Indigo Girls [Bonus Tracks]

1	Closer to Find 4:02
2	Secure Yourself 3:35
3	Kid Fears 4:34
4	Prince of Darkness 5:21
5	Blood and Fire 4:38
6	Tried to Be True 2:59
7	Love's Recovery 4:23
8	Land of Canaan 3:57
9	Center Stage 4:46
10	History of Us 5:27
11	Land of Canaan Bonus Track / Radio Single Remix 3:56
12	Center Stage Live / Bonus Track 4:04

Barnes & Noble

"Closer to Fine," the lead track of the Indigo Girls' eponymous, Grammy-winning 1989 major-label debut, became an anthem for those coming of age at the end of the 1980s. Combining questing lyrics with a jangly pop melody, Emily Sailers (who wrote the tune) and Amy Ray seemed to voice both the uncertainties and the confidence of a rising generation. The album maintains that level of lyrical insight and musical craft with such standout songs as "Secure Yourself," "Prince of Darkness," "Blood and Fire" and the dark "Kid Fears" (the latter featuring a guest vocal by R.E.M's Michael Stipe). For this reissue, the original ten album tracks have been augmented with a radio mix of the powerful folk rocker "Land of Canaan" and a powerful live version of "Center Stage." Kerry Dexter

All Music Guide

With their first major label release, the Indigo Girls come on strong with an outstanding batch of tunes, watertight harmonies, impeccable musicianship, and flawless production. And entering the folk-rock music scene on the successful heels of R.E.M., Tracy Chapman, and 10,000 Maniacs pushed their sales over the million mark and earned the duo a Grammy for Best Folk Recording. The eponymous release kicks off with the upbeat jangle bounce of "Closer to Fine," a modest hit, all-time fan favorite written by Emily Saliers, and a tune the Girls still play at every concert. A particularly fascinating point is that the Indigo Girls never write songs together, but they complement each other perfectly. The difference in styles becomes immediately apparent when the more dark and brooding Amy Ray steps up. Her remarkable contributions include "Secure Yourself," "Kid Fears," and "Blood and Fire," spiritual ruminations of life, love, pain, and faith which bury themselves deep inside your core whether invited or not. Weighting the opposite scales, Saliers offers a tender balance to Ray with two beautiful ballads, "Love's Recovery" and "History of Us." (Ray's "Land of Canaan" was once a ballad, but then she heard The Replacements and it became a bit of a rocker.) Chiming in with musical support are Hothouse Flowers, Luka Bloom, and fellow Georgians R.E.M. This self-titled release captures the passion of their youth with voices that are a little cloudy, untamed, and raw, but the power that surges through them suggests a maturity far beyond their years. The same can be said of the songwriting -- sheer poetry. To attempt examinations of these songs would not do them justice, for the layers of meaning and emotion unfold best upon repeated listening. Kelly McCartney