Tracy Chapman is something of a legend in the world of blues, soul and pop.
The artist is best known for her hit “Fast Car,” a timeless song that many of us still enjoy today. While Chapman’s music is no longer dominating the charts, we can still listen to her old albums with a sense of nostalgia,and watch videos of her live performances online.
One of our absolute favorites is Chapman’s live performance of “Fast Car” at Oakland Coliseum Arena in 1988.
The performance might have been so long ago that we’re not treated to an HD camera quality, but Chapman’s singing is nothing short of perfection. “Fast Car” was released in 1988 as the lead single of Chapman’s debut studio album. It became a top 10 hit in the US and was nominated for two Grammy awards: Record of the Year and Song of the Year.
The song is catchy from the very beginning, but behind the music, the lyrics are deeply emotional.
It details the life of a young working girl and her attempts to look after her alcoholic dad, escape her hometown with her boyfriend, and ultimately get out of poverty.
While there are some somber lyrics in the song, there is a theme of hope, too—and the suggestion that things will get better.
And we believe this in Chapman’s liv performance, when her eyes light up as she sings: “And I got a feeling that I belong, I got a feeling that I could be someone.”
She takes the song at a slower pace and the crowd listens in silence, hanging onto her every word. This is one of Chapman’s first performances of her hit which was less than a year old at the time, but it’s clear she’s already won over a vast set of lifelong fans.
Some people think that Chapman’s performance of “Fast Car” is even better than her recorded version, and we can certainly understand why!
Chapman’s voice is clean, rich, and flawless, and she hits every note perfectly. She sings the song with real feeling. It’s enough to convert anyone to her niche style of music!
It’s very unusual for any pop singer’s live performance to even match up to the quality of their studio records, but Chapman more than exceeds this. It’s hardly surprising that she went onto become a chart-topping, Multi-Platinum, four-time Grammy Award-winning artist!
So, what has become of Chapman now?
Well, the 55-year-old has since released an impressive total of eight studio albums since her debut, with her most recent being “Our Bright Future” in 2008.
Some of her oldest hits remain her greatest, and she’s understandably very possessive about them being used by other performers or in other media! In 2018, Chapman sued Nicki Minaj, who proclaimed to be a huge fan of hers, for copyright infringement of her song, “Sorry.”
Of course, “Fast Car” was released as a tropical house cover by Jonas Blue in 2015 and reached number 2 in the UK Singles Chart.
Astoundingly, it charted higher than Chapman’s original. We still definitely prefer the folk-pop legend’s own take on the hit!
Once again, Chapman’s performance in this video shows us why we all love YouTube so much.
Do you think Chapman’s 1988 performance has aged one bit? Watch the video and see for yourself!
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