R.E.M. (Rock Band)

R.E.M. was an American rock band from Athens, Georgia, formed in 1980 by drummer Bill Berry, guitarist Peter Buck, bassist Mike Mills, and lead vocalist Michael Stipe, all students at the University of Georgia. Their musical style has been described as alternative rock, college rock, folk rock, post-punk and new wave. Many writers have speculated that the band's name was derived from the phenomenon of “rapid eye movement,” but the band has never confirmed this.

I first became aware of R.E.M. when I attended a multi-group concert in Philadelphia. The headliners were The Police (my favorite group). Also on the bill were Joan Jett, Madness and the (at that time) relatively unknown R.E.M. But I was so impressed by their music that they have become one of my favorite groups ever since. Altogether I have seen them in concert six times, and I own all their albums.

After performing at small venues in Georgia and nearby, gaining a growing following, the band members dropped out of school to focus on their musical career. In 1981 they released their first single recording, “Radio Free Europe,” for a small independent record label called Hib-Tone. The song took off and started them on the road to commercial success. The New York Times even listed it as one of the ten best singles of the year. Later that year they signed with a larger label, I.R.S. Records, and released an EP called Chronic Town, which was even more popular. In 1983, they recorded their first album, Murmur, which was chosen by Rolling Stone as Album of the Year, partly due to heavy airplay of the song “Radio Free Europe.” This was impressive, because Murmur beat out Michael Jackson's Thriller, one of the best-selling and best-reviewed albums in rock history. From 1982 to 1988 they toured Canada and Europe and became a cult phenomenon. On the band's early songs, Michael Stipes' lyrics were difficult to understand, and were described as “mumbling” by the Washington Post. But by the mid-1980s he began singing more clearly and adopting a more lyrical style.

One of my favorite albums, and one of the first CDs I ever bought, was Lifes Rich Pageant in 1987. The December 1987 cover of Rolling Stone proclaimed them as “America's Best Rock & Roll Band.” In 1988 they signed with the more prestigious Warner Brothers Records, and continued their meteoric climb to rock stardom. Many of their biggest hits were released in the late 1980s and early 1990s.

In 1997, partly due to health problems, Bill Berry left the band. They continued as a trio, along with various studio musicians and touring members, although with less success. But from 2006 to 2011 they rebounded, even being inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2006. Nevertheless, at the height of their popularity in 2011 they announced that they were “calling it a day as a band.” Although they had disbanded, they continued to release records, including live, greatest hits, and compilation albums. In 2023 they were nominated for the Songwriters Hall of Fame.

Some of their biggest hits were “It’s the End of the World as We Know It (And I Feel Fine)” (1987), “Losing My Religion” (1991), “Shiny Happy People” (1991), “Man on the Moon” (1992), and “Everybody Hurts” (1993). These were also huge video hits. Many other famous groups, including Nirvana, and most of the 90's grunge bands, have credited R.E.M. as a major influence, and one of the main pioneers of alternative rock. Overall, they have sold over 90 million albums worldwide. Virtually all of their albums are available on CD through the Mercer County Library.

They have also pursued other ventures. Lead singer Michael Stipe, in particular, has used his celebrity to support various political and humanitarian causes.

 There has been a lot of excitement recently due to the band being inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame on June 13, 2024. On this occasion the band did their first interview in 30 years with all four original members on CBS:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V1qjo0Oz1qw&t=226s

 The library owns related books, including an interesting 1994 book Talk About the Passion: REM, An Oral History, (ISBN: 9780887331848) by Denise Sullivan. This consists of commentary about the band by many fans, rock writers, and musicians. A recent addition to the library's collection is an interesting oversized “coffee table” book called Michael Stipe: Even the Birds Gave Pause, (ISBN:978886208145) from last year. It consists entirely of photographs he took during his travels all over the world. The subjects are people (friends and others), various locations, and works of art. (There is no text to explain the photos, except for a listing at the back of the book.) This marks a return to his college days as a Visual Arts major. The library also owns a 2015 video documentary REM by MTV (OCLC: 956954248) which covers every aspect of their career from founding to breakup.

This is a link to the rock video of one of their biggest hits of the 1980s, “It's the End of the World as We Know It (And I Feel Fine):”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z0GFRcFm-aY

 This is a link to a rock video of one of their biggest hits of the 1990s, “Losing My Religion,” which won two Grammy Awards in 1992 for Best Short-Form Music Video, and Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group With Vocal:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xwtdhWltSIg

 --Jon, Hickory Corner Branch