"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.
Now go stand in the corner and think about what you did
Ha, time for a little revenge
The story starts when it was hot and it was summer
And, I had it all I had him right there where I wanted him
She came along, got him alone, and let's hear the applause
She took him faster than you could say sabotage
I never saw it coming, nor would I have suspected it
I underestimated just who I was dealing with
She had to know the pain was beating on me like a drum
She underestimated just who she was stealing from
She's not a saint and she's not what you think
She's an actress, whoa
She's better known for the things that she does
On the mattress, whoa
Soon she's gonna find
Stealing other people's toys on the playground
Won't make you many friends
She should keep in mind
She should keep in mind
There is nothing I do better than revenge, ha
She looks at life like it's a party and she's on the list
She looks at me like I'm a trend and she's so over it
I think her ever present frown is a little troubling
And, she thinks I'm psycho
'Cause I like to rhyme her name with things, but
Sophistication isn't what you wear, or who you know
Or pushing people down to get you where you wanna go
Oh they didn't teach you that in prep school
So it's up to me
But no amount of vintage dresses gives you dignity
(Think about what you did)
She's not a saint and she's not what you think
She's an actress, whoa
She's better known for the things that she does
On the mattress, whoa
Soon she's gonna find
Stealing other people's toys on the playground
Won't make you many friends
She should keep in mind
She should keep in mind
There is nothing I do better than revenge, ha
I'm just another thing for you to roll your eyes at honey
You might have him, but haven't you heard
I'm just another thing for you to roll your eyes at honey
You might have him, but I'll always get the last word
Whoa
She's not a saint and she's not what you think
She's an actress, whoa
She's better known for the things that she does
On the mattress, whoa
Soon she's gonna find
Stealing other people's toys on the playground
Won't make you many friends
She should keep in mind
She should keep in mind
There is nothing I do better than revenge, ha
And do you still feel like you know what you're doing
'Cause I don't think you do, oh
Do you still feel like you know what you're doing
I don't think you do, I don't think you do
Let's hear the applause
C'mon show me how much better you are
See you deserve some applause
'Cause you're so much better
She took him faster than you could say sabotage
Ha, time for a little revenge
The story starts when it was hot and it was summer
And, I had it all I had him right there where I wanted him
She came along, got him alone, and let's hear the applause
She took him faster than you could say sabotage
I never saw it coming, nor would I have suspected it
I underestimated just who I was dealing with
She had to know the pain was beating on me like a drum
She underestimated just who she was stealing from
She's not a saint and she's not what you think
She's an actress, whoa
She's better known for the things that she does
On the mattress, whoa
Soon she's gonna find
Stealing other people's toys on the playground
Won't make you many friends
She should keep in mind
She should keep in mind
There is nothing I do better than revenge, ha
She looks at life like it's a party and she's on the list
She looks at me like I'm a trend and she's so over it
I think her ever present frown is a little troubling
And, she thinks I'm psycho
'Cause I like to rhyme her name with things, but
Sophistication isn't what you wear, or who you know
Or pushing people down to get you where you wanna go
Oh they didn't teach you that in prep school
So it's up to me
But no amount of vintage dresses gives you dignity
(Think about what you did)
She's not a saint and she's not what you think
She's an actress, whoa
She's better known for the things that she does
On the mattress, whoa
Soon she's gonna find
Stealing other people's toys on the playground
Won't make you many friends
She should keep in mind
She should keep in mind
There is nothing I do better than revenge, ha
I'm just another thing for you to roll your eyes at honey
You might have him, but haven't you heard
I'm just another thing for you to roll your eyes at honey
You might have him, but I'll always get the last word
Whoa
She's not a saint and she's not what you think
She's an actress, whoa
She's better known for the things that she does
On the mattress, whoa
Soon she's gonna find
Stealing other people's toys on the playground
Won't make you many friends
She should keep in mind
She should keep in mind
There is nothing I do better than revenge, ha
And do you still feel like you know what you're doing
'Cause I don't think you do, oh
Do you still feel like you know what you're doing
I don't think you do, I don't think you do
Let's hear the applause
C'mon show me how much better you are
See you deserve some applause
'Cause you're so much better
She took him faster than you could say sabotage
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Holy crap, Taylor.
Maybe it's just me, but it sounds like at the end she's sing "so much better". Could this be in reference to the Jonas Brothers song "Much Better", which was about Joe's break up with Taylor?? (the lyrics went: Now I'm done with superstars, and all the tears on her guitar. You're much better.)
I was thinking the SAME thing. When I first hear "Much Better", I instantly thought of it being a blow at Taylor, considering the lyric you quoted. So, I totally think that she had a reason to throw in "so much better" at the end.
Yupperdoodledoo, I read in a magazine and she's referring to that song!<br /> <br /> Stupid Joe.
That's right it reffers to Much Better from JB...she still loves Joe a little though...
seriously..this album has completely blown me away
This song is so different from what Taylor has ever done, but I still love it. at first listen, it actually reminded me of Hayley Williams. it reminds me of Misery business. but seriously, Taylor's new album is so amazing and every song is original. i love it. <3
My friend and I totally agreed on that Misery Business bit!
haha this is exactly what I thought when I first heard it.
This song is very deep. First of all, if you have her CD's, did you ever notice that there are random capitolized letters? Well, I always thought it was just for appearance, but when I got this CD, I thought 'What if those capitolized letters mean something'. I never knew Taylor was so deep =)
In this particular song, Taylor spelled out 'YOUTHOUGHTIWOULDFORGET'... You thought I would Forget... No we didn't Taylor, you never do =). She is talking about Camilla Belle. Camilla 'stole' Joe Jonas (Target of at least 2 of Swift's songs now) from Taylor, and she's obviously furious.
This song could cause her to loose quite a big audiance to strict parents. She went a bit far in the quote 'She's an actress, WhOa, but she's better known for the things that she does on the mattress, WhOa' Kind of un-called for, yet, if that's what she feels, let it out Taylor.
She could possibly (This is part of my interpretation) be harassing Joe by saying 'WhOa' and emphasizing it. Joe was dating AJ Michalka (From Aly and AJ) and they broke up... Aly and Aj have a song called 'Like Whoa' where they emphasize the Whoa (Obviously).
Do you agree? Comment, and read my interpretations from her album Speak Now.
In general, I have no problem with Taylor Swift. However, I despise this song. It is mean, catty, juvenile, and sends all the wrong messages to teenage girls listening to it.
"Stealing other peoples' toys on the playground"??? Because men are our possessions, and this boy belonged to Taylor, and had no say in leaving her for this other girl. That's not sexist at all. If she loves this guy? Why doesn't she respect him enough to realize that it was his decision to break up with her, not the other girl's?
"She's better known for the things that she does on a mattress"? That's mature. Your boyfriend dumps you for another girl; obviously she is a slut who sleeps with everything in sight. Again, doesn't she respect the guy enough to know that he can draw his own conclusions about this girl?
"Better than revenge"? Lovely. Teenage girls: If your boyfriend breaks up with you, it's not his fault. Another girl is controlling his actions, he only thinks that he doesn't love you, and you should get your revenge on the girl.
This just sends an awful message, as do several of the songs on her new album. I miss her old songs.
She didn't say he had no choice, she said she stole him. She means that the other girl seduced him. That's also what the mattress bit means. And it was a metaphor. She was taking revenge BECAUSE OF THIS.
THANK YOU! As much as I love Taylor, I think this was a really catty and mean song. I mean, it's one thing to write it just to get it out of her system; but to release it to the whole world? I think it reflects kind of negatively on Taylor's character. I mean, yes, I get that she's upset. Any girl would be. But you could respond with grace, take the high road, and get over him. Instead Taylor chose to show her bitchy, jealous side to the world. She's on the other end of the spectrum she wrote about in "Mean;" she's become the bully with this song. And you know what? The thing our society seems to misunderstand is that a woman doesn't steal a man; he chooses to leave. A women isn't a slutty seductresses just because a guy chose her. Yes, the woman maybe shouldn't have gone after a guy in a relationship; but she wouldn't have done so if he hadn't sent her the right signals. If he'd ignored her and blown her off like he should have, there wouldn't have been any stealing going on. I kind of hate that women get called home-wreckers and sluts when it's the man's straying eye that's to blame. Of course you hate the "other woman." But in reality, she isn't a devil seductress out to steal your man. She's just another woman. It's probably easier to blame her rather than blame the guy you loved. But it isn't right. If my boyfriend left me for another girl, yes, I would hate her; but I would also acknowledge that it was HIM, not her, that tore our relationship apart. And honestly, I have a little bit less respect for Taylor after this slut-shaming song. Her "mattress" allusions aren't clever. They're catty. And she is sending entirely the wrong message to her young fans. Slut-shaming IS bullying, and Taylor is condoning it.
Really? Chill out. I don't think her intentions were "slut shaming" or even sending a message of any kind. I think the song is hilarious. It's fun. It's catty. It's "mean" but that's just...the point.<br /> <br /> And this doesnt mean she thinks he has no control over himself. To make a good song, sometimes you have to fo outside the box a little. It wouldn't be as funny if she focused on him. Teenage girls never see it the way youre talking anyway. They see it as the other girl...stealing...their boyfriend.the other for is always the bad guy. Never the boyfriend. <br /> <br /> So...relax. It's a song. Don't take it so seriously. Or literal.
Other girl*
I think that you are very right to say that. Taylor is hiding the words behind the heavy music. And if she can't get over the fact that some guy thought she wasn't worth his time, she doesn't deserve to say anything bad about anyone, whether the boy or the girl.<br /> At first, I thought this song was great, but now that I've read the lyrics, I think that its not setting the example that i want to see people running around with. I'm not sure how many Taylor Swift songs do.
doesnt anyone know that Twsift is friends with Hayley from paramore, I love this New cd Taylor swift is amazing people are saying that this song is catty or high school-ish yea it is but were women were gonna be catty sometimes
robert pattinson said this about camilla belle... "she's the nicest – she's a saint. And it's funny that she's being portrayed as this home-wrecker. She's literally the most unlikely person to be a home-wrecker. It's just ridiculous." so maybe that's where the saint/actress line comes from
I've always hated Camilla so hearing this song made me VERY happy! (=
Everyone needs to stop comparing T-Swift to Hayley Williams ... the way it's written may resemble Paramore's style, but her voice DEFINITELY sounds more like Avril Lavigne. I challenge you to listen to an old Avril Lavigne song and then listen to this song, and you'll know what I mean.
@tulipsareblue omg!