"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.
Your skin's in my mouth
But I'm thinking about thousands of things
That don't got your name
So I'm distant and weird
Stopping your all ears
But how can I say
I've just been thinking that it's harder every year
To find excuses that'll keep me in the clear
The arbitrary lines I impress in the sand
The proof the power's in my trashcan
Well I'm looking older every day
The lies I've told have turned to leather on my face
The love I've lost has turned to needles in my heart
But I'm to blame for all the bad parts
By the choices I've made (hey hey)
That's why I turn my face away
I watch the debates
Till I can't see straight
Take abortion away
And we'll dodge it just the same
So I'm not sure why I vote
Cause I just don't know what difference it makes
It seems to me we get the same shit from them both
Reforms don't work I think it's time we tried revolt
But I don't got the guts to jump up first
So I'll just shout until my throat hurts
And I curse and I curse
And while we fucked up in Iraq
You say â??support the troopsâ??
I do, I want them all brought back
And every building you bombed raised from the ground
And blow your contractors the fuck out
And if you really go and reinstate the draft
Just straight away just split the country straight in half
Try arresting everyone who sends their draft cards back
I'll be returning mine in no time flat
In no time flat
In no time flat
In no time flat
(yeah yeah yeah ba da ba)
In a sense we're the same
Struggling to save face
A question of scope
How far you're willing to go
To make right to your bones
Despite the risk involved
A question of faith
Cause if we wait until we've all been burned to ash
To tell the truth about the shit buried in our past
We'll split a taxi to that fire pit way down south
So let's rise up and open our mouths
Cause you reminder me that it's harder every year
To find excuses that'll keep me in the clear
The arbitrary lines I impress in the sand
The proof the power's in my trashcan
And if you really go and reinstate the draft
Just Straight away just split the country straight in half
So try arresting everyone who sends their draft cards back
I'll be returning mine in no time flat
But I'm thinking about thousands of things
That don't got your name
So I'm distant and weird
Stopping your all ears
But how can I say
I've just been thinking that it's harder every year
To find excuses that'll keep me in the clear
The arbitrary lines I impress in the sand
The proof the power's in my trashcan
Well I'm looking older every day
The lies I've told have turned to leather on my face
The love I've lost has turned to needles in my heart
But I'm to blame for all the bad parts
By the choices I've made (hey hey)
That's why I turn my face away
I watch the debates
Till I can't see straight
Take abortion away
And we'll dodge it just the same
So I'm not sure why I vote
Cause I just don't know what difference it makes
It seems to me we get the same shit from them both
Reforms don't work I think it's time we tried revolt
But I don't got the guts to jump up first
So I'll just shout until my throat hurts
And I curse and I curse
And while we fucked up in Iraq
You say â??support the troopsâ??
I do, I want them all brought back
And every building you bombed raised from the ground
And blow your contractors the fuck out
And if you really go and reinstate the draft
Just straight away just split the country straight in half
Try arresting everyone who sends their draft cards back
I'll be returning mine in no time flat
In no time flat
In no time flat
In no time flat
(yeah yeah yeah ba da ba)
In a sense we're the same
Struggling to save face
A question of scope
How far you're willing to go
To make right to your bones
Despite the risk involved
A question of faith
Cause if we wait until we've all been burned to ash
To tell the truth about the shit buried in our past
We'll split a taxi to that fire pit way down south
So let's rise up and open our mouths
Cause you reminder me that it's harder every year
To find excuses that'll keep me in the clear
The arbitrary lines I impress in the sand
The proof the power's in my trashcan
And if you really go and reinstate the draft
Just Straight away just split the country straight in half
So try arresting everyone who sends their draft cards back
I'll be returning mine in no time flat
Lyrics submitted by SavesTheNight, edited by dustonthedash
No Time Flat Lyrics as written by Chris Bracco Amy Bracco
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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More Featured Meanings
Fast Car
Tracy Chapman
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Holiday
Bee Gees
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@[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.
I Can't Go To Sleep
Wu-Tang Clan
Wu-Tang Clan
This song is written as the perspective of the boys in the street, as a whole, and what path they are going to choose as they get older and grow into men. (This is why the music video takes place in an orphanage.) The seen, and unseen collective suffering is imbedded in the boys’ mind, consciously or subconsciously, and is haunting them. Which path will the boys choose? Issac Hayes is the voice of reason, maybe God, the angel on his shoulder, or the voice of his forefathers from beyond the grave who can see the big picture and are pleading with the boys not to continue the violence and pattern of killing their brothers, but to rise above. The most beautiful song and has so many levels. Racism towards African Americans in America would not exist if everyone sat down and listened to this song and understood the history behind the words. The power, fear, pleading in RZA and Ghostface voices are genuine and powerful. Issac Hayes’ strong voice makes the perfect strong father figure, who is possibly from beyond the grave.
Magical
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
How would you describe the feeling of being in love? For Ed Sheeran, the word is “Magical.” in HIS three-minute album opener, he makes an attempt to capture the beauty and delicacy of true love with words. He describes the magic of it all over a bright Pop song produced 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.
At the Austin City Limits 2007 Kevin Devine said, "This song is about sex during wartime and how it's hard to keep an erection up when CNN keeps showing all the death tolls."
To me the song is about how hard it is to do anything when there's this war going on and questioning if what you do to help matters or helps.
What? No comments? I love this song. I really do. I think the song's pretty obvious, as to the meaning..
this song is pretty amazing. it's cool that he's willing to get his opinion out there.
saw him perform this song last weekend...its even more powerful live. excellent song!
I saw him sing this last night, and it was incredible. squeakyfingers was right, it is even more powerful live. this song blows me away.
i love kevin devine. i really do. so badass.
This song i think is one of his best. The meaning is obvious. He is against the war and the draft and speaking up about it. "But I don’t got the guts to jump up first So I’ll just shout until my throat hurts" That line describes so many people.
Also Kevin wrote this song during a car ride. He doesn't have a radio in his car so he just sings and I'm sure a lot of the songs on the album were inspired that way
I was at one of his shows and he said it was about how sometimes you're having sex but then you get to thinking about everything else that's wrong with the world. Then he said how after that it's like impossible to still be into sex while all the things are going on right outside.
i agree with winterstale, he was like this song is about trying to have sex with your gf but the president starts a war that lasts six fucking years.