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.
Finlandia
Indigo Girls Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
A song of peace for lands afar and mine
This is my home, the country where my heart is
Here are my hopes and dreams, my holy shrine
But other hearts in other lands are beating
With hopes and dreams as true and high as mine.
My country's skies are bluer than the ocean
And sunlight beams on clover leaf and pine
But other lands have sunlight, too, and clover
And skies are everywhere as blue as mine
O hear my song, thou God of all the nations
A song of peace for their land and for mine
The lyrics of Finlandia by Indigo Girls express a deep longing for peace, unity and global harmony. The first two lines refer to the singer's desire to sing for every nation in the world, with the hope of promoting peace and love. The following lines take a turn and talk about the singer's love for her own country, where she has grown up and where all her hopes and dreams lie. But she acknowledges the fact that people in other countries feel the same way about their own homes, their own countries, and have the same desires and dreams. The fact that the skies are blue, the sun shines on leaves and pine in her country, does not mean that other countries do not have similar beauty and natural wonder. The singer then calls out to God to listen to her song, her plea for peace and harmony for all nations, including hers and the ones far away.
Finlandia is a song that has come to be known as a hymn of peace and unity. The original song was composed by Jean Sibelius as a protest against the Russian oppression of Finland. However, the lyrics we hear in Indigo Girls version were written by Lloyd Stone in 1934 as a hymn and were added to the Finlandia melody. Finlandia has come to be an important anthem for peace movements over the years and is often played at international events.
The song was adapted by Madeleine Dring and Joanne Greenberg in 1950 into a choral composition for mixed voices called This is my Song. The melody and harmony of the song has been used in a wide range of films, TV shows, and advertising campaigns, including being used as the opening theme of the BBC TV series, The Sky at Night. It has also been performed by various artists, including Ella Fitzgerald, Charlotte Church, and Hayley Westenra. The song was also played at the funeral of Princess Grace of Monaco, in 1982.
Line by Line Meaning
This is my song, O God of all the nations
This is a song dedicated to the God of all nations
A song of peace for lands afar and mine
A song that wishes for peace in other faraway lands and also in my own
This is my home, the country where my heart is
This is where I belong; the country where my loyalties lie
Here are my hopes and dreams, my holy shrine
This is where I keep my aspirations and ambitions; this place holds special meaning to me
But other hearts in other lands are beating
People from other countries have dreams and goals, just like mine
With hopes and dreams as true and high as mine.
Their aspirations are equally important and meaningful as mine
My country's skies are bluer than the ocean
The skies in my country are beautiful and serene, like the vast ocean
And sunlight beams on clover leaf and pine
The warmth of the sun shines on the clover and pine trees of my country
But other lands have sunlight, too, and clover
Other countries also have sunshine and lovely vegetation like clovers
And skies are everywhere as blue as mine
The skies in other countries are also beautiful, serene and blue just like the ones in my country
O hear my song, thou God of all the nations
I pray that God listens to my prayer for peace in all nations
A song of peace for their land and for mine
My song wishes for peace in all countries, and for peace in my own country as well
Contributed by Aria K. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@andyballentine9171
This is a hymn in the Evangelical Lutheran Worship book. In my congregation, we sing this at every American patriotic holiday.
@babababad
Many denominations have adapted this song to religious use, adding a third stanza by Georgia Harkness with Christian themes.
@DJJonPattrsn22
What a lovely rendition & recording! Thank you @IndigoGirls for this :)
I just LOVE this music! Although I known its origin since my early teens, I always think of it as a hymn...
I was told that this was the National Anthem of Finland, and never had reason to doubt or verify that.
Thank you @MsTiK for helping me correct this long-time error!
@porthrepta
Even without the words this is such moving music, and while the words are far from being great poetry the sentiment they express makes them so moving too. And it's a very good performance.
@babababad
These are the best words ever set to this melody.
@jeffkisner8874
Love the flag of the Finns!
@TheRealTommySalami
Why isn't this sung at every Olympics? Seems in the spirit.
@tyttiMK
+Tommy Salami The original version of the music is a patriotic protest piece. Many would like to have this as our national anthem, actually it almost is.
@OjiiSan53
+MsTytti : In addition to being in most evangelical Christian denominations' hymnals, it IS the national anthem of Finland. The original title is "Finlandia" and was written by classical composer Jean Silbelius during a period of Finnish history when they were trying to break free of Czarist Russia. (You probably knew that, but sooner or later someone who didn't know that may read this.)
@tyttiMK
OjiiSan53 No, it's not the national anthem of Finland. It was Biafra's but that country doesn't exist anymore.