While the charts were dominated by teen pop and hair metal, and rock fans mostly remember the '80s for labels like SST, the '80s singer/songwriter revival was mostly a non-mainstream affair, the domain of labels like Flying Fish and Rounder and eventually Windham Hill.

There had been some indication of its hit potential earlier as Suzanne Vega's 'Luka' made a bit of noise, but there's more sheen and 'pop/rock' production on that one song than there is on the entire Tracy Chapman debut.

Fast Car is at its heart a pop strong with impeccable structure and melody, but it's the sparse 'folk' production that makes it stand out as completely different from anything on the charts in those days.