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.
This Train Revisited
Indigo Girls Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
A lump in the throat
Razor on the wire
Skin and bone
Piss and blood
In a railroad car
One hundred people
Gypsies queers and David's star
This train is bound for glory
This train is bound for glory
This train is bound for glory
This train
Measure the bones
Count the face
Pull out the teeth
Do you belong to the human race
Doctor doctor
Are you unkind
Do you shock the monkeys
Cover our eyes with clear blue skies
This train is bound for glory
This train is bound for glory
This train is bound for glory now
This train
Here is a dancer
Who has no legs
Here is a healer (here is a teacher who has no face)
Who has no hands (here is a runner who has no feet)
Here is a thinker (here is a builder who has no back)
Who has no head (here is a writer who has no voice)
These are the questions (these are the answers)
Stacked like wood
This train is bound for glory
This train is bound for glory
This train is bound for glory now (this train)
This train is bound for glory (this train gonna carry my mother)
This train is bound for glory (this train gonna carry my father)
This train is bound for glory now (this train gonna carry my sister)
This train (this train gonna carry my brother)
(Here is a teacher) (stacked like wood)
This train gonna carry my sister (here is a healer) (stacked like wood)
This train gonna carry my brother (this is a builder)
This train gonna carry my sister (gypsies queers and David's star)
This train is, this train is bound for glory
These are the questions
Stacked like wood
These are the answers
Here is potential gone for good
The lyrics of "This Train Revisited" by Indigo Girls describe the horrors of the Holocaust in Nazi Germany. In the first verse, the singer describes the conditions of the railroad cars that transported Jewish prisoners to concentration camps, where they were often crammed into small spaces and subjected to inhumane conditions. The imagery of "piss and blood" and "skin and bone" bring to mind the dehumanization and brutality the prisoners faced. The reference to "Gypsies, queers and David's star" acknowledges the persecution of other minorities and victims of the Holocaust, including LGBTQ individuals and Romani people.
In the second verse, the focus shifts to the medical experimentation that was carried out on concentration camp prisoners, with references to doctors who were "unkind" and "shock(ed) the monkeys". The lyrics also pose a question about what it means to be human, echoing the dehumanization that was inflicted on Holocaust victims. The third verse acknowledges the resilience and potential of those who were targeted by the Nazis, describing a dancer without legs, a healer without hands and a thinker without a head as "stacked like wood", symbolic of the countless lives lost in the Holocaust.
Overall, "This Train Revisited" is a powerful statement about the atrocities committed by the Nazis during World War II, and a reminder of the importance of understanding history and working to prevent such horrors from happening again.
Line by Line Meaning
It's a fish white belly
Looking at the underside of a fish, which is usually white, this line may be a metaphor for seeing things from a different perspective.
A lump in the throat
This line could be about the emotional response of seeing something so moving it creates a physical reaction.
Razor on the wire
This line is an image of danger, and could reflect the realities of living on the edge or feeling exposed.
Skin and bone
Drawing attention to the physical body, this line may reflect health struggles, malnourishment or the human condition in general.
Piss and blood
This is a harsh description of a bodily function, and might point to challenges of an ongoing nature or the realities of living in difficult conditions.
In a railroad car
The confined space of a railroad car might represent the feeling of being trapped or stuck in a situation.
One hundred people
This line speaks to the idea of community and gathering, and how many people can share a space and a common goal.
Gypsies queers and David's star
This is a reference to marginalized groups who might feel outside the mainstream. They are united in their struggle.
This train is bound for glory
This is a repeated refrain about the train, its direction and its ultimate purpose, which creates emphasis and builds momentum.
Measure the bones
This is a line about details, of counting bodies and cataloguing remains, and speaks to the role of those who bear witness to the cost of war.
Count the face
This line is about the hard work of identifying victims and the human cost of war.
Pull out the teeth
Here, in a brutal image, the process of identification becomes more and more invasive and personal, highlighting the need to honor each individual.
Do you belong to the human race
This line begs the question of who belongs to the human family, and might be pinpointing nationality or race as a barrier.
Doctor doctor
These lines could signify a desperate cry for help, calling out to people in power who might be able to help those in need.
Are you unkind
This line might be calling out those with power and influence who aren't using it for good, or who are doing harm.
Do you shock the monkeys
This line could be pointing to experiments on animals for 'scientific' research, and might be questioning the role of scientists and their ethical dilemmas.
Cover our eyes with clear blue skies
This line could be a metaphor for the way we ignore suffering around us and pretend that everything is okay while we enjoy ourselves.
Here is a dancer
Each of these lines introduces a person or type of person who is struggling with a disability, showing their resilience in the face of adversity.
Who has no legs
This line points to the challenges of mobility for some, and how they navigate the world in different ways.
Who has no hands
This line points to the challenges of ability and activity, and celebrates those who are able to do things in spite of that.
Who has no head
This line talks to the mental or emotional struggles that people face, with or without physical differences.
These are the questions
This line is a pivot between the focused stories about individuals and the larger questions we all face.
Stacked like wood
This line may be pointing to the inhumanity of treating people like objects, meant to be used up and put aside.
This train gonna carry my mother
This line is about the love between family members and the need to be together or stay close, no matter what happens in life.
This train gonna carry my father
This line speaks to the same love between family members, and the way we rely on each other for support and care.
This train gonna carry my sister
This line is about the importance of sisters and the bond between siblings that persists no matter what.
This train gonna carry my brother
This line is about the importance of brothers and the shared experiences that can build deep connections.
This is a builder
Here, we return to the images of individuals with disabilities in a show of respect and admiration for the talents and gifts that they offer.
Gypsies queers and David's star
This is a repeated reference to those who are outside the mainstream and might need to band together for support and safety.
This train is, this train is bound for glory
Once again, the refrain brings us back to the driving force of the train and its unstoppable trajectory towards justice and righteousness.
These are the questions
Returning to the big questions that shape our lives and our societies, we end the song with a call to action and reflection.
Stacked like wood
Again with the image of people as commodities or objects, the song ends with a haunting reminder of inhumanity and the need for greater compassion.
These are the answers
The song's final line is a kind of call to arms, pushing us to take responsibility for creating the world we want to live in.
Here is potential gone for good
This line is a sobering and poignant reminder of the fragility of life and the cost of inaction.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: AMY ELIZABETH RAY
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind