Legende Tracy Chapman: Fast Car

Die 59-Jährige Tracy Chapman hat seit 2009 nur drei Mal live vor Kameras gespielt und genießt generell lieber ein zurückgezogens Leben. Für die Grammy Awards 2024 machte sie eine besondere Ausnahme und brachte „Fast Car“ live auf die Bühne. Sie sang und spielte Gitarre untertsützt von Country Sänger Luke Combs. Enjoy!

Direkt nach ihrem Grammy-Auftritt wurde Chapmans Originalsong aus dem Jahr 1988 so oft runtergeladen, dass er sich mittlerweile auf dem zweiten Platz der Top-Songs in den iTunes-Charts wiederfindet.

Was für ein Comeback, was für eine wunderschöne Frau, was für ein Song-Evergreen. Das Lied handelt überhaupt nicht von einem Auto, sondern von einer gescheiterten Beziehung und einer Frau, die versucht, dem Kreislauf der Armut zu entkommen. Chapman begann in der Bostoner Folk-Szene, bevor sie „Fast Car“ sowie „Talkin‘ ‚Bout a Revolution“ von ihrem selbstbetitelten Debütalbum 1988 veröffentlichte. Nachdem sie es an Nelson Mandelas 70. Geburtstag in jenem Jahr performte, began ihre Karriere.

Fast Car

You got a fast car
And I want a ticket to anywhere
Maybe we make a deal
Maybe together we can get somewhere

Any place is better
Starting from zero, got nothing to lose
Maybe we’ll make something
Me, myself, I got nothing to prove

You got a fast car
I got a plan to get us out of here
I’ve been working at the convenience store
Managed to save just a little bit of money

Won’t have to drive too far
Just across the border and into the city
You and I can both get jobs
Finally, see what it means to be living

See, my old man’s got a problem
He live with the bottle, that’s the way it is
He says his body’s too old for working
His body’s too young to look like his

Mama went off and left him
She wanted more from life than he could give
I said, „Somebody’s got to take care of him“
So, I quit school and that’s what I did

You got a fast car
So, I remember when we were driving, driving in your car
Speed so fast, I felt like I was drunk
City lights lay out before us
And your arm felt nice wrapped around my shoulder
And I, I, I had a feeling that I belonged
I, I, I had a feeling I could be someone, be someone, be someone

You got a fast car
We go cruising, entertain ourselves
You still ain’t got a job
So I work in a market as a checkout girl

I know things will get better
You’ll find work and I’ll get promoted
We’ll move out of the shelter
Buy a bigger house, live in the suburbs

So, I remember when we were driving, driving in your car
Speed so fast, I felt like I was drunk
City lights lay out before us
And your arm felt nice wrapped around my shoulder
And I, I, I had a feeling that I belonged
I, I, I had a feeling I could be someone, be someone, be someone

You got a fast car
I got a job that pays all our bills
You stay out drinking late at the bar
See more of your friends than you do of your kids

Is it fast enough so we can fly away?
Still gotta make a decision
Leave tonight, or live and die this way