"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'm halfway gone, sleepless I'm battle-worn
You're all I want, so bring me the dawn
I need the sun to break, you've woken up my heart
I'm shaking, all my luck could change
Been in the dark for weeks and I've realized you're all I need
And I hope that I'm not too late,
I hope I'm not too late
Back of the room, how come my friends already know you?
I feel like a kid, too shy to speak up so I keep it hid
Oh butterflies, you steal my sleep each night
I need the sun to break, you've woken up my heart
I'm shaking, all my luck could change
Been in the dark for weeks and I've realized you're all I need
And I hope I'm not too late
And I hope I'm not too late
Oh-oh-oh, oh, oh
Oh-oh-oh, oh, oh
Oh-oh-oh, oh, oh
Oh no
I need the sun to break, you've woken up my heart
I'm shaking, all my luck could change
Been in the dark for weeks and I've realized you're all I need
I hope that I'm not too late
And I hope I'm not too late
Oh now yes I hope I'm not too late
Oh-oh-oh, oh, oh
Oh-oh-oh, oh, oh
Oh-oh-oh, oh, oh
Oo-oh-oh, oh, oh
You're all I want, so bring me the dawn
I need the sun to break, you've woken up my heart
I'm shaking, all my luck could change
Been in the dark for weeks and I've realized you're all I need
And I hope that I'm not too late,
I hope I'm not too late
Back of the room, how come my friends already know you?
I feel like a kid, too shy to speak up so I keep it hid
Oh butterflies, you steal my sleep each night
I need the sun to break, you've woken up my heart
I'm shaking, all my luck could change
Been in the dark for weeks and I've realized you're all I need
And I hope I'm not too late
And I hope I'm not too late
Oh-oh-oh, oh, oh
Oh-oh-oh, oh, oh
Oh-oh-oh, oh, oh
Oh no
I need the sun to break, you've woken up my heart
I'm shaking, all my luck could change
Been in the dark for weeks and I've realized you're all I need
I hope that I'm not too late
And I hope I'm not too late
Oh now yes I hope I'm not too late
Oh-oh-oh, oh, oh
Oh-oh-oh, oh, oh
Oh-oh-oh, oh, oh
Oo-oh-oh, oh, oh
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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"
Son Şansın - Şarkı Sözleri
Hayalperest
Hayalperest
This song seemingly tackles the methods of deception those who manipulate others use to get victims to follow their demands, as well as diverting attention away from important issues. They'll also use it as a means to convince people to hate or kill others by pretending acts of terrorism were committed by the enemy when the acts themselves were done by the masters of control to promote discrimination and hate. It also reinforces the idea that these manipulative forces operate in various locations, infiltrating everyday life without detection, and propagate any and everywhere.
In general, it highlights the danger of hidden agendas, manipulation, and distraction, serving as a critique of those who exploit chaos and confusion to control and gain power, depicting a cautionary tale against falling into their traps. It encourages us to question the narratives presented to us and remain vigilant against manipulation in various parts of society.
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.
Head > Heels
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
“Head > Heels” is a track that aims to capture what it feels like to experience romance that exceeds expectations. Ed Sheeran dedicates his album outro to a lover who has blessed him with a unique experience that he seeks to describe through the song’s nuanced lyrics.
i can't believe no one has commented on not just this song but on any of james's songs. this guy is gonna be around for awhile.
@bar250 I agree.
this song really hits home. i have listened to it about 200 times this weekend. so i decided to post my story so hopefully i can help someone learn from my mistake. i am in my mid to late thirties. i have done a lot of dating but never really connected with anyone. about 9 months ago i met someone and hit it off pretty well. we dated for 6 months. i knew there was something different about her cause i could never get her off my mind. we both had a lot going on in our lives and one night we just took it out on each other. had a huge fight and stopped talking. after a few days of not speaking i really started to miss her more and more, but my pride had gotten in the way. after 3 weeks of not speaking i decided to text her. she never responded which it wasn't until a few days ago i found out her phone was broken.as more time passed my feelings for her kept growing. 3 months passed and i bumped into her we spoke for a little. the next day i received a text from her saying how it was great to see me. so i finally told her how madly in love with her i was. only to find out she was in an exclusive relationship that was a little less then 2 weeks old. nothing like sharing your feelings with complete strangers ,but if this helps one person not feel the pain i'm feeling now. it will be worth it.
Not gonna claim to know the meaning here but have a story similar to the other comment here and felt the need to share. I'm a senior in high school and a few years back (10th grade if I recall) I was really good friends with a whole family. Loved the parents, great friends a guy my age and a guy a year younger. They had a sister who was a junior at the time. I was in love with this girl. Nicest seeetest girl I've ever met. Never told her bc I didn't want to lose the friendships I shared with the whole family and her as well to be honest. Family moved out of state the next year. So I still have no clue about the feelings mutuality or anything and it hurts, mostly just thinking about what could've been. So I dunno. I found this song through Pandora and it just connected with me. Listened to it on repeat in the car and just drove around for an hour reflecting. It was a hard reality check and nostalgic moment for me. This song probably has nothing to do with anything I just wrote but to me it means a lot and I don't know.
Great song by James Bay. In my opinion he finds himself loving someone he’s afraid to talk to. He’s needing something to propel him and hoping the window hasn’t closed for them to be together