"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.
Your perfect world
Has been upset
And this is the best it's gonna get
This is the best it's gonna get
And this is the best it's gonna get
Sit down and shut up I don't want to hear a word come out of your mouth
Why won't you listen to me?
(You're dreaming) Outside life's great but inside you're screaming
It's not how you thought it would be?
(Aimlessly)
Are you hoping for something?
(Patiently)
Waiting for some sign?
(Mindfully)
It's time to jump in or simply get the hell out
(Finally)
I think you better make up your mind
Your perfect world
Has been upset
And this is the best it's gonna get
C'mon, get up shake it off and work your way beyond the fallout
But you still won't listen to me
(You're screaming) Bam, the smack of the truth wakes you from your dreaming
So inconveniently
(Irony)
It sucks that it was all for nothing
(Painfully)
Your plans were redesigned
(Mournfully)
It's a shame you didn't stand for something
(Finally)
Now it's too late to make up your mind
Your perfect world
Has been upset
And this is the best it's gonna get
Your life's been overrated
Hopelessly complicated
You can keep your fame and you can
Keep your money
Keep your beauty
It's a shame how long you've waited
Constantly constipated
So grab your knees and clench your teeth and
Reap your glory
Reap your glory
Your perfect world
Has been upset
And this is the best it's gonna get
Best it's gonna get
Your perfect world
Has been up-
Set
And this is the best it's gonna get
Has been upset
And this is the best it's gonna get
This is the best it's gonna get
And this is the best it's gonna get
Sit down and shut up I don't want to hear a word come out of your mouth
Why won't you listen to me?
(You're dreaming) Outside life's great but inside you're screaming
It's not how you thought it would be?
(Aimlessly)
Are you hoping for something?
(Patiently)
Waiting for some sign?
(Mindfully)
It's time to jump in or simply get the hell out
(Finally)
I think you better make up your mind
Your perfect world
Has been upset
And this is the best it's gonna get
C'mon, get up shake it off and work your way beyond the fallout
But you still won't listen to me
(You're screaming) Bam, the smack of the truth wakes you from your dreaming
So inconveniently
(Irony)
It sucks that it was all for nothing
(Painfully)
Your plans were redesigned
(Mournfully)
It's a shame you didn't stand for something
(Finally)
Now it's too late to make up your mind
Your perfect world
Has been upset
And this is the best it's gonna get
Your life's been overrated
Hopelessly complicated
You can keep your fame and you can
Keep your money
Keep your beauty
It's a shame how long you've waited
Constantly constipated
So grab your knees and clench your teeth and
Reap your glory
Reap your glory
Your perfect world
Has been upset
And this is the best it's gonna get
Best it's gonna get
Your perfect world
Has been up-
Set
And this is the best it's gonna get
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Fast Car
Tracy Chapman
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This is about bronies. They communicate by stomping.
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”
Dreamwalker
Silent Planet
Silent Planet
I think much like another song “Anti-Matter” (that's also on the same album as this song), this one is also is inspired by a horrifying van crash the band experienced on Nov 3, 2022. This, much like the other track, sounds like it's an extension what they shared while huddled in the wreckage, as they helped frontman Garrett Russell stem the bleeding from his head wound while he was under the temporary effects of a concussion. The track speaks of where the mind goes at the most desperate & desolate of times, when it just about slips away to all but disconnect itself, and the aftermath.
Blue
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
“Blue” is a song about a love that is persisting in the discomfort of the person experiencing the emotion. Ed Sheeran reflects on love lost, and although he wishes his former partner find happiness, he cannot but admit his feelings are still very much there. He expresses the realization that he might never find another on this stringed instrumental by Aaron Dessner.