how will r.e.m. do a greatest hits without 'the one i love' or 'it's the end of the world as we know it...' ?

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i mean .... *how* ?
how does it normaly work when an act's career
is split betwen labels ? like bowie's ?
how do they do that ? and why can't r.e.m. ?
am still *reeling* from the
fact that they're beginning
their world tour in glastonbury meself.

― piscesboy, Friday, 4 April 2003 12:16 (twenty-two years ago)

there were a lot of hits on Out of Time and Automatic, I think they should be able to put together a respectable comp. from just the Warner years. although i'm sure eventually someone like Rhino will get the rights to do a full career retrospective that'll be better.

― Al (sitcom), Friday, 4 April 2003 12:35 (twenty-two years ago)

they did a Greatest Hits about ten years ago didnt they? so the next one should probably just stick to all post 'AFTP' stuff?

― stevem (blueski), Friday, 4 April 2003 12:36 (twenty-two years ago)

Well, if they do a collection based on their Warners material, it may well be a Greatest Hits, but it will be quite far from a Best Of.

― Matt Maxwell (Matt M.), Friday, 4 April 2003 12:37 (twenty-two years ago)

The problem is that virtually all the best stuff from the Warners years didn't emerge as a single.

― Matt DC (Matt DC), Friday, 4 April 2003 12:52 (twenty-two years ago)

"Eponymous" is the hits comp for the IRS years in America. There's also a couple of different European hits albums from the 90s as well.

― Charles McCain (Charles McCain), Friday, 4 April 2003 15:16 (twenty-two years ago)

R.E.M. will have no problem making a great "Best Of" from their Warner years. Of course, if you want a complete career overview you will have to buy a compilation of their IRS years too, but anyway, a Warner compilation will actually include be able to include the following hits:

Orange Crush
Stand
Losing My Religion
Shiny Happy People
Near Wild Heaven
Radio Song
Drive
Man On The Moon
Everybody Hurts
What's The Frequency Kenneth
E-Bow The Letter
Imitation Of Life
All The Way To Reno

I wouldn't exactly complain about such a selection of hits, really

― Geir Hongro (GeirHong), Friday, 4 April 2003 17:31 (twenty-two years ago)

There were a LOT of singles from Green onwards. Both Monster and Automatic had six singles. No matter what they do, they are likely to leave out a lot of great songs, singles or not. My understanding is that the band intends on including some songs which weren't singles/hit singles but they love dearly, such as "Country Feedback" and "Find The River".

Songs which seem like sure shots for inclusion:

Stand
Orange Crush
Pop Song 89
Losing My Religion
Shiny Happy People
Man on the Moon
Everybody Hurts
What's The Frequency, Kenneth?
Crush With Eyeliner
Electrolite
Daysleeper
At My Most Beautiful
The Great Beyond
Imitation of Life
Reno

"Bad Day (PSA)", a rerecorded version of an unreleased Document/Green era song, is going to be included, along with a new post-Reveal song.

― Matthew Perpetua (Matthew Perpetua), Friday, 4 April 2003 17:45 (twenty-two years ago)

My understanding is that the band intends on including some songs which weren't singles/hit singles but they love dearly, such as "Country Feedback" and "Find The River".

"Find The River" was a single, although not a big hit.

― Geir Hongro (GeirHong), Friday, 4 April 2003 17:47 (twenty-two years ago)

Btw. as for Bowie, his catalog was only split between two labels for around 7-8 years, after which EMI got the publishing rights for his complete output.

― Geir Hongro (GeirHong), Friday, 4 April 2003 17:48 (twenty-two years ago)

They're prolly put the new anti-war song on there, too. It's been getting a good response.

― david day (winslow), Friday, 4 April 2003 17:59 (twenty-two years ago)

Don't forget Nightswimming. I used to have a radio show at a community radio station and for our rock marathon fundraiser whenever I did an REM show I always got multiple requests for Nightswimming, Find the River, and Perfect Circle.

― Carey (Carey), Friday, 4 April 2003 18:36 (twenty-two years ago)

I would agree that Nightswimming should be included - it was a single, and it was a minor radio hit, and it's a huuuuuuuge fan favorite.

I did acknowledge that Find The River was a single. It just wasn't a hit single.

― Matthew Perpetua (Matthew Perpetua), Friday, 4 April 2003 20:02 (twenty-two years ago)

(This isn't the thread to restate that I will NEVER buy an REM album that has "Everybody Hurts" or "Man On The Moon" on it, right? So I'll just keep quiet.)

― Dan Perry (Dan Perry), Friday, 4 April 2003 20:08 (twenty-two years ago)

I never understood the "Everybody Hurts" love. I remember hearing it for the first time and being really embarrassed that it was an REM song.

― Carey (Carey), Friday, 4 April 2003 20:11 (twenty-two years ago)

what happened to Radio Free Europe? no one gives a shit anymore?

― steve k (http://go.to/stevek) (stevek10), Friday, 4 April 2003 21:13 (twenty-two years ago)

Didn't they already do a greatest hits?

Who cares anyway?

― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Friday, 4 April 2003 21:16 (twenty-two years ago)

I still like "Everybody Hurts". Though I hate the video now.

they just got out and walked! probably cuz "everybody hurts" came on the radio.

― Anthony Miccio (Anthony Miccio), Friday, 4 April 2003 21:17 (twenty-two years ago)

I thought "Great Beyond" was pretty good, considering the otherwise irreversibly downward spiral of their quality control.

― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Friday, 4 April 2003 21:19 (twenty-two years ago)

"Imitation Of Life" was the only post-Up song I've really enjoyed.

― Anthony Miccio (Anthony Miccio), Friday, 4 April 2003 21:20 (twenty-two years ago)

and that was really for the keyboard solo.

― Anthony Miccio (Anthony Miccio), Friday, 4 April 2003 21:20 (twenty-two years ago)

"Reveal" was actually the best R.E.M. album ever. Better than "Murmur". Better than "Automatic For The People".

― Geir Hongro (GeirHong), Friday, 4 April 2003 21:30 (twenty-two years ago)

Best thing R.E.M has ever done = Chronic Town

All other choices = WRONG!

― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Friday, 4 April 2003 21:37 (twenty-two years ago)

of course it is, Geir. oh, sorry I mussed up your hair patting you on the head.

― M Matos (M Matos), Friday, 4 April 2003 21:43 (twenty-two years ago)

Geir, you heard *enticing melodies* in "Reveal"?

― Sam J. (samjeff), Friday, 4 April 2003 21:45 (twenty-two years ago)

Most of R.E.M.'s output has been very melodic, but I feel the songs on "Reveal" were more fully realised than anything before them.

― Geir Hongro (GeirHong), Friday, 4 April 2003 21:48 (twenty-two years ago)

Steve K. there we're speaking of Warner Bros. best of, not the IRS years.

― Carey (Carey), Friday, 4 April 2003 22:00 (twenty-two years ago)

Alex is OTM, though I'll fight for Fables Of The Reconstruction which is the only R.E.M. album I can still bear listening to.

― Chris Barrus (Chris Barrus), Saturday, 5 April 2003 01:32 (twenty-two years ago)

Nice convergence with the B.A.D. thread.

What will it take to redeem R.E.M.? I feel like they have to break up as soon as possible (they're only delaying their eventual redemption by staying together); spend a decade apart; then get inducted into the R&R Hall of fame and do a VH1 reunion special. There will be Rolling Stone articles about how they were one of the greatest bands ever; middle school kids will seek out their albums, with whispered warnings of, "dude, watch out for anything after 'Monster'..."

At one point, they were probably the most critically and commercially successful band in the world (if you could combine the two into some sort of index) - respected by journalists for "maintaining their integrity" and loved by millions for "Green" and "Out of Time." Now, they're rock's creepy bachelor uncle who shows up at random family events every few years, grinning awkwardly and shifting his weight from foot to foot in the corner.

I spent most of high school obsessed with this band; R.E.M. was, 100%, my gateway into music fandom. I must have listened to "Automatic for the People" more times in a year than I've listened to any other album since in my life. I put it on a few years ago, to "test it": what is this strange, dorky music? What is this band?

I feel that everything pre-"Pageant" would probably still be artistically unimpeachable to my ears; and "Green" is good, classic fun. But seriously, has any band ever had so strange and utter a decline?

― Sam J. (samjeff), Saturday, 5 April 2003 02:04 (twenty-two years ago)

Imagine an alternate universe in which R.E.M. released "Chronic Town," then broke up. And it sits on your shelf 20 years later, an odd, treasured artifact - "Who WAS this amazing band? Imagine if they had made an LP..."

― Sam J. (samjeff), Saturday, 5 April 2003 02:11 (twenty-two years ago)

how I'd rank the Warner years (not counting Green because, well, i never owned it so I only know the singles), best to worst:

Automatic, Up, New Adventures, Out of Time, Monster, Reveal.

Reveal was really really dire, aside from the first song. none of them are, I think, really strong or consistent albums, but each of the rest has at least a few I really really like.

― Al (sitcom), Saturday, 5 April 2003 04:13 (twenty-two years ago)

I sold Stipe his copy of Rooty

1. Chronic Town
2. Murmur
3. Reckoning
4. New Adventures in Hi-Fi
5. Document
6. Automatic For the People
7. Lifes Rich Paegent
8. Green
9. Out of Time
10. Monster
11. Fables of the Reconstruction
12. Reveal
13. Up

― James Blount (James Blount), Saturday, 5 April 2003 04:50 (twenty-two years ago)

would someone explain the appeal of "nightswimming" to me? that's the one that rem-lovers tell me is their best Warner's song, but its attraction escapes me. it's nice, but i don't see what's so great about it.

i may be an old fart (early 30s is an old fart?), but i have no use for almost anything REM did after they left IRS in the late eighties.

― Tad (llamasfur), Saturday, 5 April 2003 05:01 (twenty-two years ago)

weren't there for "levon" the first time round

― James Blount (James Blount), Saturday, 5 April 2003 05:03 (twenty-two years ago)

I like the warner REM a lot more than the old REM, frankly. I don't really have a good defense for this position.

Nightswimming would be lovely if not for the horrible string arrangement. This applies to lots of songs on that album, maybe.

― thom west (thom w), Saturday, 5 April 2003 05:12 (twenty-two years ago)

What's with this New Adventures love? It has LOW DESERT on it, probably the worst song in their career! Out Of Time whips its ass with a mandolin.

― Anthony Miccio (Anthony Miccio), Saturday, 5 April 2003 16:16 (twenty-two years ago)

horrible string arrangement

You get to blame John Paul Jones for that! Isn't that cool!

― Sam J. (samjeff), Saturday, 5 April 2003 17:12 (twenty-two years ago)

I think Nightswimming is equivalent to You Are THe Everything, Perfect Circle, or So. Central Rain for some people.

REM albums
1. Murmur
2. Chronic Town
3. Life's Rich Pageant
4. Reckoning
5. Out of Time
6. Fables of the Reconstruction
7. New Adventures in Hi Fi (Dead Letter Office would go somewhere around here)
8. Green
9. Document
10. Automatic for the People
11. Reveal
12. Monster
13. UP

oddly enough i never understood the Automatic for the People dying devotion. Weaver D is very great though.

― Carey (Carey), Saturday, 5 April 2003 17:25 (twenty-two years ago)

The last R.E.M. album i bought was Monster, the band's bland gesture at rockin' out.
I eventually misplaced my copy, and even though there's, like, 48 second-hand copies in every used record store in the western hemishpere, I've never felt the urge to pony up the $2 to replace it.
I remember reading once that R.E.M. had a pact — if any member left, they would end the band. I can imagine the band meeting between the three of them after Bill Berry tendered his resignation.
"Well, Christ, he's only the drummer."

― Bruce Urquhart (Bruce Urquhart), Saturday, 5 April 2003 17:31 (twenty-two years ago)

For moi

1)Chronic Town
2)Reckoning
3)Out Of Time
4)Murmur
5)Green
6)Automatic For The People
7)Life's Rich Pageant
8)Document
9)Fables Of The Reconstruction
10)Monster
11)Up
12)New Adventures In Hi-Fi
13)Reveal

I don't get the "devotion" to it. But it's a nice, calm album that I can get into with the right mood. "Nightswimming" I'd enjoy more without that "they CAAAAnot see me naked" line. I'd rather Michael didn't give us the image.

― Anthony Miccio (Anthony Miccio), Saturday, 5 April 2003 17:36 (twenty-two years ago)

I think Nightswimming is equivalent to You Are The Everything, Perfect Circle, or So. Central Rain for some people.

"A Perfect Circle" uses subtlety and understatement, both musical and lyrical, to create (for me) a deep sense of loss and nostalgia. (I could say the same about most songs on Murmur, but "Circle" in particular seems to take a kind of nostalgia as its "subject.") "So. Central Rain," "You Are the Everything," and "Nightswimming" are increasingly "direct," both musical and lyrical (I don't know what I mean by "direct"). When you get to "Nightswimming" (a "nostalgia song" like "Circle" and "Rain"), the directness sounds cheesy to me, and doesn't create any emotional reaction. Though it's a cute song.

On the other hand, I could see people really liking Stipe's increasing lyrical explicitness -- and even, by contrast, finding the obliqueness of "A Perfect Circle"'s lyrics to be silly and ineffective. I still can't imagine anyone finding "Nightswimming" to be anywhere in the same musical realm as "A Perfect Circle," though.

("Nightswimming" IS 10,000 times better than that fucking Ben Folds song that rips it off.)

― Sam J. (samjeff), Saturday, 5 April 2003 18:13 (twenty-two years ago)

This is where I disgust everyone and say that I always did like "Everybody Hurts" and still do. So there.

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Saturday, 5 April 2003 18:33 (twenty-two years ago)

I'd rank them this way ("Chronic Town" I have never heard, but it was an EP rather than an album anyway)

1. Reveal
2. Automatic For The People
3. Murmur
4. Reckoning
5. Up
6. Life's Rich Pageant
7. Out Of Time
8. Green
9. Document
10.Fables Of The Reconstruction
11.New Adventures In Hi-Fi
12.Monster

― Geir Hongro (GeirHong), Saturday, 5 April 2003 18:34 (twenty-two years ago)

yay Ned! me too!

1. Automatic for the People
2. Out of Time
3. Chronic Town
4. Document
5. Murmur
6. Lifes Rich Pageant
7. New Adventures in Hi-Fi
8. Monster
9. Reckoning
10. Fables of the Reconstruction
11. Green
12. Reveal
13. Up

― M Matos (M Matos), Saturday, 5 April 2003 18:39 (twenty-two years ago)

I've already expressed my "Everybody Hurts" okness up there. But I'll reaffirm it here.

― Anthony Miccio (Anthony Miccio), Saturday, 5 April 2003 18:41 (twenty-two years ago)

Hurrah!

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Saturday, 5 April 2003 18:43 (twenty-two years ago)

though I'm still waiting for some sap to try and defend "Low Desert."

― Anthony Miccio (Anthony Miccio), Saturday, 5 April 2003 18:44 (twenty-two years ago)

Don't remember that one. Therefore it can be a challenge.

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Saturday, 5 April 2003 18:46 (twenty-two years ago)

I think that's his point

― M Matos (M Matos), Saturday, 5 April 2003 18:47 (twenty-two years ago)

Was it even a single, though?

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Saturday, 5 April 2003 18:54 (twenty-two years ago)

Skipping 19 messages at this point... Click here if you want to load them all.

Oh, there are better songs named after that comet. Now the R.E.M. song just makes me want to rewrite it -- it's a great idea and there are some good moments in it but wow it could be a lot better. But I haven't yet figured out exactly how.

― Chris P (Chris P), Monday, 7 April 2003 05:52 (twenty-two years ago)

Pylon were hella better than R.E.M.

― James Blount (James Blount), Monday, 7 April 2003 06:03 (twenty-two years ago)

Pylon RULES!!!!!

― rex jr., Monday, 7 April 2003 08:58 (twenty-two years ago)

This is where I disgust everyone and say that I always did like "Everybody Hurts" and still do. So there.

"Everybody hurts/When I whine on this song/Fear my nasal notes/EHHHHHN EHHNNN EEHNNNNNNNN EHNNNNNNN/Sometimes"

― Dan Perry (Dan Perry), Monday, 7 April 2003 12:55 (twenty-two years ago)

Why do I hear Peter Lorre freaking out when I see that "EHHHHN EHHHN" stuff? "You keeeled my cheeeken!"

I have Pylon's hits, and while it's enjoyable in small doses ("Cool," "Crazy" - REM's cover I enjoy too, "Don't" - REM's homage I enjoy too), aren't those folks a bit monotonous after awhile?

― Anthony Miccio (Anthony Miccio), Monday, 7 April 2003 20:26 (twenty-two years ago)

one month passes...

aha ! 'bad day' is coming out properly !!
they're pulling a blatant u2/the sweetest thing
with the hits album - flagging it by
remaking a pop record from yrs ago
the kind of which they don't write anymore.

'pleeeease don'tr take my pic-shurrrrr'.
gosh he really does sound like peter lorre on this one.

hey who knows ? r.e.m.'s first number one on the cards ?

― piscesboy, Sunday, 1 June 2003 09:15 (twenty-two years ago)

I haven't heard bad day yet, but thanks to that lyric quote I can't get Filter out of my head.

― Anthony Miccio (Anthony Miccio), Sunday, 1 June 2003 16:51 (twenty-two years ago)

i love that filter song !
i like the hilarious bit where he starts *screaming*
'heeeeeeey daaaaaaaad ! whaddya think about
your son NOOOOOW ?'

it's an all time great incongruous moment in pop.

― piscesboy, Monday, 2 June 2003 10:46 (twenty-two years ago)

I still dont see what's so bad about New Adventures. there are a couple week spots, but on the whole i thought it was pretty good. Monster had worse going for it - King of Comedy? yeesh. I love Let me in, though. that song gives me chills.

― AaronK (AaronK), Monday, 2 June 2003 14:16 (twenty-two years ago)

three months pass...

According to Pitchfork, this is the tracklist. If this is the real thing, it's an astoundingly awful arrangement of the selected songs.

01 Man on the Moon
02 The Great Beyond [from Man on the Moon soundtrack]
03 Bad Day [previously unreleased]
04 What's The Frequency, Kenneth?
05 All The Way To Reno (You're Gonna Be A Star)
06 Losing My Religion
07 E-Bow The Letter
08 Orange Crush
09 Imitation of Life
10 Daysleeper
11 Animal [previously unreleased]
12 The Sidewinder Sleeps Tonite
13 Stand
14 Electrolite
15 All The Right Friends [from Vanilla Sky soundtrack]
16 Everybody Hurts
17 At My Most Beautiful
18 Nightswimming

― Sam J. (samjeff), Friday, 5 September 2003 19:56 (twenty-one years ago)

I'm kind of amused at how the tracklisting is REM at it's most noveltyish. It also skips two top 40 singles, "Drive" and "Bang And Blame," which is odd since they really didn't have that many Top 40 singles.

― Anthony Miccio (Anthony Miccio), Friday, 5 September 2003 21:18 (twenty-one years ago)

they also include songs from that last record, whatever its name was, that no one bought.

― amateurist (amateurist), Friday, 5 September 2003 21:21 (twenty-one years ago)

oh! and also the top 10 hit Shiny Happy People is missing! Wtf?

― Anthony Miccio (Anthony Miccio), Friday, 5 September 2003 21:21 (twenty-one years ago)

(x-post) not to mention "shiny happy people," speaking of top 40 singles. and not to mention "pop song 89," speaking of *good* singles. but, really, who could possibly care?

― fact checking cuz, Friday, 5 September 2003 21:31 (twenty-one years ago)

They were my favorite band from age 9 to 19 so BY GOD I SHALL CARE.

Plus with the soundtrack songs and "Imitation Of Life," I might find this worth buying (especially if a friend of mine never gives me back my copy of Reveal, which then won't bother me).

― Anthony Miccio (Anthony Miccio), Friday, 5 September 2003 21:36 (twenty-one years ago)

Don't they all totally hate "Shiny Happy People" now? I thought I heard something about how they won't play it in concert, maybe that's all there is to it. Has anyone heard "Bad Day"? What I've heard sounds good.

― teeny (teeny), Friday, 5 September 2003 22:14 (twenty-one years ago)

Shiny Happy People went to no. 10 on the charts. IT SHOULD BE ON THIS. The idea they're embarassed by Shiny Happy People but not All The Way To Reno is baffling.

― Anthony Miccio (Anthony Miccio), Friday, 5 September 2003 22:20 (twenty-one years ago)

I just can't fathom (much as I like many of these songs) going from "Reno" into "Losing My Religion" into "E-Bow the Letter"... or "Imitation of Life" into "Daysleeper"... or, jeez, the opening two (have they hung their post-'89 claim to fame on the Andy Kaufman thing?), or the final block of three. It's like like they've grouped the most similar-sounding songs together, for the worst possible flow.

― Sam J. (samjeff), Friday, 5 September 2003 22:32 (twenty-one years ago)

Here's how'd I'd "program" those tracks (stop the CD presses!)

The Great Beyond [from Man on the Moon soundtrack]
Stand
Daysleeper
Imitation of Life
Man on the Moon
What's The Frequency, Kenneth?
Losing My Religion
Orange Crush
E-Bow The Letter
At My Most Beautiful
Bad Day [previously unreleased]
Everybody Hurts
All The Right Friends [from Vanilla Sky soundtrack]
The Sidewinder Sleeps Tonite
All The Way To Reno (You're Gonna Be A Star)
Electrolite
Animal [previously unreleased]
Nightswimming

(I don't think I've actually heard "Bad Day" or "Animal," but I imagine them to be uptempo and rocky, which is sorely needed to break up the mandolin strum.)

― Sam J. (samjeff), Friday, 5 September 2003 22:46 (twenty-one years ago)

(ha, I actually just reversed "Daysleeper" and "Imitation of Life.")

― Sam J. (samjeff), Friday, 5 September 2003 22:49 (twenty-one years ago)

(SamJ - "Mandolin Strum" the song is nice li'l vignette, tho)

― t\'\'t (t\'\'t), Friday, 5 September 2003 22:52 (twenty-one years ago)

my god, has there ever been a band more awkward at acknowledging its mainstream success? I'd like to think they'd pull a Pearl Jam if it wasn't for that 80 million albatross around their necks.

― Anthony Miccio (Anthony Miccio), Friday, 5 September 2003 22:55 (twenty-one years ago)

I'd like to think they'd pull a Pearl Jam

How do you mean?

― t\'\'t (t\'\'t), Friday, 5 September 2003 22:59 (twenty-one years ago)

they'd stop acting famous. They'd just tour a lot or disappear from the hype machine and just pump out studio albums occasionally. REM, probably due to the huge amount of money Warner Bros. has in them, still hunts down those cover stories, makes cheesy videos, preens, releases HITS albums and basically attempts to act like the stars they never were able to be comfortably in the first place. Some of this might be because of Stipe's glam tendencies, but damn, it always seems very tentative and nervous.

― Anthony Miccio (Anthony Miccio), Friday, 5 September 2003 23:10 (twenty-one years ago)

Hm. Their appetit for touring a lot seems to've vanished a very long time ago, doesn't it?
Then again, I'm actually quite happy with R.E.M. not releasing shitoads of live records. I have a couple of their live bootlegs as it is, and even hat couple is more than enough for me, thanks.

― t\'\'t (t\'\'t), Friday, 5 September 2003 23:24 (twenty-one years ago)

Nobody asked for my two cents, but I did like this band around the time of the first couple records. I actively dislike most of the songs listed above.

― Sean (Sean), Friday, 5 September 2003 23:52 (twenty-one years ago)

I still like 'em per se. On a 1-10 scale, They were a 9 thru reckoning, an 8 thru Automatic and didn't become a 6 till Reveal, which still had one of my favorite songs of that year, "Imitation Of Life." But they make very, very, very shitty rock stars.

― Anthony Miccio (Anthony Miccio), Saturday, 6 September 2003 00:00 (twenty-one years ago)

Anthony, don't you think they went back up to at least a 7.5 with New Adventures...? The inclusion of "Electrolite" made me happy, at least.

I'm gonna go listen to Reveal again, as I think time and history will tell us it wasn't so bad as all these (us) curmudgeonly critics said it was. "Imitation of Life" is sublime classic R.E.M. jangle pop, though, I agree.

― David A. (Davant), Saturday, 6 September 2003 01:07 (twenty-one years ago)

the truly terrible thing about 'shiny happy people' is the video.
and the word 'shiny' in that context.
and mike mill's backing vocals.
and his glasses.
and stipe's dance. and hat.
and the awful album it came from.

in a way i'm glad looking back that out of time was so awful though
because it prepared me for dudz like 'reveal' and 'monster'.
after glastonbury though i'll forgive pretty much anything.

sidewinder's only on it because warners insisted.

there's a second cd edish coming out with it too fulla rarities + shit.

― piscesboy, Saturday, 6 September 2003 09:17 (twenty-one years ago)

there's a second cd edish coming out with it too fulla rarities + shit.

And what exactly 'll be on THAT one?

― t\'\'t (t\'\'t), Saturday, 6 September 2003 11:12 (twenty-one years ago)

well they have a veritable (whatever that means) treasure trove
ov half finished stuff, demos, weirdnesses that didnt quite come off,
etc etc because they have had a box set in mind for years. stipe has
said that sometimes they look at each other at the end of some
rehearsal or jam or other and one says to the other 'box set' and they
put it into the big box and shut the lid. pity, some say,
they didn't think to do that when patti fckng smith came to wail all over 'e-bow'.
now there's your box set shit right there. as opposed to your
big comeback single having signed a contract for 80 million shit.

― piscesboy, Saturday, 6 September 2003 14:13 (twenty-one years ago)

piscesoby, you sound pretty pissed off by nigh anything remotely to do with r.e.m., or am i getting this wrong?

― t\'\'t (t\'\'t), Saturday, 6 September 2003 14:20 (twenty-one years ago)

Yeah, man; "E-bow" is like the only post-Monster song that I truly love.

― Sam J. (samjeff), Saturday, 6 September 2003 17:30 (twenty-one years ago)

how can primal scream have a greatist hits cd without velocity girl on it?

― keith (keithmcl), Sunday, 7 September 2003 15:39 (twenty-one years ago)

one month passes...

number one uk album as of last night.

knocks dido off after 5 weeks !!

go
on
my
sons.

― piscesboy, Monday, 3 November 2003 13:14 (twenty-one years ago)

Athens vs Carthage

― stevem (blueski), Monday, 3 November 2003 13:22 (twenty-one years ago)

three years pass...

OMG. I heard "The One I Love" in the store tonight, and it was all I could do to stop myself from bursting out laughing. I mean I wasn't stoned or anything, but it struck me as terribly funny. It's just so fucking literal and simple. I mean that is the official end of everything that was so magical and mysterious about R.E.M.isn't it? And the part where he says "Fire" especially cracks me up. Like he couldn't think of anything more venomous or clever than that..."Fiiiiire..." Jesus H.

Hahahaha

― Bimble, Saturday, 2 June 2007 05:06 (eighteen years ago)

where'd you get the idea that it it was meant to sound venomous? it's supposed to sound like a love song, after all. it's like he's singing 'you don't mean shit to me', yet dropping clues that it's very much not so.

― John Splith, Saturday, 2 June 2007 06:29 (eighteen years ago)

No. I take issue with that. Didn't the band say they were sick and tired of folks taking it like it was this sweet love song when the truth is it's meant to be bitter as fuck?

― Bimble, Saturday, 2 June 2007 06:31 (eighteen years ago)

You know they stole the tune for that song from the Minutemen.

― MacDara, Saturday, 2 June 2007 08:20 (eighteen years ago)

that is the official end of everything that was so magical and mysterious about R.E.M.isn't it?

No. I think it happened earlier than that, and I love R.E.M. To me, they were at their best -- and most mysterious and magical -- in their Southern Gothic Rock phase, which peaked with Fables Of The Reconstruction. Life's Rich Pagent was the transition out of that phase, and into R.E.M.'s Generic Alternative Rock phase. After Life's Rich Pagent, they have still hit some amazing highs (e.g., ''World Leader Pretend,'' ''Electrolite,'' lots of stuff on Document, some stuff on Automatic for the People), but they have lost the mystery/magic that made them so special to me once.

― Daniel, Esq., Saturday, 2 June 2007 12:24 (eighteen years ago)

You know they stole the tune for that song from the Minutemen.

What? Which song?

― Mr. Snrub, Saturday, 2 June 2007 15:21 (eighteen years ago)

"mystery/magic" is way overrated

― dan., Saturday, 2 June 2007 15:45 (eighteen years ago)

it's supposed to sound like a love song, after all

he calls the ones he loves 'props to occupy his time.' the hints he's dropping are that he'll fuck whoever over, but i guess the fair warning is somewhat considerate

― kamerad, Saturday, 2 June 2007 15:52 (eighteen years ago)

Just 'cuz

1. Lifes Rich Pageant
2. Reckoning
3. Murmur
4. Automatic For The People
5. New Adventures In Hi Fi
6. Up
7. Document
8. Fables Of The Reconstruction
9. Reveal
10. Out Of Time
11. Monster
12. Green
13. Around The Sun

― Davey D, Saturday, 2 June 2007 20:02 (eighteen years ago)

Interesting, but how about...

1. Murmur
2. Reckoning
3. Automatic
4. Life's Rich Pageant
5. Fables
6. Out of Time
7. Green
8. Document
9. New Adventures
10. Up
11. Monster
12. Reveal
13. Around the Sun

Biiiig drop off with the last two!

― Stew, Saturday, 2 June 2007 20:37 (eighteen years ago)

(I am midway through listening to all REM tunes I like before making a decision)

(not that anyone really needs to know that)

― Nasty, Brutish & Short, Saturday, 2 June 2007 20:48 (eighteen years ago)

No, I'm incapable of doing it (ranking the albums). In answer to the original question from four years ago: it would be easy to make a best of without either of those songs as I could quite happily live without ever hearing either of them again. Here's my best of:

Catapult
Sitting Still
We Walk
7 Chinese Brothers
So. Central Rain
(Don't Go Back To) Rockville
Driver 8
Green Grow The Rushes
Fall On Me
Cuyahoga
Swan Swan H
Superman (maybe)
Finest Worksong
Pop Song 89
Get Up
Country Feedback
Drive

and that'll do

― Nasty, Brutish & Short, Saturday, 2 June 2007 22:21 (eighteen years ago)

What? Which song?

If most of the melody from 'The One I Love' isn't a lift from 'Stories' on Three Way Tie (For Last) I'll eat my hat.

― MacDara, Saturday, 2 June 2007 22:25 (eighteen years ago)

I mean, it even has 'The One I Love' in the freakin' lyrics!

― MacDara, Saturday, 2 June 2007 22:26 (eighteen years ago)

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