Fast Car - Tracy Chapman

What top 5 hit did Eddie Rabbitt make in 1980?

Drivin My Life Away

What are the messages that spirituals would be able to communicate for enslaved people?

Hopes for religious salvation and release from slavery

What are the reasons that slaveholders would encourage slaves to sing spirituals?

Made them more productive and believed it distracted them from rebelling

Who would “Moses” often be a pseudonym for enslaved people?

Harriet Tubman

What is the nickname of the BIg Dipper?

Drinking gourd

What is the North Star also known as?

Polaris

Who recorded the No. 1 hit “Horse With No Name” in 1971?

America

Who was the composer of Horse WIth No Name?

Dewey Bunnell

Where did Dewey Bunnell gain inspiration for the poetry in Horse With No Name?

Childhood years living at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California

What are the pressures notable in Fast Car that the lyrics address?

Poverty, alcoholism, generational cycles, consequences of bad choices, hope vs. heartbreak

What age was Tracy Chapman’s when her parents divorced?

4 years old

Which parent had custody of Tracy Chapman and her sister?

Mother

Who would help Tracy Chapman obtain a new Fender guitar?

School’s soccer coach and chaplain

What university did Tracy Chapman choose to go to?

Tufts University

Where would Tracy Chapman and her friend play to earn $20 or $25?

Harvard square

Who was the Tufts classmate that noticed Tracy CHapman playing?

Brian Koppelman

How long did it take Tracy Chapman to sign with SBK after being offered first?

6 months

What did Tracy Chapman want to get a Masters degree in?

Anthropology

Who did Tracy Chapman sign a record contract with through SBK?

Elektra

What album did Tracy Chapman first release with Elektra?

Tracy Chapman

Who is Tracy Chapman’s manager?

Elliott Roberts

How did Elliott Roberts want Tracy Chapman to perform throughout her tour?

Solo acoustic act

What is the exact date that Tracy Chapman would perform for the celebration of Nelson Mandela’s 70th birthday?

June 11, 1988

What were the other performers that participated in the celebration of Nelson Mandela’s 70th birthday?

Sting, Dire Straits, Whitney Houston, Bee Gees, Eurythmics, Salt-N-Pepa, Simple Minds, Stevie Wonder

Who did Tracy Chapman substitute for after a technical difficulty in the Nelson Mandela festival?

Stevie Wonder

What songs did Tracy Chapman sing after being substituted in at the Nelson Mandela festival?

Talkin’ Bout a Revolution and Fast Car

Where and what stadium was the Nelson Mandela’s 70th birthday festival taking place?

London, Wembley Stadium

How many countries was the Nelson Mandela festival broadcasted to?

60

What was the expectation of sales that Elektra put for the Tracy Chapman album?

200,000 copies

How many sales did the Tracy Chapman album have after the Nelson Mandela festival?

20 million copies

What billboard number on the Hot 100 chart did Fast Car reach at the end of August 1988?

No. 6

What number did the Tracy Chapman album attain based on sales for Billboard?

No. 1

What Grammy did Tracy Chapman win first “Fast Car”?

Best Female Pop Vocal Performance

What award/Grammy did Tracy Chapman get for the Tracy Chapman album?

Best Contemporary Folk Recording

What prize did Tracy Chapman also win as an artist for the 31st Grammy Awards?

Best New Artist

Who covered “Fast Car” in 2023?

Luke Combs

What spot did Luke Combs’ cover of Fast Car reach on the Billboard Hot 100 chart?

No. 2

What award would Luke Combs win for his cover of Fast Car from the 2023 Country Music Association Awards?

Song of the Year

Who is the first Black songwriter to win “Song of the Year” from the Country Music Association Awards?

Tracy Chapman

What Grammy nominations did Luke Combs’s cover of Fast Car receive?

Best Country Solo Performance

What form is Fast Car in?

Verse-Chorus

What is a hook in music?

Focal point of song

What are the changes that happen in the lyrics over the course of Fast Car playing?

“We” changes to “You” and verses are in present tense while chorus is in past tense

What does the repetition of “Be someone” three times give the music a feeling of?

Duple meter rather than the consistent quadruple meter

What instruments were present in the 1988 recording of Fast Car?

Acoustic guitar, electric guitar, percussion, drums, bass guitar, pedal steel guitar

How is a pedal steel guitar’s timbre made?

1 or 2 guitar necks laid flat with various pedals to change tone color

What type of music is the pedal steel guitar most often used in?

Country