‘Fast Car’ remake helps Tracy Chapman make country music history

[Y2kTheNewOldies]

https://www.cnn.com/2023/07/07/entertainment/fast-car-tracy-chapman/index.html

Woah heres the amazing part of this the song was originally released in 1988 but Luke Combs recently did the cover of the song.

 

[TheBigA]

In fact the song is older than Luke. It was a favorite of his father, so Luke heard it from him. He recorded it for his latest album that marks his 30th birthday and the birth of his son. It seemed like a good time to cover a song from his childhood.

 

[CTListener]

In fact the song is older than Luke. It was a favorite of his father, so Luke heard it from him. He recorded it for his latest album that marks his 30th birthday and the birth of his son. It seemed like a good time to cover a song from his childhood.

And he's been doing it in his live shows since before he got his record deal and was playing at bars and clubs in North Carolina.

 

[Marcos_C]

In fact the song is older than Luke. It was a favorite of his father, so Luke heard it from him. He recorded it for his latest album that marks his 30th birthday and the birth of his son. It seemed like a good time to cover a song from his childhood.

In 2015, British DJ Jonas Blue did a tropical house cover of "Fast Car," and the origin story of his cover is similar to that of Luke Combs' version.

"In an interview with iHeartRadio, Blue stated Chapman's original 1988 hit is a favorite of Blue's mother, who would often play it in the car. 'It was a good song in London [during] that time when I was growing up, so it was always on the radio, and it just kind of stuck with me. It was that song on the long journeys, and I loved it.'"

Fast Car: Jonas Blue version (Wikipedia)

Regarding Luke Combs' cover, I noticed that Luke kept the following line: "I work in the market as a checkout girl."

"Combs' manager Chris Kappy told Billboard magazine, 'Luke is a songwriter too and Tracy is one of his favorite artists. So his goal was to never change the song. His goal was to honor the perfection that it is, and changing the gender never crossed his mind.'"

Fast Car: Luke Combs version (Wikipedia)

 

[Mikey Radio]

Back in the day, In Living Color did a parody of how Tracy Chapman must write - it's a parody of "Fast Car":

 

[Mikey Radio]

Tracy Chapman becomes first Black songwriter to win Song of the Year in CMA Awards' 56-year history​

Tracy Chapman becomes first Black songwriter to win Song of the Year in CMA Awards' 56-year history

"I want to thank Tracy Chapman for writing one of the greatest songs of all time," said Luke Combs, whose remake made "Fast Car" a hit again 35 years after its release.

www.yahoo.com

Single of the Year was the first announced category of Wednesday's CMAs ceremony, and Chapman was of course the first person Combs mentioned in his heartfelt acceptance speech. “I want to thank Tracy Chapman for writing one of the greatest songs of all time,” he gushed. “I just recorded it because I love this song so much. It’s meant so much to me throughout my entire life. It’s the first favorite song that I ever had, since I was 4 years old.”

Only minutes passed before Combs was back at the podium to accept the Song of the Year award, which goes to songwriters. The audience erupted in cheers and a standing ovation when Chapman's name was announced by country legend Bill Anderson, at which point Anderson's co-presenter Sara Evans read Chapman’s brief acceptance speech.

“I’m sorry I couldn’t join you all tonight. It’s truly an honor for my song to be newly recognized after 35 years of its debut. Wow. Thank you to the CMAs, and a special thanks to Luke and to all of the fans of ‘Fast Car,’” the absent Chapman’s statement read.

 

[vchimpanzee]

Both of them performed the song at the Grammys.

 

[The Media Observer]

Well-deserved recognition for Ms. Chapman. Nice to see Fast Car get a second life 35 years later. Her 1988 self-titled debut album remains a timeless classic.

 

[JayR]

Back in the day, In Living Color did a parody of how Tracy Chapman must write - it's a parody of "Fast Car":

The late south Florida radio host Neil Rogers used to play a parody of "Fast Car" on his show. You can find it on YouTube.