to record it, and what you hear on the radio is her coming in the next day after her show to record it." Blue also admitted that he wanted to create a Swedish-esque sound on the record: "I think with things like the synth lead lines in it, giving it that second hook, I was kind of going for a very kind of Swedish-y kind of sound. That's kind of the influence behind that kind of lead synth line, and that was something which I don't think people have picked up on yet, but they just like the song because of what it is." Chart performance The Jonas Blue version peaked at number two on the UK Singles Chart, behind Zayn Malik's "Pillowtalk". Its UK peak meant it charted higher than Chapman's original, which peaked at number five on the chart in May 1988 and a position higher upon a re-release in April 2011. Outside the United Kingdom, the Jonas Blue version reached number one in Australia. and Hungary, whilst also peaking within the top ten in Germany, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, Belgium, New Zealand and Sweden. In the United States, the Jonas Blue version went to number one on the Dance Club Songs chart. It reached 1 billion streams on Spotify in late February 2023. Track listing Charts and certifications Weekly charts Year-end charts Certifications Other cover versions The song has been covered many times, and it was parodied as "I Write a Fast Song" in the In Living Color sketch "Making of a Tracy Chapman Song", in which Chapman (portrayed by Kim Wayans) writes a song by looking out her window and witnessing events such as an old man getting hit by a bus and a domestic dispute. Xiu Xiu covered the song in 2003, for their second album A Promise. In April 2011, Michael Collings auditioned on Britain's Got Talent by singing his version of "Fast Car". As a result, the song peaked on number four in the UK Singles Chart in the United Kingdom, a position higher than its original peak in the country 23 years prior. In September 2014, Sam Smith covered the song on BBC Radio 1's Live Lounge, as did British singer Birdy in April 2016, Khalid in March 2018, and Justin Bieber in September 2018. In 2021, pop punk band Unwell released a cover of the song. See also List of number-one