Country music artist Luke Combs shared that legendary singer/songwriter Tracy Chapman teasingly pointed out a lyric flub in his cover of her iconic song "Fast Car," and it made him want to "crawl into a hole."
In February 2024, Combs fulfilled a lifelong dream of sharing the stage with Chapman, his lifelong idol, by performing his version of her song "Fast Car" from his 2023 album, Gettin' Old, at the 66th Annual Grammy Awards.
His rendition of the song is now part of his regular setlist when performing live, but not without a new lyric adjustment.
At a recent concert, Combs was filmed sharing the embarrassing anecdote of Chapman calling him out for recording the track with the wrong lyric, "Still gotta make a decision."
The 60-year-old Grammy winner told Combs the actual lyrics were, "We gotta make a decision," indicating Chapman intended for the narrator to be, without question, in a shared dilemma instead of a lone one.
"That was the first time that I knew that I recorded the song incorrectly,” Combs told his audience.
He added:
"It was her telling me that. Because I remember, when she said that, I wanted to crawl into a hole."
You can view a clip of him explaining the story here.
“Luckily, she was awesome about it," Combs recalled of his interaction with Chapman.
"And I think about it every single time that I sing the song, and I will think about it every single time I sing this song for the rest of my whole life."
“But she was so cool about it," he added.
@andreagreenwood3/TikTok
The 34-year-old endeavored to right the wrong and perform the song with the correct lyrics from now on.
Said Combs:
“So the version you know is, ‘Still gotta make a decision.’ Not the words. It’s just not the words. I made that up in my head.”
The crowd laughed and forgave him for the innocent slip-up as the country artist continued:
“So tonight, I’m going to sing ‘We gotta make a decision.’ Because Tracy Chapman told me to, and dammit, I’m gonna do it.”
The circulating clip was also shared by the Tracy Chapman Online Facebook page captioned with:
"An honest mistake."
It racked up over 45K views with 1.2K reactions
45K views · 1.2K reactions | An honest mistake 😅
Luke Combs Reveals He Got One of the Lyrics Wrong On The Original Recording of His “Fast Car” Cover and Tracy Chapman Teasingly Called Him Out | Tracy Chapman Online
www.facebook.com
Both artists were given respect for the beautiful tune.
Tracy Chapman Online/Facebook
Tracy Chapman Online/Facebook
Tracy Chapman Online/Facebook
Tracy Chapman Online/Facebook
Tracy Chapman Online/Facebook
Tracy Chapman Online/Facebook
Tracy Chapman Online/Facebook
Chapman released "Fast Car" on April 6, 1988, as part of her self-titled debut studio album.
The song won the Grammy for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance.
The acoustic folk rock song is written from the perspective of a young woman dreaming of escaping the cycle of poverty.
For his version, Combs sang the tune without swapping the female gender narrative, indicated by the line, "I work in the market as a checkout girl," to keep the integrity of Chapman's original lyrics.
Last year, his cover of the song became a number-one single on the Billboard Hot Country Songs and Country Airplay charts, and simultaneously made Chapman the first Black woman to be awarded the Country Music Association Award for Song of the Year.
After receiving the distinctive honor, Chapman told Billboard:
"I never expected to find myself on the country charts, but I'm honored to be there."
"I'm happy for Luke and his success and grateful that new fans have found and embraced 'Fast Car.'"
Here's a clip of Combs joined on stage by Chapman to perform "Fast Car" together at the 66th Grammys.
Combs told fans at a different performance that he would listen to "Fast Car" and Chapman's entire album "while driving around with his father in a beat-up 1988 Ford F-150."
"That song meant a lot to me since then—for my whole life," he shared with concertgoers, adding:
"I always think about my dad when it comes on and us spending time together.”
Combs said that getting to record a cover of the song by one of his favorite artists was a "full circle moment" for him, adding that "Just to be associated with her in any way" was "super humbling" for him.
@iamcardib/X