"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.
Well I find myself in reverie
'Bout what we might have had
And what might have been
We had something going once
That was such a long, long time ago
It was way back in '76
Our friendship formed of pure innocence
We first met in Mathew Street
Where we heard something that would set us free
A sign stands over a door, it says
"Four lads who shook the world"
In the depths of those heady nights
We would dream of those bright lights
Oh my friend, Oh my friend, Oh my friend
And my friend John, he went away
He made some mistakes
Spent time in Walton jail
And now when I see him we still talk
But there's no light shining in his eyes
And Susie, she was seventeen
And more beauty in this world
I swear you'll never see
I was gonna be king
And she was gonna be queen
But now all she does is hide behind the tears
If there was more sense in this world
And work wasn't so hard to find
You would not be going your way
I would not be going mine
Oh my friend, Oh my friend, Oh my friend
Somewhere tonight out on the street
Somewhere beneath this city's heat
In the eyes of strangers who pass me by
Life is cruel and so unkind
Oh, Oh the SPIRIT OF '76
And Pete has seen his dreams come true
But that don't make him no hero
He's just one of the lucky few
If a man can't change the world these days
I still believe a man can change his own destiny
But the price is high that has got to be paid
For everyone who survives there are many who fail
I've seen my friends caught out in that crossfire
All their dreams and hopes smashed on the funeral pyre
I will never give in until the day I die
Get myself some independence
Carve out a future with my two bare hands
Oh my friend, Oh my friend, Oh my friend
Somewhere tonight out on the street
Somewhere beneath this city's heat
In the eyes of strangers who pass me by
Life is cruel and so unkind
Oh, Oh the SPIRIT OF '76
Mersey lights shine in the distance
Same as they did for us then
Mersey lights shine bright in the distance
Where are you now my friend?
You see some nights when I can't sleep
I still think of you
And all the promises,all our dreams we shared
I know those lights still call to you
I can hear them now
I can hear them now
(Still shining for us)
(Let em shine)
(Can you hear them)
(Can you hear them)
(Lights are still shining)
Somewhere tonight out on the street
Somewhere beneath this city's heat
In the eyes of strangers who pass me by
Life is cruel and so unkind
Oh- Oh
Where's it gone
The SPIRIT OF '76
'Bout what we might have had
And what might have been
We had something going once
That was such a long, long time ago
It was way back in '76
Our friendship formed of pure innocence
We first met in Mathew Street
Where we heard something that would set us free
A sign stands over a door, it says
"Four lads who shook the world"
In the depths of those heady nights
We would dream of those bright lights
Oh my friend, Oh my friend, Oh my friend
And my friend John, he went away
He made some mistakes
Spent time in Walton jail
And now when I see him we still talk
But there's no light shining in his eyes
And Susie, she was seventeen
And more beauty in this world
I swear you'll never see
I was gonna be king
And she was gonna be queen
But now all she does is hide behind the tears
If there was more sense in this world
And work wasn't so hard to find
You would not be going your way
I would not be going mine
Oh my friend, Oh my friend, Oh my friend
Somewhere tonight out on the street
Somewhere beneath this city's heat
In the eyes of strangers who pass me by
Life is cruel and so unkind
Oh, Oh the SPIRIT OF '76
And Pete has seen his dreams come true
But that don't make him no hero
He's just one of the lucky few
If a man can't change the world these days
I still believe a man can change his own destiny
But the price is high that has got to be paid
For everyone who survives there are many who fail
I've seen my friends caught out in that crossfire
All their dreams and hopes smashed on the funeral pyre
I will never give in until the day I die
Get myself some independence
Carve out a future with my two bare hands
Oh my friend, Oh my friend, Oh my friend
Somewhere tonight out on the street
Somewhere beneath this city's heat
In the eyes of strangers who pass me by
Life is cruel and so unkind
Oh, Oh the SPIRIT OF '76
Mersey lights shine in the distance
Same as they did for us then
Mersey lights shine bright in the distance
Where are you now my friend?
You see some nights when I can't sleep
I still think of you
And all the promises,all our dreams we shared
I know those lights still call to you
I can hear them now
I can hear them now
(Still shining for us)
(Let em shine)
(Can you hear them)
(Can you hear them)
(Lights are still shining)
Somewhere tonight out on the street
Somewhere beneath this city's heat
In the eyes of strangers who pass me by
Life is cruel and so unkind
Oh- Oh
Where's it gone
The SPIRIT OF '76
Lyrics submitted by intothegrinder2
Spirit of 76 Lyrics as written by Michael Leslie Peters Edward James Mac Donald
Lyrics © CONCORD MUSIC PUBLISHING LLC
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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More Featured Meanings
Fast Car
Tracy Chapman
Tracy Chapman
Holiday
Bee Gees
Bee Gees
@[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.
When We Were Young
Blink-182
Blink-182
This is a sequel to 2001's "Reckless Abandon", and features the band looking back on their clumsy youth fondly.
No Surprises
Radiohead
Radiohead
Same ideas expressed in Fitter, Happier are expressed in this song. We're told to strive for some sort of ideal life, which includes getting a good job, being kind to everyone, finding a partner, getting married, having a couple kids, living in a quiet neighborhood in a nice big house, etc. But in Fitter, Happier the narrator(?) realizes that it's incredibly robotic to live this life. People are being used by those in power "like a pig in a cage on antibiotics"--being pacified with things like new phones and cool gadgets and houses while being sucked dry. On No Surprises, the narrator is realizing how this life is killing him slowly. In the video, his helmet is slowly filling up with water, drowning him. But he's so complacent with it. This is a good summary of the song. This boring, "perfect" life foisted upon us by some higher powers (not spiritual, but political, economic, etc. politicians and businessmen, perhaps) is not the way to live. But there is seemingly no way out but death. He'd rather die peacefully right now than live in this cage. While our lives are often shielded, we're in our own protective bubbles, or protective helmets like the one Thom wears, if we look a little harder we can see all the corruption, lies, manipulation, etc. that is going on in the world, often run by huge yet nearly invisible organizations, corporations, and 'leaders'. It's a very hopeless song because it reflects real life.
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.
Heh, you really think "The Spirit of 76" refers to a willingness to abandon your friends in pursuit of (financial) success? Unlikely. The singer wants survival and independence in a harsh world, not so much "making it big" and leaving his friends behind.
The song is being sung by a disillusioned man to one of those four lads he met as a youth, or perhaps even to his younger self. This song title refers to a sense of optimism about life. The kind that four young friends and dreamers have when they meet in college and set out to make their own way.
Yes, there are some failures and disappointments along the way. Maybe a lot of them. But the singer still feels that same hopeful spirit he had when he was a younger man.
This is about the price of success. If you want to succeed, you have to be willing to leave a few of your friends behind, because most who try don't make it big.