It's Only Life After All
a brief history of how the Indigo Girls made me
Last night I had a dream that the Indigo Girls came over to the house I grew up in and we were talking about a show they were going to play and I was going to sit in with them. My parents were there, and they said, ‘Oh Megan knows your material. There was one summer where you were all she listened to.’
It’s true! I had ‘discovered’ them on MTV and I was very into REM at the time and I believe they were touring with them. I went to ‘Quonset Hut’ - my favorite record store in Parma, and bought ‘Swamp Ophelia’ and basically wore it out that summer.
Their sound was something perfect for me at that time. I loved their harmonies, their songwriting, and how they incorporated the violin (!!!) into what felt like pop mixed with folk with a little bit of fuzz around it all. This is pre ‘Alt-Country’ and ‘Americana.’ All I knew is that they were more than folk but clearly inspired by it. It was fresh to my ears and I wanted more of that.
After that summer I left for college, and the first week, I saw a flyer on a wall that was looking for a violinist to play with an ‘Indigo Girls inspired’ duo. Fate??? I called the number and left a message. What could be more perfect than a chance to play this music!
They called back and soon I was crossing the street to another dorm to ‘audition.’ I met Ian and Nancy, of the band to be called ‘Tungee.’ They had transcribed the fiddle parts to ‘Wood Song’ and I could play them and basically I became an adjunct member of the band. They knew all of the IG discography and introduced me to the records that came before Swamp Ophelia (which I immediately went out and bought, why hadn’t I thought of that before?) and by introduced, I mean covered their songs amazingly accurately to my ears and made those songs come alive for me. I had yet to see the Indigo Girls live but Tungee was setting the bar high for when that day would come.
We played a gig soon after at a ‘Coffeehouse’ on campus and I remember my Organic Chemistry teacher Dr. Lloyd coming and cheering for me, and I thought ‘Wow, college is so cool.’
This band was really the first ‘band’ I was in. The first time I tried using a pickup on my instrument, and the first time I improvised in a live setting. Most of the music was written out because I was among smart music majors who transcribed the parts they wanted but I was able to get a little more free on a couple other compositions and soon yearned for more.
I watched “It’s Only Life After All’ on Netflix last week which has brought all this back into my consciousness, hence the dream and the rabbit hole I’ve gone down into the IG’s discography. I started at the beginning and reviewed all of their records through ‘Shaming of the Sun,’ which is when I shifted a little bit away from being a super fan, even though I never quit loving their music, message and vibe. Their ‘hit’ Closer to Fine is what put them on the map and it’s a great song but I don’t think it’s their greatest hit for me, but I digress.
The documentary was really good. It healed me in a way that I can’t quite describe. It brought up so many memories that were untouched from those precious college years. It was when I was LEARNING to hear music. I’d always loved music but I got laser focused back then. And to hear the Indigo Girls again, now at the age I am, holy shit I heard them again for the first time. I was so obsessed with parts of their music I missed a huge chunk of it. Re-listening to songs I used to hear over and over again but that had been dormant in me gave me a burst of energy and reconnection that has me buzzing with enthusiasm again.
Over the years, I have wondered about Emily Saliers and Amy Ray - what was it like to be them - what obstacles and challenges did they face as they became ‘them?’ Seeing old footage from their beginnings in the documentary reminded me of the many times I ended up seeing them live, and also how they changed the course of music for women. They blazed trails for women to be brave about who they were and even if it wasn’t always ‘cool,’ they were themselves. They stood up for their beliefs and never backed down. They courageously came out as gay even if the mainstream world wasn’t ready for that. Looking back, I feel sad that they were excluded from certain opportunities in the industry because of their openness. Yet, I have deep respect for them for prioritizing their truth and it makes me want to fight harder than ever to support all artists, especially those who are marginalized and sidelined for being different.
The Indigo Girls are still a band! They met in elementary school and formed a band in high school and they are touring this summer! What a legacy! If you see them and they need a fiddler, let them know I am available!
xoxo mp
Wow Megan— I loved this.
Love this!!