"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 pledge my allegiance,
To rhythm and sound.
Music is my medicine,
Let the rhythm pound
And play it loud, baby play it loud
Play it loud, baby play it loud
Rock the crowd, baby rock the crowd
And play it loud, baby play it loud
I found a love,
Its in the music
Drop all your guns,
Drop all that bullshit.
We come to love
Inside the instruments.
John Lennon, Bob Marley are my presidents.
The sound of trumpets wake up people sleeping now,
The drum and volume playin' gonna shake the ground
The violins will pick you up when you are down
The melody will spin around and around.
And who's going to stop us?
Who's going to stop us from rocking with this sound?
Who's going to stop us, who's going to stop us
From b-b-breaking it down?
Imma play lay it loud, Imma play it loud.
Play it loud, baby play it loud
And rock the crowd, baby rock the crowd
And rock the crowd, baby play it loud.
Hot beats coming from the city streets,
M.P.3's via internet from overseas
D.J's playing, you dance to 'em
Swaying, staying up
All night, zombie life
Audio delight, oh.
The sound of trumpets wake up people laying down, oh
The drum and volume playin' gonna shake the ground
The violins will pick you up when you are down
The melody will spin around and around.
And who's going to stop us?
Who's going to stop us from rocking with this sound?
Who's going to stop us, who's going to stop us
From b-b-breaking it down?
Imma play it loud, Imma play it loud.
Play it loud, baby play it loud
And rock the crowd, baby rock the crowd
Play it loud, baby play it loud.
I pledge my allegiance.
To rhythm and sound.
To rhythm and sound.
Music is my medicine,
Let the rhythm pound
And play it loud, baby play it loud
Play it loud, baby play it loud
Rock the crowd, baby rock the crowd
And play it loud, baby play it loud
I found a love,
Its in the music
Drop all your guns,
Drop all that bullshit.
We come to love
Inside the instruments.
John Lennon, Bob Marley are my presidents.
The sound of trumpets wake up people sleeping now,
The drum and volume playin' gonna shake the ground
The violins will pick you up when you are down
The melody will spin around and around.
And who's going to stop us?
Who's going to stop us from rocking with this sound?
Who's going to stop us, who's going to stop us
From b-b-breaking it down?
Imma play lay it loud, Imma play it loud.
Play it loud, baby play it loud
And rock the crowd, baby rock the crowd
And rock the crowd, baby play it loud.
Hot beats coming from the city streets,
M.P.3's via internet from overseas
D.J's playing, you dance to 'em
Swaying, staying up
All night, zombie life
Audio delight, oh.
The sound of trumpets wake up people laying down, oh
The drum and volume playin' gonna shake the ground
The violins will pick you up when you are down
The melody will spin around and around.
And who's going to stop us?
Who's going to stop us from rocking with this sound?
Who's going to stop us, who's going to stop us
From b-b-breaking it down?
Imma play it loud, Imma play it loud.
Play it loud, baby play it loud
And rock the crowd, baby rock the crowd
Play it loud, baby play it loud.
I pledge my allegiance.
To rhythm and sound.
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More Featured Meanings
Fast Car
Tracy Chapman
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Lord Huron
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This is a hauntingly beautiful song about introspection, specifically about looking back at a relationship that started bad and ended so poorly, that the narrator wants to go back to the very beginning and tell himself to not even travel down that road. I believe that the relationship started poorly because of the lines:
"Take me back to the night we met:When the night was full of terrors: And your eyes were filled with tears: When you had not touched me yet"
So, the first night was not a great start, but the narrator pursued the relationship and eventually both overcame the rough start to fall in love with each other:
"I had all and then most of you"
Like many relationships that turn sour, it was not a quick decline, but a gradual one where the narrator and their partner fall out of love and gradually grow apart
"Some and now none of you"
Losing someone who was once everything in your world, who you could confide in, tell your secrets to, share all the most intimate parts of your life, to being strangers with that person is probably one of the most painful experiences a person can go through. So Painful, the narrator wants to go back in time and tell himself to not even pursue the relationship.
This was the perfect song for "13 Reasons Why"
Mountain Song
Jane's Addiction
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Jane's Addiction vocalist Perry Farrell gives Adam Reader some heartfelt insight into Jane’s Addiction's hard rock manifesto "Mountain Song", which was the second single from their revolutionary album Nothing's Shocking. Mountain song was first recorded in 1986 and appeared on the soundtrack to the film Dudes starring Jon Cryer. The version on Nothing's Shocking was re-recorded in 1988.
"'Mountain Song' was actually about... I hate to say it but... drugs. Climbing this mountain and getting as high as you can, and then coming down that mountain," reveals Farrell. "What it feels to descend from the mountain top... not easy at all. The ascension is tough but exhilarating. Getting down is... it's a real bummer. Drugs is not for everybody obviously. For me, I wanted to experience the heights, and the lows come along with it."
"There's a part - 'Cash in now honey, cash in Miss Smith.' Miss Smith is my Mother; our last name was Smith. Cashing in when she cashed in her life. So... she decided that, to her... at that time, she was desperate. Life wasn't worth it for her, that was her opinion. Some people think, never take your life, and some people find that their life isn't worth living. She was in love with my Dad, and my Dad was not faithful to her, and it broke her heart. She was very desperate and she did something that I know she regrets."
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.
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.
I pledge my allegiance To rhythm and sound Music is my medicine Let the rhythm pound
And play it loud, baby, play it loud Play it loud, baby, play it loud Rock the crowd, baby, rock the crowd And play it loud, baby, play it loud
I found a love It's in the music Drop all your guns Drop all that bullshit We come to learn Inside the instruments John Lennon, Bob Marley are my presidents
The sound of trumpets wake up people sleeping now The drummer boy is drumming beats to shake the ground The violins will pick you up when you are down The melody will spin around, around, and round.
And who is gonna stop us? Who's gonna stop us From rocking with the sound?
Oh, who is gonna stop us Who's gonna stop us From br-br-br-breaking it down?
Gonna play it loud, baby, play it loud Play it loud, baby, play it loud And rock the crowd, baby, rock the crowd And rock the crowd, baby, play it loud
Hot beats coming from the city streets MP3s via internet from overseas DJ's playing, you dance to 'em Swaying, staying up All night, zombie life Audio delight, oh
The sound of trumpets wake up people laying down, oh The drummer boy is playing drums to shake the ground, oh The violins will pick you up when you are down, oh The melody will spin around, around, and round
And who is gonna stop us? Who's gonna stop us From rocking with the sound?
Oh, who is gonna stop us Who's gonna stop us From br-br-br-breaking it down?
Gonna play it loud, gonna play it loud Play it loud, baby, play it loud And rock the crowd, baby, rock the crowd Play it loud, baby, play it loud
I pledge my allegiance To rhythm and sound