"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 never phone, you never write
Hey, I've stopped hoping that you might
You're trying to hurt my feelings, right?
You never phone and you never write
You never write, you never phone
I'm sorry I gotta bitch and moan
I'm sorry I gotta pick this bone
You never write, you never phone
Sometimes I wonder
What you must think of me
My address and phone number
Must be misty in your memory
This year my birthday came and went
No call was made, no card was sent
But I got the snub you must have meant
This year my birthday came and went
This year my birthday went and came
Last year what happened was the same
And your excuses sure are lame
This year my birthday went and came
Chicka-wa-wa-wa-wa-wa-wa-wa
Chicka-wa-wa-wa-wa
Chicka-chicka-chicka-wa-wa-wa-wa Peter Frampton time!
Chicka-wa-wa-wa-wa-wa-wa-wa-wa-wa-wa-wow
Sometimes I wonder
What you must think of me
Then I remember
It's you that you think of exclusively
I'm not gonna bow and scrape
In every bunch there's one bad grape
I'm a little bit bent out of shape
But I'm not gonna bow and scrape
I won't scrape or bow
Genuflect, beg or kowtow
Just singing this song is fine for now
No, I'm not gonna scrape
Chicka-wa-wa-wa-wa-wa-wa-wa-wa-wa-wa-wow
Hey, I've stopped hoping that you might
You're trying to hurt my feelings, right?
You never phone and you never write
You never write, you never phone
I'm sorry I gotta bitch and moan
I'm sorry I gotta pick this bone
You never write, you never phone
Sometimes I wonder
What you must think of me
My address and phone number
Must be misty in your memory
This year my birthday came and went
No call was made, no card was sent
But I got the snub you must have meant
This year my birthday came and went
This year my birthday went and came
Last year what happened was the same
And your excuses sure are lame
This year my birthday went and came
Chicka-wa-wa-wa-wa-wa-wa-wa
Chicka-wa-wa-wa-wa
Chicka-chicka-chicka-wa-wa-wa-wa Peter Frampton time!
Chicka-wa-wa-wa-wa-wa-wa-wa-wa-wa-wa-wow
Sometimes I wonder
What you must think of me
Then I remember
It's you that you think of exclusively
I'm not gonna bow and scrape
In every bunch there's one bad grape
I'm a little bit bent out of shape
But I'm not gonna bow and scrape
I won't scrape or bow
Genuflect, beg or kowtow
Just singing this song is fine for now
No, I'm not gonna scrape
Chicka-wa-wa-wa-wa-wa-wa-wa-wa-wa-wa-wow
Lyrics submitted by Mellow_Harsher
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Fast Car
Tracy Chapman
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Ebba Grön
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This is one of my favorite songs. https://fnfgo.io
Gentle Hour
Yo La Tengo
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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.
Great version of a great song,
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