"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.
It looks like we're close to the end
If this message were ever sent
you'd translate it into every word I never meant
But I won't let you inside my head
You're ever so protective, aren't you?
Baby, is there something that I should know?
And don't you ever, ever think that I
was ever holding back secrets, I've got nothing to hide
So let me grab a chair, to sit back and watch you lie
I'll let karma be the killer, the fall was a bad one
Would've stabbed your heart if you had one
We don't believe in second chances
or second-rate romances
So let's raise a toast to forgetting what we were
No one can save us
My only mistake was
listening to your every word and doing what you said
I'll let karma be the killer, the fall was a bad one
Would've stabbed your heart if you had one
We don't believe in second chances
or second-rate romances
So let's raise a toast to forgetting what we were
Take this into consideration
It looks like we're close to the end
If this message were ever sent
you'd translate it...
Into every word
I never meant
But I won't let you inside my head
I'll let karma be the killer, the fall was a bad one
Would've stabbed your heart if you had one
We don't believe in second chances,
or second-rate romances
So let's raise a toast
I'll let karma be the killer, the fall was a bad one
Would've stabbed your heart if you had one
We don't believe in second chances, or second-rate romances
So let's raise a toast to forgetting what we were
If this message were ever sent
you'd translate it into every word I never meant
But I won't let you inside my head
You're ever so protective, aren't you?
Baby, is there something that I should know?
And don't you ever, ever think that I
was ever holding back secrets, I've got nothing to hide
So let me grab a chair, to sit back and watch you lie
I'll let karma be the killer, the fall was a bad one
Would've stabbed your heart if you had one
We don't believe in second chances
or second-rate romances
So let's raise a toast to forgetting what we were
No one can save us
My only mistake was
listening to your every word and doing what you said
I'll let karma be the killer, the fall was a bad one
Would've stabbed your heart if you had one
We don't believe in second chances
or second-rate romances
So let's raise a toast to forgetting what we were
Take this into consideration
It looks like we're close to the end
If this message were ever sent
you'd translate it...
Into every word
I never meant
But I won't let you inside my head
I'll let karma be the killer, the fall was a bad one
Would've stabbed your heart if you had one
We don't believe in second chances,
or second-rate romances
So let's raise a toast
I'll let karma be the killer, the fall was a bad one
Would've stabbed your heart if you had one
We don't believe in second chances, or second-rate romances
So let's raise a toast to forgetting what we were
Lyrics submitted by ajc1ne
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Fast Car
Tracy Chapman
Tracy Chapman
Mental Istid
Ebba Grön
Ebba Grön
This is one of my favorite songs. https://fnfgo.io
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,
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.
Punchline
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran sings about missing his former partner and learning important life lessons in the process on “Punchline.” This track tells a story of battling to get rid of emotions for a former lover, whom he now realized might not have loved him the same way. He’s now caught between accepting that fact and learning life lessons from it and going back to beg her for another chance.
This song isn't on the album that I have by them D: