"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.
Dirty belly of a secret town
Cheap trick hookers that are hanging out at the bar
In the Greyhound station
And the bare-chested boys are going down
On every thing that the momma believes
Pack of smokes and a little bump of cocaine
Help you feel not so strange
Said old Pa, she don't get off, unless somebody standing near her
And she'll shine, once she's crossed the line
'Cause all tied to the chair
Oscillating on the ground, blowing white noise sound
Like a tranny on ten
All the bubbas got their heads in a nod
They don't know what they love or deserve to get
Chances are they tab their worm in a slab
Doesn't even know which fish that he like to bite tonight
Ah tonight, tonight, tonight
Ah maybe tonight
Said old Pa, she don't get off, unless somebody standing near her
And she'll shine, once she's crossed the line
Hands all tied to the chair
Oscillating on the ground, blowing white noise sound
Like a tranny on ten
Cops are on call, weeding out the freaks
Fingers in the dirt, and he's spitting out his teeth
Spitting out his teeth
Cops are on call, weeding out the freaks
Fling him in the dirt and he's spitting out his teeth
Said old Pa, she don't get off, unless somebody standing near her
And she'll shine, once she's crossed the line
Hands all tied to the chair
Oscillating on the ground, blowing white noise sound
Like a tranny on ten
Oscillating on the ground, blowing white noise sound
Like a tranny on ten
Oscillating on the ground, blowing white noise sound
Like a tranny on ten
Oscillating on the ground, blowing white noise sound
Like a tranny on ten
Oscillating on the ground, blowing white noise sound
Like a tranny on ten
Oscillating on the
Cheap trick hookers that are hanging out at the bar
In the Greyhound station
And the bare-chested boys are going down
On every thing that the momma believes
Pack of smokes and a little bump of cocaine
Help you feel not so strange
Said old Pa, she don't get off, unless somebody standing near her
And she'll shine, once she's crossed the line
'Cause all tied to the chair
Oscillating on the ground, blowing white noise sound
Like a tranny on ten
All the bubbas got their heads in a nod
They don't know what they love or deserve to get
Chances are they tab their worm in a slab
Doesn't even know which fish that he like to bite tonight
Ah tonight, tonight, tonight
Ah maybe tonight
Said old Pa, she don't get off, unless somebody standing near her
And she'll shine, once she's crossed the line
Hands all tied to the chair
Oscillating on the ground, blowing white noise sound
Like a tranny on ten
Cops are on call, weeding out the freaks
Fingers in the dirt, and he's spitting out his teeth
Spitting out his teeth
Cops are on call, weeding out the freaks
Fling him in the dirt and he's spitting out his teeth
Said old Pa, she don't get off, unless somebody standing near her
And she'll shine, once she's crossed the line
Hands all tied to the chair
Oscillating on the ground, blowing white noise sound
Like a tranny on ten
Oscillating on the ground, blowing white noise sound
Like a tranny on ten
Oscillating on the ground, blowing white noise sound
Like a tranny on ten
Oscillating on the ground, blowing white noise sound
Like a tranny on ten
Oscillating on the ground, blowing white noise sound
Like a tranny on ten
Oscillating on the
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Fast Car
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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"
Mountain Song
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Jane's Addiction vocalist Perry Farrell gives Adam Reader some heartfelt insight into Jane’s Addiction's hard rock manifesto "Mountain Song", which was the second single from their revolutionary album Nothing's Shocking. Mountain song was first recorded in 1986 and appeared on the soundtrack to the film Dudes starring Jon Cryer. The version on Nothing's Shocking was re-recorded in 1988.
"'Mountain Song' was actually about... I hate to say it but... drugs. Climbing this mountain and getting as high as you can, and then coming down that mountain," reveals Farrell. "What it feels to descend from the mountain top... not easy at all. The ascension is tough but exhilarating. Getting down is... it's a real bummer. Drugs is not for everybody obviously. For me, I wanted to experience the heights, and the lows come along with it."
"There's a part - 'Cash in now honey, cash in Miss Smith.' Miss Smith is my Mother; our last name was Smith. Cashing in when she cashed in her life. So... she decided that, to her... at that time, she was desperate. Life wasn't worth it for her, that was her opinion. Some people think, never take your life, and some people find that their life isn't worth living. She was in love with my Dad, and my Dad was not faithful to her, and it broke her heart. She was very desperate and she did something that I know she regrets."
I Can't Go To Sleep
Wu-Tang Clan
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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.
Head > Heels
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“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.
great song, ridiculous comments. "its a transvestite" "ten is a measurement of coke" "he's saying gin/tin"
the lyrics are "oscillating on the ground, blowing white noise sound, like a trani on ten" it's a description of an overdose. oscillating on the ground is pretty obvious. a 'trani' is a transistor radio, 'on ten' refers to full volume - common rock n roll slang as most amps go up to ten. hence if you turn a transistor radio up to full volume it kinda crackles and sounds like white noise and sounds altogether pretty fucked up - as i'm sure a person would sound while OD'ing.
the first verse sets the scene. the second verse describes a girl who only takes drugs when there's people to witness it - the song seems to be about young people getting mixed up in grimy stuff just sort of for the sake of it, out of confusion, not really having a purpose or direction in their lives, and it all ending pretty tragically. hence it's a sad and angry song, and seeing these people ruin their lives really affected him.
that's my two cents anyhow.
@spinnact sorry but no, its about transvestite hookers. Drugs, prostitution, police harrassment, etc. They're spitting out there teeth because they got bashed. Nobody says "trani" or talks about transistor radios anymore.
To me the debate on Trani is quite simple (I may have it wrong) however in Oz we call an old radio a trani (from transister radio). So a trani has a tinny sound anyway, thus in a tin shed or on a tin roof sounds even worse. Hence "a white noise sound, like a trani on tin".
Dude he's talking about trani- a transvestite on drugs
fortunatus: hands down, is totally right. sometimes people read WAAAY too much into KOL songs. a lot of them are very literal. this song is about a TRANI ON TEN. but again, kudos fortunatus. your the only one that really impressed me. good words, excellent interpretation. and those of you who said its better live: hell yes. caleb gets crazy. love it.
:]
this song is unbelievably good
these lyrics are unbelievably wrong
and its orgasmic when they play it live.
Agreed! Have you heard the Live @ Bonnaroo version? It's amazing! (and on itunes haha)
Check out this live version on youtube (that's been mentioned above):
youtube.com/watch
For me this is the best version around (even surpassing the studio version), a song developed to perfection over the years. Here's my attempt at the lyrics from the concert:
A dirty belly of a secret town: Cheap trick hookers are hanging out in the bars at the greyhound station; Bare-chested boys are going down on everything that their mamma believes. A pack of smokes and little bump of cocaine Help you feel not so strange.
I said "Ol' Pa, she don't get off Unless somebody is standing near her, And she'll shine once she's crossed the line, And's all tied to a chair" -I said laying on the ground, blowing white noise sound, like a trani on ten.
We'll the bubba's got their heads in a nod, They don't know what they love or deserve to get, Chances are that that worm in his lap doesn't even know which fish he'd like to bite tonight, Oh tonight, tonight, tonight, Oh maybe tonight...
Cops on the call, Weeding out the freaks, Fingers in the dirt, Spitting out his teeth, spitting out his teeth...
I think it's definately 'a little ditty about transvestite hookers from the first album'. I like the transister radio interpretation, but I don't think it works as well. Here's my ramblings on a transvestite interpretation.
It all happens in the 'dirty belly of a secret town'. It's 'secret' not only because it has a 'dirty', illegal underworld hidden away, but because its where people secretly go to enjoy this underworld - to live a part of their life thats hidden and kept secret from others. So (to pick an example totally at random), where a man might go to express his transvesticism, secretly dressing up as a woman without others knowing.
What if the 'she' that's referred to is this guy's secret side, it's the woman that he dresses up as, its himself? It's as if he's telling his 'Pa' about himself as a transvestite hooker, pretending she's another person entirely (though it does seem a bit wierd that he'd tell his Pa about his time with a prostitute or his furniture-based bondage sessions). How he describes her makes sense, then, as she only 'gets off' when there are other people near her - is only turned on when there are guys close by who think she is genuinely a woman. She 'gets off' even more when she's 'crossed the line' - when she's getting it on with a guy who still thinks she's really a woman.
I love the line 'Chances are that that worm in his lap doesn't even know which fish he'd like to bite tonight', like the nodding bubbas in the crowd are looking up at the dancing hookers and don't even care which one they get (and so end up getting with a transvestite!). But it could equally be referring to the transvestite hooker himself, who's up on the stage dancing, looking down at the crowd of nodding bubbas, not caring which one he reels in. The transvestite is fishing for a guy, and doesn't know or care which one he'd like to bite his worm. The line 'Oh maybe tonight...' suggests that it doesn't happen a lot, or maybe hasn't happened at all yet.
This works with the line 'weeding out the freaks' as well, as if the transvestite is discovered and kicked out, the police turning up and just kicking the shit out of him. That would be why he's 'laying on the ground blowing out white noise sound' - when he's trying to speak he's gasping and wheezing, gurgling and choking on blood, and spluttering through cracked teeth. He's not only LIKE a transvestite on a 'ten' of cocaine, he IS a trani on ten.
totally agree with the words, great interpretation, and I do agree totally, but I believe theres a double meaning, a play on words so to speak. The spelling, the ten, and the white noise all is literally about the transistor radio, but it works so well in a visual/lyrical sense, thats why this song is a perfect example of calebs genius. and whats better than a song that can be interpreted a million different ways?
I too agree! This song aint about no radio.
Fortunatus, you are correct about 95%. (1) It absolutely is about a transvestite. Caleb said during KOL's show at Bonnaroo in 2007.. "this one's about a cross-dresser's life in a small town, it's called Trani". Most everyone knows that "trani" is an abbreviation for 'transvestite'. But for those who didn't, you do now. Anyway, (2) the first hiccup in your synopsis of the lyrics is where you said he's 'laying on the ground'. That's incorrect, it's "oscillatin on the ground". Imagine a transvestite doing an act on stage, gyrating back and forth (oscillating) on his knees, lip-syncing a pop song.. really over-doing it (if you've ever seen a live show featuring transvestites you know they go all out).But in this small town, none of the patrons know the trani is not a girl (well, some bubba's may know or suspect, but would act like the didn't). (3) "ten" has nothing to do with cocaine. Remember, he only had a '"little bump" of cocaine'. Nobody can O-D on just a little bump. No, the word ten in "like a Trani on 10" is referring to a transvestite that is maxed out (like when you crank a stereo to it's loudest setting) going overboard in every possible way. So, if you gauge his actions from 1-10, he's turned all the way up, exaggerating everything. (4) "Blowing white noise sound" {and I'm guessing on this one} When a trani lip-syncs a song (as I mentioned earlier) he has to really belt it out to make it believable, BUT he can't make any noise or it will be heard over the accompanying music. So, the only sound he makes is 'white noise' - just a powerful airy sound. Finally, kudos to you for understanding the line "cops on the call, weeding out the freaks". Most people get that wrong. And, my take is similar to yours, whereas the trani (freak) gets his ass kicked by the cops and is left on the ground.. I picture a transvestite missing his wig, smeared makeup, his dress is ripped, and he's on his hands and knees in the dirt, bleeding from the mouth and spitting out teeth. This is a tremendously powerful and imaginative song. One of the Kings best. IMO
So, I basically signed up just so I could comment on this song. :P
I think oscillatin' sounds better, mainly because oscillation (oscillatin') means to rock back and forth. "Oscillatin' on the ground, blowing white noise sound, like a trani on ten" someone who is on cocaine, rocking back and forth, and/or having a seizure. That's just my personal opinion. He's using "Like a trani on ten." As a simile to define his previous statement. I get that I'm probably one of those people where you're going to be like, shut up, stop looking so deep, but I'm not really. I'm just saying that "oscillatin" sounds better, because of the way it is used. :)
Peace <3
Shared how painful it was to watch his dad hang out a humiliate his mom. A part of his childhood. Intimate. Comes home on call. AINT THAT THE PEACE? Shes been blowing white noise he feels like a trani on 10 ITS WAY DEEPER THAN THAT.... HE AINT SHARING THE BACK STORY. IEven at 53 I remember the feeling but no words UNTIL NOW.
@jamie10426 Transvestite and blow job's? NOPE
In the KOL documentary talahina sky this song plays while it shows a montage of people being ”slain by the spirit,” a concept in charismatic Christianity where a person is so overcome by the Holy Spirit that they may ”oscillate on the ground,” it looks kind of disturbing and like a seizure and I think most of the time people are faking it or it isn’t spirit induced (I’m a Christian but don’t know how I feel about the concept) but it seems the song describes what it’s like to witness one being slain by the spirit