"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.
You know I said it, I meant it
But you don't seem to notice at all
And I tried to prevent it
How can I stop what I can't control?
And we've been here before
And I fear that you can't take much more
And I try to put myself in your shoes
But I know that it wont be any use
When I say things will only get better
Does it mean anything at all?
Yeah, oh
Wish I can take you away
From everything and erase the pain
You bit off more than you could chew
Didn't work out how you wanted it to
And know it wasn't your fault
Just the hand that you were dealt with
'Cause our luck is turning to hell
And it's made you into a sceptic
You still me breathless
You say I'll never get it
And I try to put myself in your shoes
But I know that it wont be any use
When I say things will only get better
Does it mean anything at all?
Your world is crumbling but you tell me to smile
Your world is crumbling but you tell me to smile
Your world is crumbling but you tell me to smile
Your world is crumbling but you tell me to smile
It doesn't make any sense at all
It's not fair and it feels so wrong
And I try to put myself in your shoes
But I know that it wont be any use
When I say things will only get better
Does it mean anything at all?
Yeah
And I try to put myself in your shoes
But I know that it wont be any use
When I say things will only get better
Does it mean anything at all?
Yeah
And I try to put myself in your shoes
But I know that it wont be any use
When I say things will only get better
Does it mean anything at all?
Do I mean anything at all?
But you don't seem to notice at all
And I tried to prevent it
How can I stop what I can't control?
And we've been here before
And I fear that you can't take much more
And I try to put myself in your shoes
But I know that it wont be any use
When I say things will only get better
Does it mean anything at all?
Yeah, oh
Wish I can take you away
From everything and erase the pain
You bit off more than you could chew
Didn't work out how you wanted it to
And know it wasn't your fault
Just the hand that you were dealt with
'Cause our luck is turning to hell
And it's made you into a sceptic
You still me breathless
You say I'll never get it
And I try to put myself in your shoes
But I know that it wont be any use
When I say things will only get better
Does it mean anything at all?
Your world is crumbling but you tell me to smile
Your world is crumbling but you tell me to smile
Your world is crumbling but you tell me to smile
Your world is crumbling but you tell me to smile
It doesn't make any sense at all
It's not fair and it feels so wrong
And I try to put myself in your shoes
But I know that it wont be any use
When I say things will only get better
Does it mean anything at all?
Yeah
And I try to put myself in your shoes
But I know that it wont be any use
When I say things will only get better
Does it mean anything at all?
Yeah
And I try to put myself in your shoes
But I know that it wont be any use
When I say things will only get better
Does it mean anything at all?
Do I mean anything at all?
Lyrics submitted by MissBron
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Fast Car
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“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.