"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.
It's time to jump in
It's time to let go
Don't let the people think they know you
They don't know
You move around, you say goodbye to them
There's always more to you than there are of them
Keep yourself high
Don't keep yourself low
It's easy to forget what you came here for when you get old
There's always someone there to bring you down again
There's always more to you than there are of them
Hey, hey, you don't know me
Hey, hey, you don't know me
Hey, hey, you don't know me
Hey, hey, you don't know me
I know you will hide
When I'm around
Hey, hey, you don't know me
Hey, hey, you don't know me
There's always someone there to bring you down again
There's always more to you than there are of them
I know you will hide
When I'm around
I know you will hide
When I'm around
Watch them follow you all around
watch them follow you all around
It's time to let go
Don't let the people think they know you
They don't know
You move around, you say goodbye to them
There's always more to you than there are of them
Keep yourself high
Don't keep yourself low
It's easy to forget what you came here for when you get old
There's always someone there to bring you down again
There's always more to you than there are of them
Hey, hey, you don't know me
Hey, hey, you don't know me
Hey, hey, you don't know me
Hey, hey, you don't know me
I know you will hide
When I'm around
Hey, hey, you don't know me
Hey, hey, you don't know me
There's always someone there to bring you down again
There's always more to you than there are of them
I know you will hide
When I'm around
I know you will hide
When I'm around
Watch them follow you all around
watch them follow you all around
Lyrics submitted by Mellow_Harsher
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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.
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Page
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