"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.
The poor stays poor, the rich get richer
It's just so disproportionate
Get outta here
Sometimes life seems so unfortunate
That's why I don't give a shit
The poor stay poor, the rich get richer
It's just so disproportionate
You don't know just what I go through
That's why I would rather show you
Just how far that I can take it
Every rule I'm breakin' it
Terrible, but not rip-able, invincible, I hung invisible
Fuckin' mistletoe all over the world, I stuck my ass up under it
Now pucker up them lips and kiss it, ho
Here we go, Bad and Evil so you know how this'll go
The competition's miserable, we stomp them bitches, this is no joke
Goin' overboard like someone threw us off the boat, choke
Cough from all the smoke, I'm tryna stay on fire
So you know if I hate fucking water sprinklers, I don't love the hoes
Someone let the cat out the bag, now it's time to stuff its face
Back in that bitch, smother that little motherfucker 'til it suffocates (who?)
You had long enough of a wait, why are they
Tryna be so secretive? Bad and Evil is reunited, hey
Came back to annihilate, the game's in dire straights as I await
Word on Satan as I drop, fall to my knees before this
Ouija board and I pray, now I lay me down to sleep
I do this shit in my sleep, I'm sleepin' now, imagine if I awake?
I'm champ, bitch, I'll never taste the canvas
Could never be no damn wuss or pussy
Never mushy, so you can't squish
Nowhere near a tush, in fact if I jump out a bush
In a sneak attack's, the only way I'll say I am Bush
Outlandish, these words are weapons that I brandish
Stand-offish to hoes, keep your hands off this
Can't top it, so what the fuck would I sugarcoat it for?
Law? Fuck protocol, I'd holla at this ho
But now my throat is sore
Sometimes life seems so unfortunate
That's why I don't give a shit
The poor stay poor, the rich get richer
It's just so disproportionate
You don't know just what I go through
That's why I would rather show you
Just how far that I can take it
Every rule I'm breakin' it (Royce)
Baby, I'm lawless
You couldn't burn me if you threw acid on me
I'm at ya, homie, I'm at your home ready to spray you
While you nappin', homie
have everything on and around your mattress
lookin' like the word in front of a matrimony
You high, thug? Yeah, go 'head, jump, no matter how high you get
You gon' come up short like Spud Webb
My DUIs get waived like sayin' bye
Still ridin' with no L's like James Todd, can't change, I
I thank God for my safe thinkin', last time I was safe thinkin'
Me and my niggas was doin' a bank job
I stay violent, y'all go the peace route
You got a mouth like Kanye
I'll knock your whole bottom row of teeth out
No disrespect to Mr. West, shit, I'm just nice with mine
And this just rap, I'm just like Ricky Hatton, I just like the line
These weak rappers want to set us up, they never tough
They ask me for a hook, I tell 'em, left or right? Head or gut?
What y'all messin' with is a nigga that'll leave you FUBAR
Fucked up beyond all recognition
Y'all are rock stars, I'm the opposite
I could just throw a rock and hit a star for the fuck of it (for the fuck)
Partner, you're not hard, I body your hot bars
Beef is left you pray, right like Allahu Akbar, let's go
when I leave y'all shot, you ain't gon' be on your Metro
In a bad area that call dropped
Sometimes life seems so unfortunate
That's why I don't give a shit
The poor stay poor, the rich get richer
It's just so disproportionate
You don't know just what I go through
That's why I would rather show you
Just how far that I can take it
Every rule I'm breakin' it
It's just so disproportionate
Get outta here
Sometimes life seems so unfortunate
That's why I don't give a shit
The poor stay poor, the rich get richer
It's just so disproportionate
You don't know just what I go through
That's why I would rather show you
Just how far that I can take it
Every rule I'm breakin' it
Terrible, but not rip-able, invincible, I hung invisible
Fuckin' mistletoe all over the world, I stuck my ass up under it
Now pucker up them lips and kiss it, ho
Here we go, Bad and Evil so you know how this'll go
The competition's miserable, we stomp them bitches, this is no joke
Goin' overboard like someone threw us off the boat, choke
Cough from all the smoke, I'm tryna stay on fire
So you know if I hate fucking water sprinklers, I don't love the hoes
Someone let the cat out the bag, now it's time to stuff its face
Back in that bitch, smother that little motherfucker 'til it suffocates (who?)
You had long enough of a wait, why are they
Tryna be so secretive? Bad and Evil is reunited, hey
Came back to annihilate, the game's in dire straights as I await
Word on Satan as I drop, fall to my knees before this
Ouija board and I pray, now I lay me down to sleep
I do this shit in my sleep, I'm sleepin' now, imagine if I awake?
I'm champ, bitch, I'll never taste the canvas
Could never be no damn wuss or pussy
Never mushy, so you can't squish
Nowhere near a tush, in fact if I jump out a bush
In a sneak attack's, the only way I'll say I am Bush
Outlandish, these words are weapons that I brandish
Stand-offish to hoes, keep your hands off this
Can't top it, so what the fuck would I sugarcoat it for?
Law? Fuck protocol, I'd holla at this ho
But now my throat is sore
Sometimes life seems so unfortunate
That's why I don't give a shit
The poor stay poor, the rich get richer
It's just so disproportionate
You don't know just what I go through
That's why I would rather show you
Just how far that I can take it
Every rule I'm breakin' it (Royce)
Baby, I'm lawless
You couldn't burn me if you threw acid on me
I'm at ya, homie, I'm at your home ready to spray you
While you nappin', homie
have everything on and around your mattress
lookin' like the word in front of a matrimony
You high, thug? Yeah, go 'head, jump, no matter how high you get
You gon' come up short like Spud Webb
My DUIs get waived like sayin' bye
Still ridin' with no L's like James Todd, can't change, I
I thank God for my safe thinkin', last time I was safe thinkin'
Me and my niggas was doin' a bank job
I stay violent, y'all go the peace route
You got a mouth like Kanye
I'll knock your whole bottom row of teeth out
No disrespect to Mr. West, shit, I'm just nice with mine
And this just rap, I'm just like Ricky Hatton, I just like the line
These weak rappers want to set us up, they never tough
They ask me for a hook, I tell 'em, left or right? Head or gut?
What y'all messin' with is a nigga that'll leave you FUBAR
Fucked up beyond all recognition
Y'all are rock stars, I'm the opposite
I could just throw a rock and hit a star for the fuck of it (for the fuck)
Partner, you're not hard, I body your hot bars
Beef is left you pray, right like Allahu Akbar, let's go
when I leave y'all shot, you ain't gon' be on your Metro
In a bad area that call dropped
Sometimes life seems so unfortunate
That's why I don't give a shit
The poor stay poor, the rich get richer
It's just so disproportionate
You don't know just what I go through
That's why I would rather show you
Just how far that I can take it
Every rule I'm breakin' it
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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.
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,
I Can't Go To Sleep
Wu-Tang Clan
Wu-Tang Clan
This song is written as the perspective of the boys in the street, as a whole, and what path they are going to choose as they get older and grow into men. (This is why the music video takes place in an orphanage.) The seen, and unseen collective suffering is imbedded in the boys’ mind, consciously or subconsciously, and is haunting them. Which path will the boys choose? Issac Hayes is the voice of reason, maybe God, the angel on his shoulder, or the voice of his forefathers from beyond the grave who can see the big picture and are pleading with the boys not to continue the violence and pattern of killing their brothers, but to rise above. The most beautiful song and has so many levels. Racism towards African Americans in America would not exist if everyone sat down and listened to this song and understood the history behind the words. The power, fear, pleading in RZA and Ghostface voices are genuine and powerful. Issac Hayes’ strong voice makes the perfect strong father figure, who is possibly from beyond the grave.
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.