"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 do relate to you in so many ways
But I didn't go through what you must have in those early days
You had to be strong at such a very young age
A new life from lemonade
So won't you listen to me now
There's something I never told you
And I'm about to try
See you were my lifeline when the world was exploding
You moved back in with us in the fall of '82
I fell into dark times and you were there to help me through
You told me that a downturn would eventually improve
And you were right, so I'm thanking you
So won't you listen to me now
There's something I never told you
And I'm about to try
See you were my lifeline when the world was exploding
Footholds eroding
Had you never been my friend
I wouldn't be quite what you see
I wouldn't be the man I am
Sister you've known me (Sister you've known me)
Lost in a strange world (Sister you've known me)
What has it shown me (Sister you've known me)
What has it gone through (Sister you've known me)
Sister you've known me (Sister you've known me)
Been lost in a strange world (Sister you've known me)
But has it shown me (Sister you've known me)
What has it gone through (Sister you've known me)
October chill in that old dusty town
Halloween came, I was still feeling down
Mama, lost my sweet tooth, what's the point in going 'round?
Your boy is losing count
Maybe try the lost and found
But I didn't go through what you must have in those early days
You had to be strong at such a very young age
A new life from lemonade
So won't you listen to me now
There's something I never told you
And I'm about to try
See you were my lifeline when the world was exploding
You moved back in with us in the fall of '82
I fell into dark times and you were there to help me through
You told me that a downturn would eventually improve
And you were right, so I'm thanking you
So won't you listen to me now
There's something I never told you
And I'm about to try
See you were my lifeline when the world was exploding
Footholds eroding
Had you never been my friend
I wouldn't be quite what you see
I wouldn't be the man I am
Sister you've known me (Sister you've known me)
Lost in a strange world (Sister you've known me)
What has it shown me (Sister you've known me)
What has it gone through (Sister you've known me)
Sister you've known me (Sister you've known me)
Been lost in a strange world (Sister you've known me)
But has it shown me (Sister you've known me)
What has it gone through (Sister you've known me)
October chill in that old dusty town
Halloween came, I was still feeling down
Mama, lost my sweet tooth, what's the point in going 'round?
Your boy is losing count
Maybe try the lost and found
Add your thoughts
Log in now to tell us what you think this song means.
Don’t have an account? Create an account with SongMeanings to post comments, submit lyrics, and more. It’s super easy, we promise!
More Featured Meanings
Fast Car
Tracy Chapman
Tracy Chapman
The Night We Met
Lord Huron
Lord Huron
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"
Mental Istid
Ebba Grön
Ebba Grön
This is one of my favorite songs. https://fnfgo.io
Bron-Y-Aur Stomp
Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin
This is about bronies. They communicate by stomping.
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/
MAGNET Web Exclusive: The Shins’ James Mercer On The New “Port Of Morrow” “Fall Of ’82″ “When I was 11, we moved from Germany to New Mexico, resulting in long period of anxiety and stress that triggered some change in my brain chemistry. I became forlorn and morose for six months. I was pulled out of this funk by my oldest sister who had moved back in with the family. She was about 22; she had moved to Kansas and had some affair with a local yokel and that fell apart, so she moved back. She had been kind of a hood back in high school. I remember looking at pictures of here from back then, and there was this kind of a cute girl wearing a denim jacket with shit written on it. But she didn’t get into the drugs like my older brother did. So she was just this combo of motherly and cool, and it was the perfect presence to be around. And she knew the weirdness of adolescence it was still fresh in her mind. I am eternally grateful.”
:)
Cool song.
Mercer seems to be talking about his someone - an older sister - who helped him through a rough patch in the Fall of '82. And this song is a public "Thank You" to her. Very moving the way Mercer says: "Had you never been my friend/I wouldn't be quite what you see/I wouldn't be the man I am" = i.e. I made it through life and became a success thanks to you.