"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.
Bow bells say goodbye to the last train
Over the river they all go again
Out into leafy nowhere hope someone
Waiting out there for them
Cabbie has his mind on a fare to the sun
He works nights but it's not much fun
Picks up the London yo-yo's, all on their own down Soho
Please take me home
Other people wouldn't want to hear you
If you said that these are the best days of their lives
Other people would turn around an d laugh at you
If you said that these were the best days of our lives
Trellick Tower's been calling
I know she'll leave me in the morning
In hotel cells listening to dial tones
Remote controls and cable moans
In his drink he's been talking
Gets disconnected sleepwalking back home
Other people wouldn't like to hear you
If you said that these are the best days of our lives
Other people'd turn around and laugh at you
If you said that these are the best days of our lives
Everyone'd break into a cold sweat
If you said that these are the best days of their lives
And other people'd turn around and laugh at you
If you said that these are the best days of our lives
Of our lives
Over the river they all go again
Out into leafy nowhere hope someone
Waiting out there for them
Cabbie has his mind on a fare to the sun
He works nights but it's not much fun
Picks up the London yo-yo's, all on their own down Soho
Please take me home
Other people wouldn't want to hear you
If you said that these are the best days of their lives
Other people would turn around an d laugh at you
If you said that these were the best days of our lives
Trellick Tower's been calling
I know she'll leave me in the morning
In hotel cells listening to dial tones
Remote controls and cable moans
In his drink he's been talking
Gets disconnected sleepwalking back home
Other people wouldn't like to hear you
If you said that these are the best days of our lives
Other people'd turn around and laugh at you
If you said that these are the best days of our lives
Everyone'd break into a cold sweat
If you said that these are the best days of their lives
And other people'd turn around and laugh at you
If you said that these are the best days of our lives
Of our lives
Lyrics submitted by Demau Senae, edited by ShaiJDM
Best Days Lyrics as written by David Rowntree Steven Alexander James
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
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I thought this song was about mundane London life, well, most of the album The Great Escape is about mundane life.
"Trellick Tower's been calling I know she'll leave me in the morning"
This is the only time in the song Damon uses first-person pronouns, and doing so he describes a one-night stand (wasn't he with Justine at this time? Haha).
But I think we can all relate to the chorus. We all think that our lives in the 20's can't get any better and it's all going downhill from here ... but is it really? This song describes the darker side of a 20-something London lifestyle, and that these really aren't the best days of our lives.