"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.
Baby, I've been waiting
I've been waiting night and day
I didn't see the time
I waited half my life away
There were lots of invitations
And I know you sent me some
But I was waiting
For the miracle, for the miracle to come
I know you really loved me
But, you see, my hands were tied
And I know it must have hurt you
It must have hurt your pride
To have to stand beneath my window
With your bugle and your drum
And me I'm up there waiting
For the miracle, for the miracle to come
Ah I don't believe you'd like it
You wouldn't like it here
There ain't no entertainment
And the judgments are severe
The Maestro says it's Mozart
But it sounds like bubble gum
When you're waiting
For the miracle, for the miracle to come
Waiting for the miracle
There's nothing left to do
I haven't been this happy
Since the end of World War II
Nothing left to do
When you know that you've been taken
Nothing left to do
When you're begging for a crumb
Nothing left to do
When you've got to go on waiting
Waiting for the miracle to come
I dreamed about you, baby
It was just the other night
Most of you was naked
Ah but some of you was light
The sands of time were falling
From your fingers and your thumb
And you were waiting
For the miracle, for the miracle to come
Ah baby, let's get married
We've been alone too long
Let's be alone together
Let's see if we're that strong
Yeah let's do something crazy,
Something absolutely wrong
While we're waiting
For the miracle, for the miracle to come
Nothing left to do
When you know that you've been taken
Nothing left to do
When you're begging for a crumb
Nothing left to do
When you've got to go on waiting
Waiting for the miracle to come
When you've fallen on the highway
And you're lying in the rain,
And they ask you how you're doing
Of course you'll say you can't complain
If you're squeezed for information,
That's when you've got to play it dumb
You just say you're out there waiting
For the miracle, for the miracle to come
I've been waiting night and day
I didn't see the time
I waited half my life away
There were lots of invitations
And I know you sent me some
But I was waiting
For the miracle, for the miracle to come
I know you really loved me
But, you see, my hands were tied
And I know it must have hurt you
It must have hurt your pride
To have to stand beneath my window
With your bugle and your drum
And me I'm up there waiting
For the miracle, for the miracle to come
Ah I don't believe you'd like it
You wouldn't like it here
There ain't no entertainment
And the judgments are severe
The Maestro says it's Mozart
But it sounds like bubble gum
When you're waiting
For the miracle, for the miracle to come
Waiting for the miracle
There's nothing left to do
I haven't been this happy
Since the end of World War II
Nothing left to do
When you know that you've been taken
Nothing left to do
When you're begging for a crumb
Nothing left to do
When you've got to go on waiting
Waiting for the miracle to come
I dreamed about you, baby
It was just the other night
Most of you was naked
Ah but some of you was light
The sands of time were falling
From your fingers and your thumb
And you were waiting
For the miracle, for the miracle to come
Ah baby, let's get married
We've been alone too long
Let's be alone together
Let's see if we're that strong
Yeah let's do something crazy,
Something absolutely wrong
While we're waiting
For the miracle, for the miracle to come
Nothing left to do
When you know that you've been taken
Nothing left to do
When you're begging for a crumb
Nothing left to do
When you've got to go on waiting
Waiting for the miracle to come
When you've fallen on the highway
And you're lying in the rain,
And they ask you how you're doing
Of course you'll say you can't complain
If you're squeezed for information,
That's when you've got to play it dumb
You just say you're out there waiting
For the miracle, for the miracle to come
Add your thoughts
Log in now to tell us what you think this song means.
Don’t have an account? Create an account with SongMeanings to post comments, submit lyrics, and more. It’s super easy, we promise!
More Featured Meanings
Fast Car
Tracy Chapman
Tracy Chapman
Bron-Y-Aur Stomp
Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin
This is about bronies. They communicate by stomping.
Dreamwalker
Silent Planet
Silent Planet
I think much like another song “Anti-Matter” (that's also on the same album as this song), this one is also is inspired by a horrifying van crash the band experienced on Nov 3, 2022. This, much like the other track, sounds like it's an extension what they shared while huddled in the wreckage, as they helped frontman Garrett Russell stem the bleeding from his head wound while he was under the temporary effects of a concussion. The track speaks of where the mind goes at the most desperate & desolate of times, when it just about slips away to all but disconnect itself, and the aftermath.
Amazing
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran tells a story of unsuccessfully trying to feel “Amazing.” This track is about the being weighed down by emotional stress despite valiant attempts to find some positivity in the situation. This track was written by Ed Sheeran from the perspective of his friend. From the track, we see this person fall deeper into the negative thoughts and slide further down the path of mental torment with every lyric.
Page
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
There aren’t many things that’ll hurt more than giving love a chance against your better judgement only to have your heart crushed yet again. Ed Sheeran tells such a story on “Page.” On this track, he is devastated to have lost his lover and even more saddened by the feeling that he may never move on from this.
Wonderful song. As with all Cohen's work it is open to numerous interpretations - the 'miracle' could refer to his ideal woman changing her mind; or to his present relationship coming right; or possibly to the physical act of sex. But that said, the basic meaning of the song seems to be along these lines: The narrator has spent half his life waiting for the unattainable 'perfect' person or near-impossible event while letting reality slip away. The song seems to consist of him explaining and apologising to a woman over why he couldn't commit to her, even though she had made it embarrassingly plain she was interested (standing beneath his window with her bugle and drum). In the middle of the song he complains about how unhappy he is in his present situation with no entertainment and the severe judgments. When he can finally break free from the unhappy relationship he has been in, and his hands are no longer tied, he hasn't been so happy since the end of World War Two. But his joy is short-lived. It's too late and the woman with the bugle and drum doesn't want him anymore. He dreams of being naked with her but even then he knows she is dreaming of someone else. And the reality is even worse - she won't even give him a crumb despite him begging her to do 'something crazy'. So he is left with nothing, lying in the rain and hasn't even got anyone to complain to anymore.