"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.
So the light grew dark
And they hid their hearts
They didn't think that it would ever get better
And now the kids are all dancing
A lightning trance
And the young hearts are told to surrender
And now they want us to make this clear
That it's all right here
But now the psychics are gone, don't I know it
And we're becomin' aware
There's something charged in the air
It feels like love, but we're so afraid to show it
So now it's all war
Can you remember how you lived before
Was there a time in your life without a war
You never think that there might be something more
Yeah, they're coming alive tonight
They be preparing now.
They're ready to fight
The sky is electric, my skin don't feel right
But either way, it's gonna end all right, end all right
Oh, they're comin' around now
They're comin'!
And they hid their hearts
They didn't think that it would ever get better
And now the kids are all dancing
A lightning trance
And the young hearts are told to surrender
And now they want us to make this clear
That it's all right here
But now the psychics are gone, don't I know it
And we're becomin' aware
There's something charged in the air
It feels like love, but we're so afraid to show it
So now it's all war
Can you remember how you lived before
Was there a time in your life without a war
You never think that there might be something more
Yeah, they're coming alive tonight
They be preparing now.
They're ready to fight
The sky is electric, my skin don't feel right
But either way, it's gonna end all right, end all right
Oh, they're comin' around now
They're comin'!
Lyrics submitted by SongMeanings
Young Hearts Lyrics as written by Scott Charles Wells Paul Matthew Sprangers
Lyrics © Spirit Music Group, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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Fast Car
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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,
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