"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.
Lately I've been seeing things
Belly button piercings in the sky at night
When we're side by side
And I don't mean to rain on anybody's cabaret
One of those games you're gonna lose
But you wanna play it just in case
Now it's getting dark and the sky looks sticky
More like black treacle than tar
Black treacle
Somebody told the stars you're not coming out tonight
And so they found a place to hide
Does it help you stay up late?
Does it help you concentrate?
Is it true you win when you chew your chin?
Am I ruining your fun?
And you talk the talk alright
But do you walk the walk or catch the train?
You wanted it, you got it
But you don't want it now
Now it's getting dark and the sky looks sticky
More like black treacle than tar
Black treacle
Somebody told the stars you're not coming out tonight
And so they found a place to hide
And now I'm out of place and I'm not getting any wiser
I feel like the Sundance Kid behind a synthesizer
And I tried last night to pack away a laugh
Like a key under the mat
But it never seems to be there when you want it
Black treacle
Black treacle
Black treacle
Belly button piercings in the sky at night
When we're side by side
And I don't mean to rain on anybody's cabaret
One of those games you're gonna lose
But you wanna play it just in case
Now it's getting dark and the sky looks sticky
More like black treacle than tar
Black treacle
Somebody told the stars you're not coming out tonight
And so they found a place to hide
Does it help you stay up late?
Does it help you concentrate?
Is it true you win when you chew your chin?
Am I ruining your fun?
And you talk the talk alright
But do you walk the walk or catch the train?
You wanted it, you got it
But you don't want it now
Now it's getting dark and the sky looks sticky
More like black treacle than tar
Black treacle
Somebody told the stars you're not coming out tonight
And so they found a place to hide
And now I'm out of place and I'm not getting any wiser
I feel like the Sundance Kid behind a synthesizer
And I tried last night to pack away a laugh
Like a key under the mat
But it never seems to be there when you want it
Black treacle
Black treacle
Black treacle
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More Featured Meanings
Fast Car
Tracy Chapman
Tracy Chapman
Mountain Song
Jane's Addiction
Jane's Addiction
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."
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,
Head > Heels
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
“Head > Heels” is a track that aims to capture what it feels like to experience romance that exceeds expectations. Ed Sheeran dedicates his album outro to a lover who has blessed him with a unique experience that he seeks to describe through the song’s nuanced lyrics.
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.
I guess we're all on the same page of it being more or less about drugs. What some of the lines mean to me....:
Lately I've been seeing things, Belly button piercings, in the sky at night, When we're side by side. (I think it's a reference to him and a girl tripping out on some drugs, laying side by side and just looking at the night sky and then he starts to hallucinate.)
And I don't mean to rain on anybody's cabriolet One of those games your gonna lose, But you wanna play it just in case. (Perhaps he's saying that he knows this girl's not right for him, but he's gonna give it a shot anyways.)
Does it help you stay up late? Does it help you concentrate? Does it tune you in when you chew your chin? Am I ruining your fun? (Sounds to me like just another drug reference in which he may be questioning the girl for the reasoning behind her taking the drugs.)
Now i'm out of place and I'm not getting any wiser, I feel like the Sundance Kid behind a synthesiser, And I tried last night to pack away a laugh, Like a key under the mat, But it never seems to be there when you want it.
(This last one's my favorite! Probably another reference to the drugs and his perception on their effect on him; He's the like the Sundance Kid behind a synthesizer could mean he see's himself like a criminal for taking these illicit drugs, but he feels a bit trippy...sort of like if you've ever played with a synthesizer with all those sounds. And he tried to pack away a laugh could mean that he's trying to enjoy himself, but he just can't seem to do so.)
Anyways, that's my take on the song. Gonna see them in concert in Orlando in a couple of months!