"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.
Pushers and junkies and cheap hotel flunkies
Pulled the day down through the floor
Arrival, departure and very soon after
No one knows Stanley Cup scores
Frankfurt I'm sorry for the telling of lies
We cursed all your children and blackened their eyes
On through the ashes the army then marches
On its stomach as everyone knows
To quotes famous speeches it's "Back to the Beaches"
And the landing craft waiting to go
Frankfurt I'm sorry for the telling of lies
We cursed all your children and blackened their eyes
Frankfurt I'm sorry for the mud and the stones
We spat on your children and rattled old bones
Waiting in ambush, crushed on our first push
We fled from the foe we create
Our war on this town a mistake we found
Fears all get rash and inflate
Frankfurt I'm sorry for the telling of lies
We cursed all your children and blackened their eyes
Frankfurt I'm sorry for the mud and the stones
We spat on your children and rattled old bones
We can't stay here where the sheep are all black
The dogs are all strays and they run in a pack
We can't stay here there's still clothes on the floor
The bed's still warm and there's no lock upon the door
Frankfurt I'm sorry for the telling of lies
We cursed all your children and blackened their eyes
Frankfurt I'm sorry may we make amends
We drink to your pleasure and danced in the end
In the end...
In the end...
Pulled the day down through the floor
Arrival, departure and very soon after
No one knows Stanley Cup scores
Frankfurt I'm sorry for the telling of lies
We cursed all your children and blackened their eyes
On through the ashes the army then marches
On its stomach as everyone knows
To quotes famous speeches it's "Back to the Beaches"
And the landing craft waiting to go
Frankfurt I'm sorry for the telling of lies
We cursed all your children and blackened their eyes
Frankfurt I'm sorry for the mud and the stones
We spat on your children and rattled old bones
Waiting in ambush, crushed on our first push
We fled from the foe we create
Our war on this town a mistake we found
Fears all get rash and inflate
Frankfurt I'm sorry for the telling of lies
We cursed all your children and blackened their eyes
Frankfurt I'm sorry for the mud and the stones
We spat on your children and rattled old bones
We can't stay here where the sheep are all black
The dogs are all strays and they run in a pack
We can't stay here there's still clothes on the floor
The bed's still warm and there's no lock upon the door
Frankfurt I'm sorry for the telling of lies
We cursed all your children and blackened their eyes
Frankfurt I'm sorry may we make amends
We drink to your pleasure and danced in the end
In the end...
In the end...
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I remember reading that the band got a bad first impression of Frankfurt. They allowed this to taint their opinion of the city, but given more time they realised that it's actually a nice place.
"Our war on this town a mistake we found" says it all really.