GayCultureLand: R.E.M. part 1

If we draw a hypothetical line that separates Pop acts to those that began their career before 1974 and to those that began from 1974 and later and out of these two groups I'm asked to pick my favorites, the results will be thus: on the left, the Beatles will sit at the top and at some distance away much too many acts will be crowded for the rest of the positions. On the right, there won't be so many acts crowded for the positions below the top. However, the #1 will be just as incontestable.

To avoid misunderstandings, I'm not comparing R.E.M. to the Beatles. I'm no fool. On the other hand, there's no other act of their era that has touched me as much. So, get ready for a lot of superlatives.

The group that defined College Rock, which would eventually be known as Alternative Rock, an inspiration to groups such as Nirvana, was formed in Athens, Georgia. Michael Stipe (lead vocals), Peter Buck (guitar), Mike Mills (bass/backing vocals) and Bill Berry (drums) all went to the University of Georgia. Mike and Bill were high school buddies, while Peter met Michael while Peter was working in a record store and Michael was his customer. They all clicked together and R.E.M. was born.

What set the group apart from the rest was a. Peter particular guitar playing, probably how The Byrds would have sounded if they existed in the 80s. b. Mills' melodic bass lines and vocal harmonies and c. Michael's vocals: he would be mumbling throughout most of the song and then at just the right moment, at the moment of emotional payoff, he would be crystal clear and get the message through with absolute clarity. Also he was the lyricist of the band: he wrote opaque and sometimes puzzling lyrics. But all that his lyrics require is not a logical analysis. It is poetry and as with all poetry, one has to allow themselves become immersed in it in order to fully appreciate it.

The band avoided the pitfalls of superstardom. They were friends first, musicians later and stars not really, that was their philosophy. They didn't need to validate themselves through the adoring screams of fans. Also they didn't really care who got the most press. Stipe, who was the frontman, was rather embarrassed about getting it. Buck was the musical genius and Mills was not far behind. Berry was the guy who anchored the band to something solid. What also helped a lot, was Buck's idea that all their songs would be credited to all four of them, irrespective of who wrote this part or that. Democracy was the band's true state of being.

Even when Bill Berry decided to leave the band in 1997, after collapsing on stage because of a ruptured brain aneurysm that nearly killed him, the other refrained from finding a new permanent drummer. They went on as a trio, hiring drummers just for their studio sessions and tours. In 2011, R.E.M. disbanded amicably. They had already left their mark in music, having sold more than 85 million records worldwide and becoming the inspiration to an endless number of new acts.

Now, to the music: their first single, released independently, was Radio Free Europe. It features in Rolling Stone's 500 greatest songs of all time and was added to the Library Of Congress's National Recording Registry.

The single received critical acclaim, and its success earned the band a record deal with I.R.S. Records. They followed it up in 1982 with the Chronic Town EP. Here are a couple of songs from this great EP: Gardening at Night's title was inspired by a fellow traveler on a road trip. He used this phrase to indicate that he wanted to empty his bladder. The band were impressed and a song was born.

Carnival of Sorts (Box Cars) was another inspired song:

Their first album, Murmur (1983), drew substantial critical acclaim. It was Rolling Stone's Best Album of 1983 and has since featured in all sorts of "all-time best" lists. For Pitchfork Media it was the 5th best record of the 80s. For Q it was the 6th.

The album began with a re-recorded version of Radio Free Europe. Talk About the Passion was the second single and it was a protest against hunger and poverty (in Stipe's usual cryptic way).

Perfect Circle was the closing song of side one. According to Stipe it's about longing in a relationship.

We Walk was a fun song, feeling like a march:

I must say that as much as I like Murmur, I like their second album, Reckoning (1984), even more. I wasn't the only one: Joe Sasfy of the Washington Post felt that the songs on the album "trump even Murmur's outstanding songwriting" and stated "there isn't an American band worth following more than R.E.M.". NME reviewer Mat Snow wrote that Reckoning "confirms R.E.M. as one of the most beautifully exciting groups on the planet" and called the album "another classic".

The first single from the album was So. Central Rain (I'm Sorry):