"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.
Fifty million years ago
You walked upon the planet so
Lord of all that you could see
Just a little bit like me
Walking in your footsteps
Walking in your footsteps
Walking in your footsteps
Walking in your footsteps
Hey Mr. Dinosaur
You really couldn't ask for more
You were God's favorite creature
But you didn't have a future
Walking in your footsteps
Walking in your footsteps
Walking in your footsteps
Walking in your footsteps
Hey mighty brontosaurus
Don't you have a lesson for us
You thought your rule would always last
There were no lessons in your past
You were built three stories high
They say you would not hurt a fly
If we explode the atom bomb
Would they say that we were dumb
We're
Walking in your footsteps
Walking in your footsteps
Walking in your footsteps
Walking in your footsteps
They say the meek shall inherit the earth
They say the meek shall inherit the earth
Walking in your footsteps
Walking in your footsteps
Walking in your footsteps
Walking in your footsteps
Walking in your footsteps
Walking in your footsteps
Walking in your footsteps
Walking in your footsteps
You walked upon the planet so
Lord of all that you could see
Just a little bit like me
Walking in your footsteps
Walking in your footsteps
Walking in your footsteps
Walking in your footsteps
Hey Mr. Dinosaur
You really couldn't ask for more
You were God's favorite creature
But you didn't have a future
Walking in your footsteps
Walking in your footsteps
Walking in your footsteps
Walking in your footsteps
Hey mighty brontosaurus
Don't you have a lesson for us
You thought your rule would always last
There were no lessons in your past
You were built three stories high
They say you would not hurt a fly
If we explode the atom bomb
Would they say that we were dumb
We're
Walking in your footsteps
Walking in your footsteps
Walking in your footsteps
Walking in your footsteps
They say the meek shall inherit the earth
They say the meek shall inherit the earth
Walking in your footsteps
Walking in your footsteps
Walking in your footsteps
Walking in your footsteps
Walking in your footsteps
Walking in your footsteps
Walking in your footsteps
Walking in your footsteps
Lyrics submitted by Demau Senae
Walking in Your Footsteps Lyrics as written by Gordon Sumner
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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
I Can't Go To Sleep
Wu-Tang Clan
Wu-Tang Clan
This song is written as the perspective of the boys in the street, as a whole, and what path they are going to choose as they get older and grow into men. (This is why the music video takes place in an orphanage.) The seen, and unseen collective suffering is imbedded in the boys’ mind, consciously or subconsciously, and is haunting them. Which path will the boys choose? Issac Hayes is the voice of reason, maybe God, the angel on his shoulder, or the voice of his forefathers from beyond the grave who can see the big picture and are pleading with the boys not to continue the violence and pattern of killing their brothers, but to rise above. The most beautiful song and has so many levels. Racism towards African Americans in America would not exist if everyone sat down and listened to this song and understood the history behind the words. The power, fear, pleading in RZA and Ghostface voices are genuine and powerful. Issac Hayes’ strong voice makes the perfect strong father figure, who is possibly from beyond the grave.
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.
Punchline
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran sings about missing his former partner and learning important life lessons in the process on “Punchline.” This track tells a story of battling to get rid of emotions for a former lover, whom he now realized might not have loved him the same way. He’s now caught between accepting that fact and learning life lessons from it and going back to beg her for another chance.
It's obviously a relic from the Nuclear Age (see "Russians"). Yet its wisdom carries onward. A somewhat common theme among Sting's songs ("History Will Teach Us Nothing") is how we ignore "lessons in our past." How does this play out in the Terrorism Age? A viewing of Steven Spielberg's "Munich" I think provides some ideas.