"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.
And every generation's got
The fearless few who can't be bought
They don't take polls or look around
They act on truth, and then they stand their ground
Come up and see the world stripped bare
The free indeed they breathe a rarefied air
Yeah, they got spirit, yeah, they got game
And some get christened
With a righteous-sounding name
Cornelius
Cornelius
And every generation knows
The doers do, the posers pose
'Cause every time the plop goes fizz
Another yes-man gets his
Come on and see the big man's boss
The mind clears out when you're taking up the cross
Yeah, his burden's easy no, it don't chafe
It's god's safe harbor why play it safe?
Cornelius
Cornelius
Core-strong like a centurion
I wanna be Cornelius
Core-strong like a centurion
I wanna be Cornelius
His kneel is real
His kneel is real
What rhymes with Cornelius?
Helium
The "Cor" is before a kneel, a kneel
The "I" is an "E" in us, in us
He's ready to fight but not to fuss
We like, we like Cornelius
And history proves the axiom
Surface skimmers choke on scum
Who's calling deep? Who opens wide?
Who put the just in justified?
Check, check it out the view you get
It's God's high-wire there isn't any net
Show a little spirit, show you got game
Show you know, we know, we know
You know what's in a name
Cornelius
Cornelius
He's ready to fight but not to fuss
We like, we like Cornelius
He isn't a wuss, he never was
We like, we like Cornelius
The fearless few who can't be bought
They don't take polls or look around
They act on truth, and then they stand their ground
Come up and see the world stripped bare
The free indeed they breathe a rarefied air
Yeah, they got spirit, yeah, they got game
And some get christened
With a righteous-sounding name
Cornelius
Cornelius
And every generation knows
The doers do, the posers pose
'Cause every time the plop goes fizz
Another yes-man gets his
Come on and see the big man's boss
The mind clears out when you're taking up the cross
Yeah, his burden's easy no, it don't chafe
It's god's safe harbor why play it safe?
Cornelius
Cornelius
Core-strong like a centurion
I wanna be Cornelius
Core-strong like a centurion
I wanna be Cornelius
His kneel is real
His kneel is real
What rhymes with Cornelius?
Helium
The "Cor" is before a kneel, a kneel
The "I" is an "E" in us, in us
He's ready to fight but not to fuss
We like, we like Cornelius
And history proves the axiom
Surface skimmers choke on scum
Who's calling deep? Who opens wide?
Who put the just in justified?
Check, check it out the view you get
It's God's high-wire there isn't any net
Show a little spirit, show you got game
Show you know, we know, we know
You know what's in a name
Cornelius
Cornelius
He's ready to fight but not to fuss
We like, we like Cornelius
He isn't a wuss, he never was
We like, we like Cornelius
Lyrics submitted by oascout394
Cornelius Lyrics as written by Steve Taylor Peter Furler
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Capitol CMG Publishing
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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More Featured Meanings
Fast Car
Tracy Chapman
Tracy Chapman
The Night We Met
Lord Huron
Lord Huron
This is a hauntingly beautiful song about introspection, specifically about looking back at a relationship that started bad and ended so poorly, that the narrator wants to go back to the very beginning and tell himself to not even travel down that road. I believe that the relationship started poorly because of the lines:
"Take me back to the night we met:When the night was full of terrors: And your eyes were filled with tears: When you had not touched me yet"
So, the first night was not a great start, but the narrator pursued the relationship and eventually both overcame the rough start to fall in love with each other:
"I had all and then most of you"
Like many relationships that turn sour, it was not a quick decline, but a gradual one where the narrator and their partner fall out of love and gradually grow apart
"Some and now none of you"
Losing someone who was once everything in your world, who you could confide in, tell your secrets to, share all the most intimate parts of your life, to being strangers with that person is probably one of the most painful experiences a person can go through. So Painful, the narrator wants to go back in time and tell himself to not even pursue the relationship.
This was the perfect song for "13 Reasons Why"
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.
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/
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.
helium! i love this song. it's just fun. plus it has the thing about posers...
what genre is this song from?
I love this song! To be honest I think that it is talking about heros and how we can'y be afraid when we have got God on our side. God really is for us and that is the biggest thing.
i'm pretty sure the song is about cornelius the centurion from acts and is what muchafraid said.
oh i ust liked the song and the newsboys! it's jus a fun song.
Funny song about one of the Bible's most encouraging characters.
What a fun song is right! What the heck Helium - Cornelius though?
ok lets face it. this bands kinda old.....but i still love it! its all about how we gotta be relentless and noncomprimising and not half way like cornelius. and helium really doesnt rhyme with cornelius....but i respect them for writing a song with a word that has no rhyme. that takes guts. i wanna see the sequel: orange.