"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.
Lazy, you lazy poet, your words are reckless, and I can't feel it
But hey, hey, all the boys I have ever loved have been digital
I've been a guest, on a screen, or in a book!
I move 'em with my thumbs, I move them with my thumbs
I write his name in nothing, he whispers to the author
That I will be the only one
Escape! Escape! This time, for real!
We fool around in the service lane
He's the only friend I have who doesn't do cocaine
And all the boys I have ever loved have been confidential
Had a broken home, or a seedy past
So I know it's gonna last
And move him with your thumbs, I move him with my thumbs
He needs, he needs my guidance, he needs, he needs my time
Though I am not the only one
He swam! To the edge of the wall of the world!
Followed my voice, and he cried
Master! The answer is maybe... Maybe not... Maybe not...
Maybe not! I have goals!
Gotta fulfill the seven prophecies!
Gotta be a friend to grandmother!
Gotta rescue Michael from the White Witch!
Gotta find and kill my shadow self
Gotta dig up every secret seashell
You may have been made for love...
But I'm just made.
But hey, hey, all the boys I have ever loved have been digital
I've been a guest, on a screen, or in a book!
I move 'em with my thumbs, I move them with my thumbs
I write his name in nothing, he whispers to the author
That I will be the only one
Escape! Escape! This time, for real!
We fool around in the service lane
He's the only friend I have who doesn't do cocaine
And all the boys I have ever loved have been confidential
Had a broken home, or a seedy past
So I know it's gonna last
And move him with your thumbs, I move him with my thumbs
He needs, he needs my guidance, he needs, he needs my time
Though I am not the only one
He swam! To the edge of the wall of the world!
Followed my voice, and he cried
Master! The answer is maybe... Maybe not... Maybe not...
Maybe not! I have goals!
Gotta fulfill the seven prophecies!
Gotta be a friend to grandmother!
Gotta rescue Michael from the White Witch!
Gotta find and kill my shadow self
Gotta dig up every secret seashell
You may have been made for love...
But I'm just made.
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More Featured Meanings
Fast Car
Tracy Chapman
Tracy Chapman
Cajun Girl
Little Feat
Little Feat
Overall about difficult moments of disappointment and vulnerability. Having hope and longing, while remaining optimistic for the future. Encourages the belief that with each new morning there is a chance for things to improve.
The chorus offers a glimmer of optimism and a chance at a resolution and redemption in the future.
Captures the rollercoaster of emotions of feeling lost while loving someone who is not there for you, feeling let down and abandoned while waiting for a lover. Lost with no direction, "Now I'm up in the air with the rain in my hair, Nowhere to go, I can go anywhere"
The bridge shows signs of longing and a plea for companionship. The Lyrics express a desire for authentic connection and the importance of Loving someone just as they are. "Just in passing, I'm not asking. That you be anyone but you”
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/
Head > Heels
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
“Head > Heels” is a track that aims to capture what it feels like to experience romance that exceeds expectations. Ed Sheeran dedicates his album outro to a lover who has blessed him with a unique experience that he seeks to describe through the song’s nuanced lyrics.
Plastic Bag
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
“Plastic Bag” is a song about searching for an escape from personal problems and hoping to find it in the lively atmosphere of a Saturday night party. Ed Sheeran tells the story of his friend and the myriad of troubles he is going through. Unable to find any solutions, this friend seeks a last resort in a party and the vanity that comes with it.
“I overthink and have trouble sleepin’ / All purpose gone and don’t have a reason / And there’s no doctor to stop this bleedin’ / So I left home and jumped in the deep end,” Ed Sheeran sings in verse one. He continues by adding that this person is feeling the weight of having disappointed his father and doesn’t have any friends to rely on in this difficult moment. In the second verse, Ed sings about the role of grief in his friend’s plight and his dwindling faith in prayer. “Saturday night is givin’ me a reason to rely on the strobe lights / The lifeline of a promise in a shot glass, and I’ll take that / If you’re givin’ out love from a plastic bag,” Ed sings on the chorus, as his friend turns to new vices in hopes of feeling better.
which games are the seven prophecies and grandmother bit from? i can tell narnia and zelda as the last three.
also - fantastic song. i was a little bit dissapointed with the new album but it's grown on me, surpassing my love for 'has a good home'.
youtube.com/watch
Seven prophecies is from Ocarina of Time. As there are seven sages in that game. "Gotta dig up every secret seashell" is from Link's Awakening on the original Game Boy. "My shadow self" is probably from Adventure of Link for the NES. As the last boss in that game isn't Ganon, but rather a shadow-self of Link.
"Gotta be a friend to Grandmother" refers to Zelda: Wind Waker. Link and his sister are raised by their grandmother, and when Link leaves home (and his sister is kidnapped), she becomes extremely depressed. If you visit her, she returns to her old self.
It's a struggle between reality and a fantasy world.
The narrator is in love with all these fictional characters. They are perfect; they live in sort of utopia compared to our harsh reality.
And yet, the narrator cannot be loved by the characters. He may control them (through pages and videogame controllers), but they will never care for him. The narrator may guide them and hope for their survival, yet these fictional characters are oblivious to the narrator. The "he whispers to the author" part seems to be a wish for recognition from the character.
These fictional lovers contrast greatly with the narrator's real world. All of the real people the narrator has ever loved was a bad influence.
And so the narrator laments; he will never find true love.
Is it seedy past or CD past in the 2nd verse
o i was totally wrong about that line. im just stupid. so we know owen likes to play final fantasy and zelda, i wonder what other games he's into
I think "find and kill my shadow self" refers to the original Prince of Persia by Jordan Mechner (the old platform version). You had to jump through a mirror in order to finish a certain level, which released a "shadow you" in the opposite direction, laeving the real you with only a tiny fraction of your life, which is fully restored when you start the following level. Then you kept running into your shadow self again, unexpectedly, at later levels, and it kept hindering your progress on purpose (e.g.: stepping on plates which made you fall) until you finally got a chance to get close again and kill it. When you finally get around to kill it, you're left with only a tiny fraction of your life, but it's fully restored the following level. It's a great game indeed.
The music even sounds like it could be in a Zelda game.
I think it's about being obsessed with fictional characters and they are so perfect and you wish they could be real and you could be with them, but even though you can control them, you are just a guest in their world. And if they were real and you told them your feelings, their response would be "Maybe not!"
I get that feeling a lot, about TV, books, movies... He's definitely talking about books and video games in this case.
I always thought it was "Of course!" instead of "I have goals!" I guess they both make sense. Listening to it again, it sounds more like "I have goals!"