"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 fall asleep
With the damage in the room
And I can't escape
The stranger living under your skin
Who's this I see
You're not the man that fell in love with me
I can't pretend anymore
It's tragic
Like when a Shakespeare play comes to the end
It's intoxicating me
So go ahead, take her to your bed
Tell her all your fears and let her kiss your lips
Dead, swimming round your head
Drowning out the days
That we made love
It's all in my heart
And I'm losing all control
Cause you gave away your soul to the alcohol
To the alcohol
The dreams we had
They build me up and knock me round
I can't decide
Whether it's better to let you fall down
I'm not so good with your self-inflicted pain
I can't pretend anymore
You're tragic
And it's a Shakespeare play come to the end
You're gonna die from what you need
So go ahead, take her to your bed
Tell her all your fears and let her kiss your lips
Dead, swimming round your head
Drowning out the days
That we made love
It's all in my heart
And I'm losing all control
Cause you gave away your soul to the alcohol
White ghost
A vision of yourself
A fraction of yourself
It's the other side of you
While I was suffocating
And feeling isolated
I never see your truth
Anymore
So go ahead, take her to your bed
Tell her all your fears and let her kiss your lips
Dead, swimming round your head
Drowning out the days
That we made love
It's all in my heart
And I'm losing all control
Cause you gave away your soul to the alcohol
So go ahead, take her to your bed
Tell her all your fears and let her kiss your lips
Dead, swimming round your head
Drowning out the days
That we made love
It's all in my heart
And I'm losing all control
Cause you gave away your soul to the alcohol
With the damage in the room
And I can't escape
The stranger living under your skin
Who's this I see
You're not the man that fell in love with me
I can't pretend anymore
It's tragic
Like when a Shakespeare play comes to the end
It's intoxicating me
So go ahead, take her to your bed
Tell her all your fears and let her kiss your lips
Dead, swimming round your head
Drowning out the days
That we made love
It's all in my heart
And I'm losing all control
Cause you gave away your soul to the alcohol
To the alcohol
The dreams we had
They build me up and knock me round
I can't decide
Whether it's better to let you fall down
I'm not so good with your self-inflicted pain
I can't pretend anymore
You're tragic
And it's a Shakespeare play come to the end
You're gonna die from what you need
So go ahead, take her to your bed
Tell her all your fears and let her kiss your lips
Dead, swimming round your head
Drowning out the days
That we made love
It's all in my heart
And I'm losing all control
Cause you gave away your soul to the alcohol
White ghost
A vision of yourself
A fraction of yourself
It's the other side of you
While I was suffocating
And feeling isolated
I never see your truth
Anymore
So go ahead, take her to your bed
Tell her all your fears and let her kiss your lips
Dead, swimming round your head
Drowning out the days
That we made love
It's all in my heart
And I'm losing all control
Cause you gave away your soul to the alcohol
So go ahead, take her to your bed
Tell her all your fears and let her kiss your lips
Dead, swimming round your head
Drowning out the days
That we made love
It's all in my heart
And I'm losing all control
Cause you gave away your soul to the alcohol
Lyrics submitted by Mellow_Harsher
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Fast Car
Tracy Chapman
Tracy Chapman
Holiday
Bee Gees
Bee Gees
@[Diderik:33655] "Your a holiday!" Was a popular term used in the 50s/60s to compliment someone on their all around. For example, not only are they beautiful, but they are fun and kind too ... just an all around "holiday".
I think your first comment is closer to being accurate. The singer/song writers state "Millions of eyes can see, yet why am i so blind!? When the someone else is me, its unkind its unkind". I believe hes referring to the girl toying with him and using him. He wants something deeper with her, thats why he allows himself to be as a puppet (even though for her fun and games) as long as it makes her happy. But he knows deep down that she doesnt really want to be serious with him and thats what makes him.
Gentle Hour
Yo La Tengo
Yo La Tengo
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,
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.
Magical
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
How would you describe the feeling of being in love? For Ed Sheeran, the word is “Magical.” in HIS three-minute album opener, he makes an attempt to capture the beauty and delicacy of true love with words. He describes the magic of it all over a bright Pop song produced by Aaron Dessner.