"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 take a little powder, take a little salt, put it in my shotgun, I go walkin'
Jubba jubba, wolly bully, looking high, looking low,
Gonna scare you up and shoot ya, Mister Charlie told me so.
I won't even take your life, won't even take a limb,
Just unload my shotgun, take a little skin.
Jubba jubba, wolly bully, looking high, looking low,
Gonna scare you up and shoot ya, Mister Charlie told me so.
Well you take my silver dollar, take those silver dimes,
Fix it up together in some alligator wine.
I can hear the drums, voodoo all night long,
Mister Charlie tells me I can't do nothing wrong.
Jubba jubba, wolly bully, looking high, looking low,
Gonna scare you up and shoot ya, Mister Charlie told me so.
Now Mister Charlie told me, won't you like to know,
Give you little warning before I let you go.
Jubba jubba, wolly bully, looking high, looking low,
Gonna scare you up and shoot ya, Mister Charlie told me so.
Gonna scare you up and shoot ya, Mister Charlie, Mister Charlie told me so.
Jubba jubba, wolly bully, looking high, looking low,
Gonna scare you up and shoot ya, Mister Charlie told me so.
I won't even take your life, won't even take a limb,
Just unload my shotgun, take a little skin.
Jubba jubba, wolly bully, looking high, looking low,
Gonna scare you up and shoot ya, Mister Charlie told me so.
Well you take my silver dollar, take those silver dimes,
Fix it up together in some alligator wine.
I can hear the drums, voodoo all night long,
Mister Charlie tells me I can't do nothing wrong.
Jubba jubba, wolly bully, looking high, looking low,
Gonna scare you up and shoot ya, Mister Charlie told me so.
Now Mister Charlie told me, won't you like to know,
Give you little warning before I let you go.
Jubba jubba, wolly bully, looking high, looking low,
Gonna scare you up and shoot ya, Mister Charlie told me so.
Gonna scare you up and shoot ya, Mister Charlie, Mister Charlie told me so.
Lyrics submitted by SongMeanings
Mr. Charlie Lyrics as written by Ronald Charles Mckernan Robert C. Hunter
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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Fast Car
Tracy Chapman
Tracy Chapman
Mental Istid
Ebba Grön
Ebba Grön
This is one of my favorite songs. https://fnfgo.io
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.
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Blink-182
Blink-182
This is a sequel to 2001's "Reckless Abandon", and features the band looking back on their clumsy youth fondly.
Just A Little Lovin'
Dusty Springfield
Dusty Springfield
I don't think it's necessarily about sex. It's about wanting to start the day with some love and affection. Maybe a warm cuddle. I'm not alone in interpreting it that way! For example:
"'Just a Little Lovin’ is a timeless country song originally recorded by Eddy Arnold in 1954. The song, written by Eddie Miller and Jimmy Campbell, explores the delicate nuances of love and showcases Arnold’s emotive vocals. It delves into the universal theme of love and how even the smallest gesture of affection can have a profound impact on our lives." https://oldtimemusic.com/the-meaning-behind-the-song-just-a-little-lovin-by-eddy-arnold/
I have read elsewhere that, sadly, this is a song about heroin abuse. After McKernan died, the GD quit performing it. The "drums" apparently refer to a throbbing noise in the ears while in the throes of using heroin. The "shotgun" refers to a loaded syringe. Sad. Eurpoe '72 is, in my opinion, the quintessential GD album and McKernan really carries it. He died at the insanely early age of 23 or so.
@TPV I always thought of some hopped up country loon who goes around indiscriminately shooting people with rock salt. Perhaps Mr. Charlie is his hound telling him to do so. You could be right - but I like the literal interpretation.
@TPV This song is about psychopath Charles Manson (Mr. Charlie) and his murderous harem who broke into Director Roman Pokaski’s house and killed his pregnant wife, Sharon Tate by stabbing her multiple times. This heinous act ended the innocence of the summer of love. The Dead did not associate with Manson but The Beach Boys did-they even recorded a song with lyrics by Manson