"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.
Look at me I'm fallin'
Off of a cliff now
I can still hear my mama yelling No No No
But the words mean nothing
Can't catch up to me now
And the view is so beautiful
All the way down
When I was a little boy
Suckin' juice from a bottle
Believing my perceptions were oh so real
But I don't know nothing
Still knowing nothing
Was just enough for me to know the way I feel
This is life
What a fucked up thing we do
What a nightmare come true
Or a playground if we choose
And I choose
Look at me I'm swollen
Like a banana fish now
I'm never gonna make it out of my hole
But I keep on laughing
Doesn't really matter
There's dozens of reasons for explaining my soul
When I was a teenager
Suckin' booze with the Vatos
Discussing who was gonna live to be 21
They said they wouldn't make it
They didn't make it
We're all naked when the day is said and done
This is life
What a fucked up thing we do
What a nightmare come true
Or a playground if we choose
And I choose
Don't know who made this all come true
But now while you're here
You just gotta do what you gotta do
Now if I wasn't such a weenie
Do you think you'd still love me
Pretending I'm an airplane on the living
Room floor
But like a lovely generator
You stand right by me
And if words were wisdom I'd be talking
Even more
So I keep on falling
As I'm looking back above me
Watching as my mama just becomes a little dot
Now I'm like DeNiro
I'm amarillo
And I'll never know when I hit the ground
Off of a cliff now
I can still hear my mama yelling No No No
But the words mean nothing
Can't catch up to me now
And the view is so beautiful
All the way down
When I was a little boy
Suckin' juice from a bottle
Believing my perceptions were oh so real
But I don't know nothing
Still knowing nothing
Was just enough for me to know the way I feel
This is life
What a fucked up thing we do
What a nightmare come true
Or a playground if we choose
And I choose
Look at me I'm swollen
Like a banana fish now
I'm never gonna make it out of my hole
But I keep on laughing
Doesn't really matter
There's dozens of reasons for explaining my soul
When I was a teenager
Suckin' booze with the Vatos
Discussing who was gonna live to be 21
They said they wouldn't make it
They didn't make it
We're all naked when the day is said and done
This is life
What a fucked up thing we do
What a nightmare come true
Or a playground if we choose
And I choose
Don't know who made this all come true
But now while you're here
You just gotta do what you gotta do
Now if I wasn't such a weenie
Do you think you'd still love me
Pretending I'm an airplane on the living
Room floor
But like a lovely generator
You stand right by me
And if words were wisdom I'd be talking
Even more
So I keep on falling
As I'm looking back above me
Watching as my mama just becomes a little dot
Now I'm like DeNiro
I'm amarillo
And I'll never know when I hit the ground
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
Mental Istid
Ebba Grön
Ebba Grön
This is one of my favorite songs. https://fnfgo.io
When We Were Young
Blink-182
Blink-182
This is a sequel to 2001's "Reckless Abandon", and features the band looking back on their clumsy youth fondly.
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.
Just A Little Lovin'
Dusty Springfield
Dusty Springfield
I don't think it's necessarily about sex. It's about wanting to start the day with some love and affection. Maybe a warm cuddle. I'm not alone in interpreting it that way! For example:
"'Just a Little Lovin’ is a timeless country song originally recorded by Eddy Arnold in 1954. The song, written by Eddie Miller and Jimmy Campbell, explores the delicate nuances of love and showcases Arnold’s emotive vocals. It delves into the universal theme of love and how even the smallest gesture of affection can have a profound impact on our lives." https://oldtimemusic.com/the-meaning-behind-the-song-just-a-little-lovin-by-eddy-arnold/
I love this song. Whenever I have a bad day, I listen to this and it cheers me up. You can take two looks at life, see it as a nightmare come true, or as a a playground. I'm going with Offspring, I choose. One bad day doesn't make a difference if it doesn't matter, and you just take things day by day and 'live life to the fullest' to use a cliché.