"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.
Don't be so scared
We will not lead you on like you've been doing for weeks
So you're selfish, and I'm sorry
When I'm gone you'll be going nowhere fast
Nowhere fast, nowhere fast
Would you believe me if I said I didn't need you
'Cause I wouldn't believe you if you said the same to me
And near death, last breath, and barely hanging on
Would you believe me if I said I didn't need you?
Don't be so scared to take a second for reflection,
To take a leave of absence, see what you're made of
So I'm selfish, and you're sorry
When I'm gone you'll be going nowhere fast
So who's selfish, and who's sorry?
Someone, somewhere
Said some things that may have sparked some sympathy
But don't believe
Don't believe a word you've heard about me
Don't be so scared It's harder for me
Don't be so scared
Don't be so scared, It's harder for me
Don't be so scared, It's harder for me
Don't be so scared, It's harder for me
Don't be so scared
Someone, somewhere
Said some things that may have sparked some sympathy
But don't believe
Don't believe a word you've heard about me
Would you believe me if I said I didn't need you?
'Cause I wouldn't believe you
Wouldn't believe you now
Would you believe me if I said I didn't need you?
'Cause I wouldn't believe you
Wouldn't believe you now
We will not lead you on like you've been doing for weeks
So you're selfish, and I'm sorry
When I'm gone you'll be going nowhere fast
Nowhere fast, nowhere fast
Would you believe me if I said I didn't need you
'Cause I wouldn't believe you if you said the same to me
And near death, last breath, and barely hanging on
Would you believe me if I said I didn't need you?
Don't be so scared to take a second for reflection,
To take a leave of absence, see what you're made of
So I'm selfish, and you're sorry
When I'm gone you'll be going nowhere fast
So who's selfish, and who's sorry?
Someone, somewhere
Said some things that may have sparked some sympathy
But don't believe
Don't believe a word you've heard about me
Don't be so scared It's harder for me
Don't be so scared
Don't be so scared, It's harder for me
Don't be so scared, It's harder for me
Don't be so scared, It's harder for me
Don't be so scared
Someone, somewhere
Said some things that may have sparked some sympathy
But don't believe
Don't believe a word you've heard about me
Would you believe me if I said I didn't need you?
'Cause I wouldn't believe you
Wouldn't believe you now
Would you believe me if I said I didn't need you?
'Cause I wouldn't believe you
Wouldn't believe you now
Lyrics submitted by ADimeADexter
Skeptics And True Believers Lyrics as written by William Beckett Michael Carden
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
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"
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.
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.
Page
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
There aren’t many things that’ll hurt more than giving love a chance against your better judgement only to have your heart crushed yet again. Ed Sheeran tells such a story on “Page.” On this track, he is devastated to have lost his lover and even more saddened by the feeling that he may never move on from this.
I think if you look closer this is a very clever song. The title refers to Rene Descartes' Meditations, specifically Meditation number One. In the Meditations, Descartes attempts to use foundationalism, an architecture analogy to indicate that all knowlege we have, and in the case of this song, all relationships are based on a hierarchy of experience from a more basic source. We must ensure that the foundation of what we hold dear is strong before attempting to build knowledge and relationships off it. Descartes used methods of doubt to construct the foundation. He said we should doubt EVERYTHING and that which stands the test of doubt is certain and everything else must be cast aside. Those that remain dubious of all knowledge and relationships are called skeptics. Those that have faith in things, such as self and knowledge become the true believers. This whole song is a series of doubts about the relationship followed by a reassuring voice "Don't be so scarred to take a second for reflection, see what you're made of" The point of the song is that he's trying to find out if the relationship is worthy of being a foundation of life or not through philosophical skepticism. Pretty awesome song.
<--- Best Song On The Album. The End. I think he's in a relationship where the guy wants more out of it than the girl does...
Yeah, this song is AWESOME.
Well, since when I first heard this song I was going through a rough spot with my friend I related it to that. It seems that the person he is talking to is scared for the friendship/relationship (how ever you want to look at it.) and he is saying, "what does it matter, you couldn't get by with out me anyway, so stop questioning things, I'm the one taking care of you."
But, again, I am sort of biased as to the meaning because I interpretted it according to my personal situation.
No one knows about this band yet, but they seem like the mainstream type. I'm guessing they are going to be big. :)
Deffinatly a relationship song, myabe talking about whether or not it will last, hence the name "skeptics and true believers"
love song. i think the song title kind of sums it up "skeptics and true believers" like as in love. are you a true believer in love? that kind of thing.
Great song, it seems like a couple that's caught up in rumors and people trying to tear them apart. He's holding on and making sure that this girl trusts him and loves him as much as he obviously does her. At least that's one of the ways I see it... I can kinda see how this song could be interpreted a few different ways.
Goregous song. I really love it and now I want to write 'Would you believe me if I said I didn't need you?' in this one guy's yearbook at the end of the year. I love the lyrics.
i think that its about a rlationship, definately. i think that maybe, the girls been leading him on ("Don't be so scared we will not lead you on Like you've been doing for weeks.") But still, she needs him in a way. ("Would you believe me if I said I didn't need you? Cause I wouldn't believe you if you said the same to me,") I dunno, does that make sense to anyone else, cause my friend didnt get what i was trying to say...
i definately agree with strbrstcyl, mostly because when i first heard this song i could really relate to that situation.
"Don't be so scared to take a second for reflecion, to take a leave of absence to see what your made of." i think that part is kind of saying "You need to find yourself and just go with your gut feeling" i don't really know.
music is poetry and good poetry can be interpretted in a lot of different ways so interpret it however you want i suppose. x3
whoa did u get ur name from Panic! At The Disco, offwhitepinstripes? wow, if ne of u don't know that band check them out