"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.
Good evening
This is your fucking captain speaking
We will soon be reaching an altitude of
Four million and a half feet
That's eight million miles in the sky
Please, undo your seat belt for takeoff
You are now free to smoke about the cabin, cabin
I'm Dre from back in the day, from
N.W.A, from black and the gray, from
Choking a bitch to smacking her face, from
Stacking up bodies to
Racking AKs up, from
Racking up hits to
Stacking them crates up
I'm still hungry and I'm back with a tapeworm
And we're what's happening in rap entertainment
Me and Shady, far as competition, faggot, there ain't none (yeah)
Speak of the Devil
It's attack of the rain man
Chainsaw in hand, blood stain on my apron
Soon as the blade spun, vrrun, they run away from
Who wanna play dungeon?
No one is safe from
In search of a brain surgeon, a great one
Wait, it ain't funny, man
It's urgent, I need one
Two boxes of detergent and a paint gun
And an emergency squirt gun to spray A-1
So one more time for old time's sake
Dre, drop that beat and scratch that break
Now just blow a little bit of that smoke my way
And let's go
(You are now smoking with the best, the best)
I said one more time for old time's sake
Dre, drop that beat and scratch that break
Now just send a little bit of that smoke my way
And let's go
(You are now smoking with the best, the best)
Smoke signal in the sky like Verizon wireless
A nice environment, surprised entirely
Hypnotized by the sound I surround
The hydrants taking lives of firemen
Say goodbye, here I am again
Naked wives and Vicodin
Before I begin to get so high, pussy boy, I could spin
Fin, fin, fuck the handle, I fly off the hinge
Let that boy off the bench, coach, and throw it to him
There he goes in his trench coat, no clothes again
Baby, make us some French toast and show us some skin
I'll show you every inch grows on my foreskin
Show me nipple, I pinch both, and throw up a ten
Now you know it's a sin to tease, blow us again
The sorcerer of intercourse, if it's forced, it's him
Don't fight the feeling if you're feeling the force within
And when you wake up in the morning next to the porcelain
So one more time for old time's sake
Dre, drop that beat and scratch that brake
Now just blow a little bit of that smoke my way
And let's go
(You are now smoking with the best, the best)
I said one more time for old time's sake
Dre, drop that beat and scratch that brake
Now just send a little bit of that smoke my way
And let's go
(You are now smoking with the best, the best)
Now where there's smoke, there's fire
Where there's fire, there's flames
Where there's flames, there's chronic
Either you high or you ain't
I got no time for no games
Nah-uh, he ain't playin'
He's gon' get the AK
And aim it right at your brain
I'm slightly insane, Vodka and creatine
Hypnotic and Red Bull, it's an incredible energy drink
And it's given me wings, I believe I can fly
While I pee on a girl, you won't catch me, CSI
It's as easy as pie and as simple as cake
Dre, get on the mic and make 'em tremble and shake
Now put your smoke up in the air
Raise your Henny and Coke
And if you really wanna get fucked up, just let me know
We can smoke 'til there's no more lighter fluid to do it
Let's get into it
You're smoking with the triedest and truest
I got the Midas touch when it comes to rolling shit up
You motherfuckers ain't smoking, you just holding shit up
Now here we go
Let's get up, get down, hold up a blunt
I smoke the kinda stuff that make the records go number one
'Cause if at first you don't succeed, won't hurt to smoke some weed
Now them words are just a little more personal for me
Seeing is how I blew up off of puffing them trees
Well smoke enough for me
Fuck yeah, light it up, Cheech
Come on, smoke me out, cuz, give me contact buzz
Get me on track, they love me when I'm on that stuff
But this is earth calling Shady, man come on back (what?)
Man, we're losing him, he won't even respond back, fuck
Now look at all the pretty women in here (damn, bitches)
Dre, it's hot, I think we better go check on their temperatures
I'll get the thermometer, you get the bandages
Now, baby, just bend over, this won't hurt a damn bit, just
And give me one more time for old time's sake
Dre, drop that beat and scratch that break
Now just blow a little bit of that smoke my way
And let's go
(You are now smoking with the best, the best)
I said one more time for old time's sake
Dre, drop that beat and scratch that break
Now just send a little bit of that smoke my way
And let's go
(You are now smoking with the best, the best)
This is your fucking captain speaking
We will soon be reaching an altitude of
Four million and a half feet
That's eight million miles in the sky
Please, undo your seat belt for takeoff
You are now free to smoke about the cabin, cabin
I'm Dre from back in the day, from
N.W.A, from black and the gray, from
Choking a bitch to smacking her face, from
Stacking up bodies to
Racking AKs up, from
Racking up hits to
Stacking them crates up
I'm still hungry and I'm back with a tapeworm
And we're what's happening in rap entertainment
Me and Shady, far as competition, faggot, there ain't none (yeah)
Speak of the Devil
It's attack of the rain man
Chainsaw in hand, blood stain on my apron
Soon as the blade spun, vrrun, they run away from
Who wanna play dungeon?
No one is safe from
In search of a brain surgeon, a great one
Wait, it ain't funny, man
It's urgent, I need one
Two boxes of detergent and a paint gun
And an emergency squirt gun to spray A-1
So one more time for old time's sake
Dre, drop that beat and scratch that break
Now just blow a little bit of that smoke my way
And let's go
(You are now smoking with the best, the best)
I said one more time for old time's sake
Dre, drop that beat and scratch that break
Now just send a little bit of that smoke my way
And let's go
(You are now smoking with the best, the best)
Smoke signal in the sky like Verizon wireless
A nice environment, surprised entirely
Hypnotized by the sound I surround
The hydrants taking lives of firemen
Say goodbye, here I am again
Naked wives and Vicodin
Before I begin to get so high, pussy boy, I could spin
Fin, fin, fuck the handle, I fly off the hinge
Let that boy off the bench, coach, and throw it to him
There he goes in his trench coat, no clothes again
Baby, make us some French toast and show us some skin
I'll show you every inch grows on my foreskin
Show me nipple, I pinch both, and throw up a ten
Now you know it's a sin to tease, blow us again
The sorcerer of intercourse, if it's forced, it's him
Don't fight the feeling if you're feeling the force within
And when you wake up in the morning next to the porcelain
So one more time for old time's sake
Dre, drop that beat and scratch that brake
Now just blow a little bit of that smoke my way
And let's go
(You are now smoking with the best, the best)
I said one more time for old time's sake
Dre, drop that beat and scratch that brake
Now just send a little bit of that smoke my way
And let's go
(You are now smoking with the best, the best)
Now where there's smoke, there's fire
Where there's fire, there's flames
Where there's flames, there's chronic
Either you high or you ain't
I got no time for no games
Nah-uh, he ain't playin'
He's gon' get the AK
And aim it right at your brain
I'm slightly insane, Vodka and creatine
Hypnotic and Red Bull, it's an incredible energy drink
And it's given me wings, I believe I can fly
While I pee on a girl, you won't catch me, CSI
It's as easy as pie and as simple as cake
Dre, get on the mic and make 'em tremble and shake
Now put your smoke up in the air
Raise your Henny and Coke
And if you really wanna get fucked up, just let me know
We can smoke 'til there's no more lighter fluid to do it
Let's get into it
You're smoking with the triedest and truest
I got the Midas touch when it comes to rolling shit up
You motherfuckers ain't smoking, you just holding shit up
Now here we go
Let's get up, get down, hold up a blunt
I smoke the kinda stuff that make the records go number one
'Cause if at first you don't succeed, won't hurt to smoke some weed
Now them words are just a little more personal for me
Seeing is how I blew up off of puffing them trees
Well smoke enough for me
Fuck yeah, light it up, Cheech
Come on, smoke me out, cuz, give me contact buzz
Get me on track, they love me when I'm on that stuff
But this is earth calling Shady, man come on back (what?)
Man, we're losing him, he won't even respond back, fuck
Now look at all the pretty women in here (damn, bitches)
Dre, it's hot, I think we better go check on their temperatures
I'll get the thermometer, you get the bandages
Now, baby, just bend over, this won't hurt a damn bit, just
And give me one more time for old time's sake
Dre, drop that beat and scratch that break
Now just blow a little bit of that smoke my way
And let's go
(You are now smoking with the best, the best)
I said one more time for old time's sake
Dre, drop that beat and scratch that break
Now just send a little bit of that smoke my way
And let's go
(You are now smoking with the best, the best)
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More Featured Meanings
Fast Car
Tracy Chapman
Tracy Chapman
Bron-Y-Aur Stomp
Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin
This is about bronies. They communicate by stomping.
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.
American Town
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran shares a short story of reconnecting with an old flame on “American Town.” The track is about a holiday Ed Sheeran spends with his countrywoman who resides in America. The two are back together after a long period apart, and get around to enjoying a bunch of fun activities while rekindling the flames of their romance.
Plastic Bag
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
“Plastic Bag” is a song about searching for an escape from personal problems and hoping to find it in the lively atmosphere of a Saturday night party. Ed Sheeran tells the story of his friend and the myriad of troubles he is going through. Unable to find any solutions, this friend seeks a last resort in a party and the vanity that comes with it.
“I overthink and have trouble sleepin’ / All purpose gone and don’t have a reason / And there’s no doctor to stop this bleedin’ / So I left home and jumped in the deep end,” Ed Sheeran sings in verse one. He continues by adding that this person is feeling the weight of having disappointed his father and doesn’t have any friends to rely on in this difficult moment. In the second verse, Ed sings about the role of grief in his friend’s plight and his dwindling faith in prayer. “Saturday night is givin’ me a reason to rely on the strobe lights / The lifeline of a promise in a shot glass, and I’ll take that / If you’re givin’ out love from a plastic bag,” Ed sings on the chorus, as his friend turns to new vices in hopes of feeling better.
Damn Bitches !