The Indigo Girls are Amy Ray and Emily Saliers. They met on the playground… Read Full Bio ↴The Indigo Girls are Amy Ray and Emily Saliers. They met on the playground in grammar school in Decatur, Georgia, USA, and have been playing together since high school.

Their first release in 1985 was a seven-inch single named "Crazy Game", with the B-side "Everybody's Waiting (for Someone to Come Home)". That same year, the Indigo Girls released a six-track Extended play album named "Indigo Girls", and in 1987 released their first full-length album, Strange Fire, recorded at John Keane Studio in Athens, Georgia, and including "Crazy Game". With this release, they secured the services of Russell Carter, who remains their manager to the present; they had first approached him when the EP album was released, but he told them their songs were "immature" and they were not likely to get a record deal.

They were signed to Epic Records in 1989 and won the Grammy for best contemporary folk album later that year (for their self titled release) Some of their hit songs include "Galileo," "Closer to Fine," and "Shame on You."

Aside from being musicians, Ray and Saliers are activists, constantly supporting causes like gun control, women's rights, Native American rights, environmental protection, the abolition of the death penalty, and as lesbians themselves, LGBT rights. They constantly devote their time and money to such causes, often playing benefit concerts.

Ray and Saliers both have side projects. Ray owns and founded Daemon Records, an independent label based in Decatur. She also has a career as a solo artist, and has released two albums thus far. Saliers is the part owner of Watershed, a restaurant and wine bar in Decatur.

Together, the Indigo Girls are constantly touring. Their new album, Poseidon and the Bitter Bug, was released March 24, 2009.

Down by the River
Indigo Girls Lyrics

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Be on my side
I`ll be on your side
There is no reason for you to hide
It`s so hard staying here all alone

You could be taking me for a ride
She could drag me over the rainbow
Send me away

Down by the river

I shot my baby
Down by the river
Dead

Take my hand
I`ll take your hand baby
Together we may get away
This much madness is too much sorrow

It`s impossible to make it today
Oh baby
She could drag me over the rainbow
Send me away

Down by the river
I shot my baby
Down by the river
Dead

Be on my side
I`ll be on your side
Baby there ain`t no reason for us to hide
It`s so hard staying here all alone

You should be taking me for a ride
Oh baby
She could drag me over the rainbow
And send me away

Down by the river
I shot my baby
Down by the river
I shot my baby

You take my hand
(down by)
I`ll take your hand baby
(the river)

Together we may get away
(i shot my baby)
This much madness is too much sorrow
(down by the river)

It`s impossible to make it today
(i shot my baby)
This much madness is too much sorrow
(down by the river)

It`s impossible to make it today

(i shot my baby)
Down by the river

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of "Down by the River" by Indigo Girls, is a song about a lover who is asking to be forgiven after killing his girlfriend. The opening lines "Be on my side, I'll be on your side, there is no reason for you to hide" suggest that the singer wants to reconcile with his lover. He then laments the loneliness he feels and how difficult it is for him to stay alone. The line "She could drag me over the rainbow, send me away, down by the river" does not clearly explain who 'she' is or what 'the rainbow' represents, but it sounds like he is being referred to some kind of escape or refuge.

The song becomes ominous with the lines "I shot my baby, down by the river, dead." The singer appears to have killed his lover by shooting her, and now he is trying to escape or find solace in another place, most probably 'down by the river.' The chorus, "You take my hand, I'll take your hand, baby, Together we may get away, This much madness is too much sorrow" implies a desperate attempt to flee from the consequences of his actions, although it's unclear if he's referring to the law or the guilt he feels for his actions.

Line by Line Meaning

Be on my side
Let's be allies

I'll be on your side
I'll support you

There is no reason for you to hide
No need to conceal anything

It's so hard staying here all alone
Loneliness is tough

You could be taking me for a ride
You could be fooling me

She could drag me over the rainbow
She could make me blissfully unaware

Send me away
Make me forget

Down by the river
A place of tragedy

I shot my baby
I killed my lover

Take my hand
Let's be together

Together we may get away
We have a chance to escape