him
Wake up you son of a bitch
He's dying to get away
Let the pain of yesterday
Go slipping through the cracks
Hiding himself away
Watching all the memories fade away
From red to black
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Fast Car
Tracy Chapman
Tracy Chapman
Bron-Y-Aur Stomp
Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin
This is about bronies. They communicate by stomping.
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”
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,
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.
It's about a boy whose parents are going through a divorce and the transition from anger (red) to acceptance (black)