"Galileo" is my favorite Indigo Girls song.

(I'm actually listening to it right now on my iPod ... it helps with writing, although I hope Gloria Grevas across the hall doesn't mind my desktop percussion. She hasn't said anything yet.)

"Galileo" also was the opener the first (and so far only) time I've seen Indigo Girls in concert. That was back in November 2000, when the Grammy-winning duo of Emory alumnae-Emily Saliers 85C and Amy Ray 86C--played a free show for the Emory community at the Woodruff PE Center.

Dwarfed by a massive backdrop promoting Emory's Year of Reconciliation, they performed a rousing 45-minute acoustic set, then stuck around another 45 minutes to answer audience questions. Although nearly 10 years have passed, I still remember the evening--well, not like it was yesterday, but maybe a week and a half ago.

When they launched into the guitar riff that opened Galileo, I did this little jump-up-and-down in my seat. At the time, I'd been working at Emory for less than a year ... I didn't want to show too much emotion. It was a free event, but the duo certainly didn't take the night off. They brought their A-game.

As I'm sure our alumni readers know, the PE Center is hardly an intimate venue, but Saliers and Ray turned the cold, cavernous gym into a living room with space for 4,000 friends. This was most evident during the Q&A when, seated on stools, the duo casually, personably, and with great appreciation discussed their charity work, experiences as students, and much more.

The next time Indigo Girls play a free show at Emory will be Saturday, September 25, when they rock McDonough Field for Emory Homecoming Weekend. There won't be Q&A afterward (although if you're going to the Class of 1985's 25-year reunion, Saliers will be there and you can probably ask her anything you want), but it should still be memorable.

One thing's for sure, when they play "Galileo," I'm jumping up and down for real.

-- Eric Rangus, director, communications, EAA