"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 so once again,
My dear Johnny, my dear friend,
And so once again you are fighting us all,
And when I ask you why,
You raise your sticks and cry, and I fall,
Oh, my friend,
How did you come?,
To trade the fiddle for the drum,
You say I have turned,
Like the enemies you've earned,
But I can remember,
All the good things you are,
And so I ask you please,
Can I help you find the peace and the star?,
Oh, my friend,
What time is this?,
To trade the handshake for the fist
And so once again,
Oh, America my friend,
And so once again,
You are fighting us all,
And when we ask you why,
You raise your sticks and cry and we fall,
Oh, my friend,
How did you come,
To trade the fiddle for the drum
You say we have turned,
Like the enemies you've earned,
But we can remember,
All the good things you are,
And so we ask you please,
Can we help you find the peace and the star?,
Oh my friend,
We have all come,
To fear the beating of your drum
My dear Johnny, my dear friend,
And so once again you are fighting us all,
And when I ask you why,
You raise your sticks and cry, and I fall,
Oh, my friend,
How did you come?,
To trade the fiddle for the drum,
You say I have turned,
Like the enemies you've earned,
But I can remember,
All the good things you are,
And so I ask you please,
Can I help you find the peace and the star?,
Oh, my friend,
What time is this?,
To trade the handshake for the fist
And so once again,
Oh, America my friend,
And so once again,
You are fighting us all,
And when we ask you why,
You raise your sticks and cry and we fall,
Oh, my friend,
How did you come,
To trade the fiddle for the drum
You say we have turned,
Like the enemies you've earned,
But we can remember,
All the good things you are,
And so we ask you please,
Can we help you find the peace and the star?,
Oh my friend,
We have all come,
To fear the beating of your drum
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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"
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.
Blue
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
“Blue” is a song about a love that is persisting in the discomfort of the person experiencing the emotion. Ed Sheeran reflects on love lost, and although he wishes his former partner find happiness, he cannot but admit his feelings are still very much there. He expresses the realization that he might never find another on this stringed instrumental by Aaron Dessner.
American Town
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran shares a short story of reconnecting with an old flame on “American Town.” The track is about a holiday Ed Sheeran spends with his countrywoman who resides in America. The two are back together after a long period apart, and get around to enjoying a bunch of fun activities while rekindling the flames of their romance.
the song's a metaphor for going to war, trading the fiddle, which is usually played in peaceful times, for the drums which are marched to during war. Trading the handshake for the fist is pretty explanatory, etc.
Good eye Invalid Username, way to spot it's not a song written by A Perfect Circle on a COVER ALBUM.
This song is a direct criticism of the Military Industrial Complex.
It explains how America used to be a peaceful nation, then turned on both friend and fo, branding anyone standing against her as an enemy and using war to acquire whatever our nation so desires.
Quite accurate definition of our "great" nation if you ask me..
I'd say you got about half the point. It is about a war-hungry nation, but if you want a song about the Military Industrial Complex, a song meant for people who want to PROFIT from war, that song is called "Let's go to war". <br /> <br /> This song is intended for the people who instead think of war as necessary, as needing to look tough, striking down anyone who dare oppose you, and calling anyone who questions a war "unpatriotic". "And when I ask you why, you raise your sticks and cry, and I fall" is a way of saying "When I ask you why go to war, you call me unpatriotic, unamerican, you say that I don't support our troops."<br /> <br /> The song is saying that yes, you may have genuine enemies, but just because people say you shouldn't go to war, doesn't mean they are on your enemy's side.<br /> <br /> "How did you come to trade the fiddle for the drum?" - How did your primary purpose, your main message, of being a land of opportunity, a beacon of hope, turn into eradicating terrorism, and obliterating your enemies out of existence?
let me explain this one by one !
( And so once again, My dear Johnny, my dear friend, And so once again you are fighting us all )
(it's about a person name johnny, he's get piss-off easily )
And when I ask you why, You raise your sticks and cry, and I fall,
( jonny is knows he's wrong, when he ask why, he start to cry)
Oh, my friend, How did you come?, To trade the fiddle for the drum,
( "fiddle for the drum" is a metaphor, he trade his good feelings to low-self esteem.)
You say I have turned, Like the enemies you've earned, But I can remember, All the good things you are,
( every one leaving him and become enemy of him, and jonny think, like everyone he's acting bad toward him, the he says I can remember good things you are, what ever happen)
Oh, my friend, What time is this?, To trade the handshake for the fist
(jonny is satisfied with his talk-down then jonny giving him a hand shake, then he says, we are friend we should be doing fist-bump)
let me explain this one by one !
( And so once again, My dear Johnny, my dear friend, And so once again you are fighting us all )
(it's about a person name johnny, he's get piss-off easily )
And when I ask you why, You raise your sticks and cry, and I fall,
( jonny is knows he's wrong, when he ask why, he start to cry)
Oh, my friend, How did you come?, To trade the fiddle for the drum,
( "fiddle for the drum" is a metaphor, he trade his good feelings to low-self esteem.)
You say I have turned, Like the enemies you've earned, But I can remember, All the good things you are,
( every one leaving him and become enemy of him, and jonny think, like everyone he's acting bad toward him, the he says I can remember good things you are, what ever happen)
Oh, my friend, What time is this?, To trade the handshake for the fist
(jonny is satisfied with his talk-down then jonny giving him a hand shake, then he says, we are friend we should be doing fist-bump)
IS THIS ON THE NEW ALBUM? LOOKS COOL, CAN'T WAIT TO HEAR IT
I listened to the leak that's been going around the internet (I plan on buying it the moment it goes on sale though) and this is probably my second favorite track. I love how it's acapella and Maynard did all the vocal parts. Blends very nicely and sounds amazing.
Yeah, this song is on the new ablum that is going to come out on Nov 2nd. I really like this song too!
I'm not exactly sure, but I think this song has something to do with the US going to war... also something to think about is how they are releasing the album on Election day... I could be totally off-base though...
nice one... there is a story of 2 brothers One Weak and the Other Strong... they walk and a gang cross their road and starts hitting the Weaker... The Strong one starts to diss with the guys "Hit him again and you'll see what I AM GOING to do".... they hit him again.... "Hit him again and YOU'LL SEE" ... they hit him again.... and again "Hit him again and i'll bust your head"says the strong.... and than the weak one sais "Brother please don't stand up for me no more....PLEASE" This song is about the Weak and Powerless under the Guardians of Justice - Their Big Brothers. Go Maynard. You know... he's right: "If you don't vote... you have no right to complain, after" Greetings.
idiot, this song is about how once families fought in the american revolution "hence the fiddle" and later eventually fought on opposing sides "hence the drums", in the civil wat
This song is the sad story of America's sow path towards a violent future, instead of heading towards it's destiny of peace and harmony with the world. Were such a powerful nation with powerful roots and powerful ideals, and we seem to be squandering all that we have built up, and denying our roots of democracy and bettering the world. He's utterly idssapointed with the state of affairs in our nation, and longs for our nation to be come and accepting and loving nation.
Bullets and bombs kill people, not countries.
The USA is NOT a Democracy! We are based on the Roman REPUBLIC, not the Greek Democracy. Really, it just shows the insane amount of ignorance in our country. Do these words ring a bell? To the REPUBLIC, for which it stands..........