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The falling, the screaming, the shaking, the breaking, the hanging up...it's all there. Bass player Ben Orr, who sang on this song, died of pancreatic cancer in 2000. The song was played in his honor at a memorial service at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame on the 10th of November 2000.
'Drive' is one of the most moving pieces of music I've ever listened to. The melody and arrangement are absolutely captivating; from the first moment you hear it's opening you know whats coming -- just plain knocks ya out. Obviously the lyrics can mean a million things to a million people . I believe this song is about addiction and relationships.
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I'm sorry to say you are all out of your minds if you think this is about "driving your baby home" or "not dumping your significant other" because of this song. If that is the case, you have bigger issues that this song. This song reminds me of a man I really liked in a relationship gone wrong...pretty much broke my heart. Reminds me of someone with mental and emotional problems. The singer is trying to get through to the person that there is problems that need to be faced.
One of my favorite songs from the 80s, from my childhood, and the MTV generation. What is with all the speculation about the lyrics? Lol It’s literally “…but now….” Look up the lyrics! “You can’t go on, thinking nothings wrong…. Who’s gonna drive you home tonight….” It’s really not that hard, people…..
Written by Ed Sheeran: Auch diese Songs stammen von Ed Sheeran
The final "bye baby" is after his last plea to her, as she is in denial. This song was written way before "Live Aid" and had nothing whatsoever to do with any natural disaster. That might be YOUR first exposure to it, but it was around a long time before 'Live Aid'. Obviously about a person with some problems written by someone who loves them and feels responsible for their well being.
I remember being told at the time ('85) by the presenter of a program 'Ready to Roll' which featured all the latest and greatest music vids at the time. Read the lyrics of the song and you know exactly what it is about. The song refers to a man who is in love with a woman that is battling drug abuse and mental illness. He can't take it anymore and is going to leave.
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'Drive' is, to me, synonymous with the report on BBC News of the Ethiopian famine In Oct.'84. The lyrics just sum up what I felt at that time and still do. This song is obviously about someone with a chemical dependency, likely to be alcoholism. "Who's gonna drive you home tonight?" seems to point to a person who can't "Drive" because they are too drunk.
I was driving somewhere and it came up on the radio. I just remember hearing the lyrics and drawing strength from the words. The lyrics told me no one was going to take care of me, that I would have to take care of myself. It was also a recognition of the ultimate aloneness that we all must face. If you listen to the lyrics VERY carefully, you can hear Ben Orr sing the words "Bye Baby" after the second and last verse.
Popular Cars, The Lyrics
Could be anything that would prevent someone from being able to drive home or take care of their self. Try keeping your mind open (just because you might have a heroin addiction, alcohol problem, schizophrenia, etc. doesn't mean this song is about that). It's is about someone with a problem written by someone who has feelings for them and is not going to be around to 'drive them home'. I'm surprised no one has got this yet. Rick was really upset about it and originally another member of the band sung it because he found it really hard.
The singer obviously cares about the person and is always there but only as the one person that does care and always rejected. When "Drive" was re-issued in 1985, the royalties from its re-issue were donated to the Band Aid Trust. The song was performed by bass player Ben Orr at the Philadelphia event of Live Aid in 1985, and it was used during the London event in a clip about the famine in Africa. Smith breaks down some of his worship tracks as well as his mainstream hits, including "I Will Be Here For You" and "A Place In This World." "Whose gonna drive you home tonight?" was seen as a stab at Western values where we enjoy heating, lighting, sheltered transfers between home and work, etc. And it really stabbed home at me...I have never been able to suffer whingers ever since.
Steph, I totally agree and the band once said the song was about living with someone with a mental condition. This song is about an alcoholic and it is sung from the perspective of the person who loves them. I am glad that none of you have ever been in a deep relationship with an addict/alcoholic. It is painful to walk away from someone you care about, realizing that your being with does not help them and is destroying you.
Watch the video closely, and you will see Ben Orr say two words after 'nothings wrong'. Based on his lip movements, the first word most definitely begins with a 'W' and the second word ends with a 'T'. Personally, when I hear this song I think of my 15 yr old daughter with ADHD.
I don't love her anymore but if i leave her who'd take care of her because she needs me like hell. This song is the reason why i'll never dump her. Genius is the ultimate source of music knowledge, created by scholars like you who share facts and insight about the songs and artists they love. This is one of my most favorite & saddest love songs…. A top New York studio musician, Ralph played guitar on many '60s hits, including "Lightnin' Strikes," "A Lover's Concerto" and "I Am A Rock." Dexys Midnight Runners' "Come on Eileen" is based on a real girl called Eileen that the band's Kevin Rowland had a relationship with in his early teenage years.
Or perhaps this person doesn't have the "Drive" to get better. I think Rik Ocasek may have written this about a former girlfriend who he had to eventually split up with because she couldn't get clean and sober. I first heard it in West Germany after my German boyfriend and I had separated...I was feeling quite alone at the time in a foreign country.
Since the first time I heard it, I realised it's a guy's song to a girl who he still cared for although they've already parted ways. Did everybody not see Ric's vivid recollection of this song? I joined this group specifically so I could comment on this song. I don't give a tinker's cuss about drugs et al, but I watched the video made for the first Band Aid concert by journalists... In which the Cars tune meshed beautifully with the video. In the line "Whose gonna listen to your screams" a starving baby sreamed...
He is no longer able to care for her and is leaving, and it is last appeal to her to get help. I'm not sure that the song was written with the Ethiopian famine in mind (you'll have to ask Richard Ocasek), but it fit very well when they put the song to famine images a year after its release. I think it could be applied to many tragic human conditions. That could explain its huge popularity; most people can relate to the lyrics, directly or vicariously. I do have this song in my mobile phone. It makes me feel guilty for lying to my girlfriend.
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