Strange Fire, the Indigo Girls' debut album, was re-released after their next album Indigo Girls hit big on college radio in 1989.
The beautiful harmonies of college friends Amy Ray and Emily Saliers was immediately apparent on this album, the two-girls-with-guitars format felt like a breath of fresh air from a musical city (Athens, GA) known more for alternative acts such as the B-52's and R.E.M. Although most of the songs featured both women's voices complementing one another, it is clear that the songwriting came from two distinct sources.
Emily Saliers, a talented guitarist, generally sings introspective songs in the tradition of folkies such as Joni Mitchell, whereas Amy Ray, whose influences include harder-edged acts such as Hüsker Dü, sings with a rare intensity only matched by the heavy strumming of her acoustic guitar.
At this stage, the Indigo Girls are still developing and their lyrics suffer in comparison to their future efforts, which perhaps explains why the fiery, upbeat, and passionate songs of Amy Ray work better than the spare, mellow songs of Emily Saliers.
They perform a cover of the Youngblood's "Get Together" that is every bit as good as the original, and their closing song "Land of Canaan" is a concert favorite.
A must-own for fans, but casual listeners should start with their sophomore effort.
| Title/Composers | Performer | Listen | Time | Size | Size | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Strange FireAmy Ray | Indigo Girls | Play | 05:29 | 12 MB | 38 MB |
| 2 | Crazy GameEmily Saliers | Indigo Girls | Play | 02:53 | 6 MB | 14 MB |
| 3 | Left Me a FoolEmily Saliers | Indigo Girls | Play | 04:53 | 11 MB | 26 MB |
| 4 | I Don't Wanna KnowMichelle Malone, Amy Ray | Indigo Girls | Play | 03:16 | 7 MB | 21 MB |
| 5 | Hey JesusEmily Saliers | Indigo Girls | Play | 04:08 | 9 MB | 21 MB |
| 6 | Get TogetherChester Powers, Dino Valente | Indigo Girls | Play | 03:32 | 8 MB | 21 MB |
| 7 | Walk AwayAmy Ray | Indigo Girls | Play | 05:29 | 12 MB | 36 MB |
| 8 | Make It EasierEmily Saliers | Indigo Girls | Play | 03:59 | 9 MB | 26 MB |
| 9 | You Left It up to MeAmy Ray | Indigo Girls | Play | 04:57 | 11 MB | 30 MB |
| 10 | Land of CanaanAmy Ray | Indigo Girls | Play | 04:09 | 9 MB | 29 MB |
| 11 | Crazy GameEmily Saliers | Indigo Girls | Play | 02:53 | 6 MB | 14 MB |
| 45 mins | 105 MB | |||||
| 45 mins | 282 MB | |||||
| Artist | Job | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kris Anderson | Photography |
| 2 | Tommy Cooper | Engineer |
| 3 | Sandy Garfinkel | Harmonica |
| 4 | Scott Hull | Mastering |
| 5 | Indigo Girls | Primary Artist |
| 6 | Nita Karpf | Cello |
| 7 | John Keane | Engineer, Original Recording Producer, Producer |
| 8 | Michelle Malone | Composer |
| 9 | Chester Powers | Composer |
| 10 | Amy Ray | Cello, Composer, Guitar, Guitar (12 String), Producer, Vocals |
| 11 | Emily Saliers | Composer, Guitar, Harmonica, Vocals |
| 12 | Annie "Stan" Tichardson | Flute |
| 13 | Dino Valente | Composer |
| 14 | DeDe Vogt | Mandolin |
| Quality | Format | Encoding | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard | MP3 | 320kps 44.1kHz | MP3 is an audio coding format which uses a form of lossy data compression. The highest bitrate of this format is 320kbps (kbit/s). MP3 Digital audio takes less amount of space (up to 90% reduction in size) and the quality is not as good as the original one. |
| CD Quality | FLAC | 16bit 44.1kHz | FLAC is an audio coding format which uses lossless compression. Digital audio in FLAC format has a smaller size and retains the same quality of the original Compact Disc (CD). |