"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 wanna tell you
I've always wanted to tell you
But I never had the chance to say
What I feel in my heart from the beginning 'til my dying day
I was fifteen, sixteen maybe
In the park I was waving my arms
You were waved this way
And you sang the song I was screaming
I wanted you to
Another time was in South Carolina
It's always been the third encore
Whose wind came roaring in
Can you tell me who were you singing for
Oh my God, can you tell me who you were singing to
A phone call from your New York City office
You were supposedly asking to see me
And how I wanted to tell you
That I was just only four hundred miles away
Who could believe that you were calling I was in DC
I was four hundred miles behind
Backstage pass in my hand
Giving you my heart was my plan I wish I could tell you
My chance
In the middle of the stadium in Paris, France
Can I finally tell you
Can I finally tell you
To be my man
April in Paris, can I see you
Can you please be my man
I've always wanted to tell you
But I never had the chance to say
What I feel in my heart from the beginning 'til my dying day
I was fifteen, sixteen maybe
In the park I was waving my arms
You were waved this way
And you sang the song I was screaming
I wanted you to
Another time was in South Carolina
It's always been the third encore
Whose wind came roaring in
Can you tell me who were you singing for
Oh my God, can you tell me who you were singing to
A phone call from your New York City office
You were supposedly asking to see me
And how I wanted to tell you
That I was just only four hundred miles away
Who could believe that you were calling I was in DC
I was four hundred miles behind
Backstage pass in my hand
Giving you my heart was my plan I wish I could tell you
My chance
In the middle of the stadium in Paris, France
Can I finally tell you
Can I finally tell you
To be my man
April in Paris, can I see you
Can you please be my man
Add your thoughts
Log in now to tell us what you think this song means.
Don’t have an account? Create an account with SongMeanings to post comments, submit lyrics, and more. It’s super easy, we promise!
More Featured Meanings
Fast Car
Tracy Chapman
Tracy Chapman
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,
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.
Head > Heels
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
“Head > Heels” is a track that aims to capture what it feels like to experience romance that exceeds expectations. Ed Sheeran dedicates his album outro to a lover who has blessed him with a unique experience that he seeks to describe through the song’s nuanced lyrics.
The title alludes to Bob Dylan's 'Song to Woody,' written to his idol, Woody Guthrie, I'm sure.