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.
Kid Fears
Indigo Girls Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
How much have you grown?
Pain from pearls, hey little girl
Flowers for the ones you've known
Are you on fire
From the years?
What would you give for your
Secret staircase (secret staircase), running high (running high)
You had a hiding place
Secret staircase (secret staircase), running low (running low)
They all know, now you're inside
Are you on fire
From the years?
What would you give for your
Kid fears?
Kid fears
Skipping stones, we know the price now
Any sin will do
How much further, if you can spin
How much further, if you are smooth
Are you on fire (are you on fire)
From the years? (from the years)
What would you give for your
Kid fears?
Replace the rent with the stars above
Replace the need with love
Replace the anger with the tide
Replace the ones, the ones, the ones, that you love
The ones that you love
Are you on fire
From the years?
What would you give for your
Kid fears?
Are you on fire
From the years
What would you give for your
Kid fears
What would you give for your
Kid fears
What would you give for your
Kid fears
You can't feel
The kids
The lyrics to Indigo Girls' song "Kid Fears" paint a picture of a young girl who has grown up and experienced pain and loss. The first verse opens with "Pain from pearls, hey little girl, how much have you grown?" suggesting that the girl has become older and matured since the last time the singer saw her. The "flowers for the ones you've known" line could suggest that she has lost loved ones and is now leaving flowers in their memory.
The second verse mentions a "secret staircase" and hiding places, suggesting that the girl had to hide or escape from something or someone. The chorus repeats the question "Are you on fire from the years? What would you give for your kid fears?" which could mean that the girl has been through a lot in her life and the pain and fear she felt as a child seem insignificant compared to what she has experienced since then.
The last verse encourages the girl to replace negative emotions and feelings with positive ones, such as love and the stars above. The final lines repeat the chorus once more, suggesting that despite everything she has been through, the girl still feels like she is unable to express how she truly feels.
Overall, the lyrics of "Kid Fears" are complex and poetic, exploring the themes of pain, loss, and growing up. The song is both sad and hopeful, acknowledging the difficulties of life while also encouraging the listener to find peace and happiness.
Line by Line Meaning
Pain from pearls, hey little girl
Addressing a young girl who must be going through difficult times
How much have you grown?
Asking the young girl how much she has matured since her pain started
Flowers for the ones you've known
Symbolically offering flowers as condolences for those who the young girl has lost or is hurting for
Are you on fire
From the years?
What would you give for your
Kid fears?
Asking the girl if she has been emotionally overwhelmed as time passed, and if she misses the innocence of childhood and its lack of fears and anxieties
Secret staircase (secret staircase), running high (running high)
You had a hiding place
Secret staircase (secret staircase), running low (running low)
They all know, now you're inside
Recalling memories of the young girl having a secret place to hide, running around and feeling safe, but now that they are grown up, people know and she is now self-contained
Skipping stones, we know the price now
Any sin will do
How much further, if you can spin
How much further, if you are smooth
Reflecting on growing up and how sometimes people make mistakes or commit sins, and wondering how far one can go hoping that their strengths- whether it is spinning or being smooth with words- would take them further
Replace the rent with the stars above
Replace the need with love
Replace the anger with the tide
Suggesting the young girl to substitute negative and materialistic concepts like rent or anger with emotional and spiritual ones such as love or the tide's constant rhythm
Replace the ones, the ones, the ones, that you love
The ones that you love
Emphasizing on the necessity of holding on to love and not to let go of the dear ones
Are you on fire
From the years?
What would you give for your
Kid fears?
Repeating the central question of the song, what the girl would give for her childhood's lack of worries
What would you give for your
Kid fears?
What would you give for your
Kid fears?
What would you give for your
Kid fears?
You can't feel
The kids
Repeating the question one last time, underlining the idea that you can't go back and feel the pure freedom and joys of childhood's lack of worries and only wish it could be relived, but it is impossible.
Lyrics © DistroKid, Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: Amy Elizabeth Ray, Emily Ann Saliers
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind