'Fast Car': How the Tracy Chapman Anthem Became an Unlikely Luke Combs Hit

While growing up in Cleveland, Ohio, future folk-rock guiding light Tracy Chapman felt inspired to learn to play guitar while watching Hee Haw. Decades later, one of her best-known and most-loved compositions made her the songwriter behind an unlikely country chart-topper.

Combs' 2023 cover of Chapman's 1988 hit "Fast Car" accomplished more than extending his streak of consecutive country radio No. 1s to 16. In a year during which country stars have dominated the pop charts, Combs introduced Chapman's song to his global audience while eclipsing the massive commercial success of her original recording.

Read on to meet Chapman and learn about Combs' lifelong love for "Fast Car."

Tracy Chapman's Signature Song

Chapman's self-titled debut album got met in 1988 with critical acclaim. Commercial success followed for the single "Fast Car" after Chapman's show-stealing set during Nelson Mandela's 70th birthday concert at Wimbley Stadium in London.

After the listening public made "Fast Car" a crossover pop hit, the Recording Academy recognized Chapman with six Grammy nominations. She went on to win the prestigious Best New Artist prize as well as Best Contemporary Folk Album and Best Female Pop Vocal Performance for "Fast Car."

As for what makes "Fast Car" special, its lyrics tell of a woman who, despite her best efforts, finds herself in a vicious cycle of personal and financial struggles. It was in line with country and folk storytelling traditions and proved the financial viability of folk-rockers to come, from Jewel to Sheryl Crow.

"'Fast Car' is a typically well expressed lament, not for those who have suffered extraordinary circumstances, but for those who escape one form of dead end existence only to fall into another, relative material success without the consolation of dreams for the future," read John Tague's 1988 review for NME. "It's a keenly felt depiction of the impossibility of escape, rendered tastefully and gracefully, charming in its simplicity."

Luke Combs Covers a Childhood Favorite

For Combs, the song brings back memories of being 5 years old, riding in his dad's 1988 Ford F-150 pickup truck.

"Me and my dad would ride around and listen to all sorts of things. My dad listens to everything," Combs said (as quoted by iHeart Country). "One of the first songs I remember hearing, he popped a cassette in, and — I loved this whole album — there was this one song that really stuck out to me, though, and it was called 'Fast Car.' That song has meant a lot to me ever since then. My whole life. I always think about my dad when it comes on, and us spending time together. As soon as I could play guitar, I tried to learn how to play this song, and it took me so long to learn how to play it because I was so bad. Last year I got to record my own version."

A staple of Combs' live set, "Fast Car" became part of his discography as a selection on his 2023 album "Growin' Old." The studio version stays true to the original to the extent that Combs kept the lone gender-specific line intact.

"You want to just be mega respectful of the original song," Combs told Apple Music's Kelleigh Bannen. "That's why in that song, it's, 'work in the market as a checkout girl.' I didn't change that in my version. I really wanted to just do the original version of the song.

"It's weird because you're doing a cover of it and you say, 'I don't want to make it my own, because I really just really want to shine a light on the original version and bring that,' because I think there's so many people that maybe know that song or it would be familiar to them, but they really don't know anything about it. They've never really listened to it," he continued. "When I recorded this, literally the engineer in there asked me who I wrote that song with."

New Crossover Heights

Combs' version topped the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart on the week of Sept. 30. It became the first cover of a song from outside the genre to reach No. 1 on the chart since Blake Shelton's 2005 rendition of Michael Buble's "Home."

"What an awesome way to end the ride for 'Fast Car'," Combs told Billboard. "It has been so cool to see everyone enjoying this song over the past few months, whether it was people who were hearing the song for the first time or people [for whom] it brought back memories of Tracy's timeless recording. I'm just glad this song got another life because it deserves to be around forever; it will always be one of my favorites. I'm glad we got to park Tracy's song at the top of the Hot Country Songs chart, where it should be."

It's also reached the pinnacle of Billboard's Country Airplay and Adult Top 40 Songs charts. On the all-genre Hot 100, Combs' version peaked at No. 2, surpassing the Chapman original's climb to No. 6.

Combs wasn't the first to recast "Fast Car" for a genre other than folk-rock. In 2015, both Tobok and Jonas Blue impacted club DJ's sets in multiple countries with tropical dance versions. Each instance reminds us that as a great song should, "Fast Car" bends to performers' needs without breaking the timeless and universal story told by Chapman.

The Bigger Picture

Combs' success made Chapman the first Black woman credited as the sole writer of a country chart-topper. She'll also receive hefty checks because she owns the writer's and publisher's share of the song. Though she avoids the social media discourse and rarely grants interviews, Chapman issued a statement in July through Billboard that thanks Combs.

"I never expected to find myself on the country charts, but I'm honored to be there," Chapman shared. "I'm happy for Luke and his success and grateful that new fans have found and embraced 'Fast Car'."

"Oh man, 'Fast Car' has surprised me more than you can imagine. Tracy Chapman wrote this perfect song that that I first heard with my dad and it has stayed with me since," Combs told Billboard in response. "I have played it in my live show now for six-plus years and everyone — I mean everyone — across all these stadiums relates to this song and sings along. That's the gift of a supernatural song writer. The success of my cover is unreal and I think it's so cool that Tracy is getting recognized and has reached new milestones. I love that she is out there feeling all the love and that she gave me a shout-out! Thank you, Tracy!"

In an interview with Today, Richard Cooper, African American studies program coordinator at Widener University, applauded Combs' song choice and wished for either a future collaboration or a shared concert bill between the country star and Chapman. However, he wants further discussions to be had about what "Fast Car's" country success in 2023 says about systemic flaws in the music business.

"These kinds of debates, I think, are great because they give an opportunity to raise the larger questions about the fact that, in terms of airplay on largely country stations, you're not going to see Black women — Black queer women — get that kind of exposure or airplay had they released just the original song," Cooper said. "So these conversations are important to have."

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