Can't believe you've only done one REM song ("Everybody Hurts") way back in July. Too long! Michael Stipe's is one of the defining voices of the 90s. "Losing My Religion" is widely regarded as their biggest hit, and deservedly so. Some of my other favorites of theirs are "Radio Free Europe", "Drive", "Man on the Moon", "The Sidewinder Sleeps Tonite", "What's the Frequency, Kenneth?", "Bang and Blame", and "Bittersweet Me". You really can't go wrong with REM!
This is one of the fastest REM songs but is MUCH more representative of their indie rock style. Glad you liked it! Try What’s the Frequency, Kenneth; Man on The Moon; The One I Love; Orange Crush; Stand; and Shiny, Happy People. Just too many to list!
I think the key, lyrically, is the line: "Time I had some time alone," the high counterpoint vocal in the chorus from the second chorus on. I don't think that he's speaking of growing older so much as he's expressing how much the fast paced, information overload of the digital/electronic age was just overwhelming our senses and our being to the point that he literally saw the end of the world looming. But he was okay with that, if only sarcastically, because the post-apocalyptic "time alone" would be a relief - the barrage of images and information would finally end and he could find some peace. Was a time, when Stipe and the other members of REM (and myself) were younger, before mobile phones, 24 hour cable programs, and the internet, when one could find some peace and quiet practically each and every day, byt those days are long gone, unfortunately.
R.E.M. is easily in the very top-tiers of all time rock bands and certainly deserve more attention moving forward. "Losing my Religion", "Night swimming", "Find the River" and "Uberlin" are among the many no-brainers that should be featured on your show, although all true R.E.M. fans would agree that "Country Feedback" is perhaps one of their greatest and most beautiful tracks (certainly most underrated) and without a doubt would tick your box on depth.
@@rickwelch8464 I have no interest in entering an online argument, so please don't get me wrong as I do understand somewhat where you are coming from. Perhaps needless to say, I wouldn't file R.E.M. in the same "rock" category as I would in regards to Metallica, Rage Against the Machine, Blonde Redhead and Pearl Jam. However, given that main stream and pop-culture music discourse considers the likes of the Beatles, Queen, U2 and the Beach Boys as "rock bands", I would argue my comments above are vindicated. Moreover, I would say that through their "Monster" and "Accelerate" albums, R.E.M. can be passed off as a rock band even if they don't always release "rock" albums. Respectfully
@@rickwelch8464 Does that mean that the artists who started Rock N Roll are no longer rock? Chuck Berry, Elvis, Buddy Holly, and Little Richard and many others in the 50's are relegated to what genre now? Allen Freed made the name popular in 1951. Thought it was around in blues music for over 20 years prior.
I recently found a slower version of Happy Shiny People by Ruben and the Dark AG. I finally hear the lyrics clearly. It’s is beautifully done and it shows how talented R.E.M. truly is.
Nobody ever reacts to, or seems to even recognize the existence of, their first 5 albums, which is their best work. Chronic Town, Murmur, Reckoning, Fables, and Life's Rich Pageant. To most people, REM started in 1987 with this song and The One I Love. Then came Stand, Losing My Religion, Everybody Hurts, etc. People are missing out on so many great songs from the early days. Gardening at Night, Radio Free Europe, Perfect Circle, Sitting Still, Harborcoat, South Central Rain, Rockville, Camera, Driver 8, Wendell Gee, Fall on Me, Cuyahoga.
Those are all college rock albums, like the Replacements, Meat Puppets, Violent Femmes (except for Blister in the Sun) and others. The RSR cats have time to get to the cool rock!
I was at UGA from mid to late 80’s and witnessed their explosion first hand. Early tracks “Radio Free Europe”, “Driver 8”, and “South Central Rain” are must listen. My personal favorite is “Fall on Me”, but there are so many. “Don’t go back to Rockville”, “What’s the Frequency Kenneth?”, and the beautiful “Nightswimming”. You deserve listening to more REM.
I saw them at the University of Alabama when I was just 16 . There were about 200 people in the audience. That was my first REM concert. All these decades later I treasure that memory!
This is my hometown band and I have loved them since I was a teenager growing up in Athens (late 80s-early 90s). Man I miss those days. What a great time and place to live.
My parents saw them before they were big while in college. I’m jealous because I grew up listening to R.E.M and love them too but will probably never get a chance to see them.
I believe that Michael Stipe has gone on to say that the lyrics while they do have a meaning, are also at the same time randomised words/phrases... that was something he enjoyed doing at the time. But I don't think you are far wrong in your interpretation of the song. Its melancholy at how times are changing, while having that happy-go-lucky carefree rock n roll attitude of "I feel fine".
So glad you've got back to REM. Try "Losing my Religion" or "Man in the Moon" or "Nightswimming" all amazing tracks from a great band. It's about time you got back to some Queen or even Freddie Mercury solo. Try "We are the Champions" or "The Show must go on" by Queen or "Time" or "Barcelona" by Freddie. Much love from England 🏴
Amber, the line you wanted to know about is "Time I had some time alone." R.E.M. is my favorite band. The lead singer, Michael Stipe, said we should all interpret the lyrics however we like, whatever we think they mean is what they mean. R.E.M. always strived to make each album and song different than the one before it. I believe all their live performances are better than the studio versions of their songs. I got to see them in concert 3 times in the '80's. If you want to go back to their early music, listen to the Chronic Town EP (that's 5 songs) next. Most of their music was not commercially known. This was a very special band, they were, and still are, like brothers, very special relationship among the members of the band. All of it was magnificent!
@@ncthom88 I saw them at Nassau Coliseum 1982, then Radio City Music Hall in 1985 and 1987. I loved being at the smaller venues with them. You got to see them in GA as a student at UGA. That’s awesome! Did you also get to see Pylon and B-52s there too?
@@ncthom88 My sister-in-law is frome Rome GA. She got to see all of the "Athens" bands when they were first starting out. The Black Crowes, R.E.M., the B-52s, Indigo Girls...
I saw REM at a UGA frat party in Athens, GA, before they got big. It was in 1981 or '82. They had a multi-media thing going with a projector, and a they played originals. I was an equipment nerd and remember speaking to the guitarist and bass player about their instruments & amplifiers. I thought, that they might be going places, since Athens had spawned and The B-52's as well, but I had no idea, that they would become so huge! ...Good thing, that I encouraged them instead of being a smartass and saying something like "Don't quit your day jobs"! ...Thank me! Btw: Speaking if The B-52's, do "Rock Lobster" and ""Private Idaho".
I met these guys at The Uptown Lounge in Athens in '86 --- and then crossed paths a few more times in 86-87. For a band that was suddenly enormously successful, they still knew how to act like your best friends -- if you had quirky best friends. As for the music, was addicted to the Murmur album, "Radio Free Europe," "Pilgrimage," "Talk About The Passion," etc. but there were no weak spots in the whole catalog over years + years.
Sparky, I think I was at that same frat party, can't remember which frat but it was over on Prince Ave if I remember correctly and another band called IBM(?) was playing as well. I had a great time and I can believe how huge REM git and to think we saw them way back when! Cheer to ya and cheers to Athens!
Eddie Vedder said Mike Mills is R.E.M.’s secret weapon, and he’s right. I also love songs on which Mills takes the lead vocal. “Texarkana” and “Near Wild Heaven” are both gorgeous, and Stipe’s voice wouldn’t be right for them. Stipe has more grit in his voice, which is perfect when pain or snark is what the song calls for. Mills’s voice is cleaner, almost angelic.
@@muzikman4399 that's such a good song too. It's a little bit slower song than one week which is ridiculously fast and I still don't know the damn lyrics decades later. When I say that like I know what the words are but I can't sing them even if I'm reading them off of paper because they're just too damn fast for my mouth
On my way home from a my best friends funeral this song came on. When i first met my him he found i made and sold Cheesecakes and got all my future friends to start calling me Cheesecake. Now I had heard this song hundreds if not thousands of times but I never heard them say the word Cheesecake until that night, and knew he was reaching out to me saying it's all good. I always think of him when ever I hear it. Another great reaction. Missing you every day Mikey.
REM is a treasure chest. Their level of talent, commitment to good, honest song making, inspiration, poetry, and experimentation PER the amount of time they pulled all of this off is off the charts (literally: they couldn't care less about charts, but got to be immensely popular).
Lyrics: That's great, it starts with an earthquake Birds and snakes, and aeroplanes And Lenny Bruce is not afraid Eye of a hurricane, listen to yourself churn World serves its own needs Don't mis-serve your own needs Speed it up a notch, speed, grunt, no, strength The ladder starts to clatter With a fear of height, down, height Wire in a fire, represent the seven games And a government for hire and a combat site Left her, wasn't coming in a hurry With the Furies breathing down your neck Team by team, reporters baffled, trumped, tethered, cropped Look at that low plane, fine, then Uh oh, overflow, population, common group But it'll do, save yourself, serve yourself World serves its own needs, listen to your heart bleed Tell me with the Rapture and the reverent in the right, right You vitriolic, patriotic, slam fight, bright light Feeling pretty psyched It's the end of the world as we know it It's the end of the world as we know it It's the end of the world as we know it and I feel fine Six o'clock, T.V. hour, don't get caught in foreign tower Slash and burn, return, listen to yourself churn Lock him in uniform, book burning, bloodletting Every motive escalate, automotive incinerate Light a candle, light a motive, step down, step down Watch your heel crush, crush, uh oh This means no fear, cavalier, renegade and steering clear A tournament, a tournament, a tournament of lies Offer me solutions, offer me alternatives and I decline It's the end of the world as we know it (I had some time alone) It's the end of the world as we know it (I had some time alone) It's the end of the world as we know it and I feel fine (time I had some time alone) I feel fine (I feel fine) It's the end of the world as we know it (time I had some time alone) It's the end of the world as we know it (time I had some time alone) It's the end of the world as we know it and I feel fine (time I had some time alone) The other night I drifted nice continental drift divide Mountains sit in a line, Leonard Bernstein Leonid Brezhnev, Lenny Bruce and Lester Bangs Birthday party, cheesecake, jellybean, boom You symbiotic, patriotic, slam but neck, right, right It's the end of the world as we know it (time I had some time alone) It's the end of the world as we know it (time I had some time alone) It's the end of the world as we know it and I feel fine (time I had some time alone) It's the end of the world as we know it It's the end of the world as we know it It's the end of the world as we know it and I feel fine (time I had some time alone) It's the end of the world as we know it (time I had some time alone) It's the end of the world as we know it (time I had some time alone) It's the end of the world as we know it and I feel fine (time I had some time alone) It's the end of the world as we know it (time I had some time alone) It's the end of the world as we know it (time I had some time alone) It's the end of the world as we know it and I feel fine (time I had some time alone)
I saw your face when the rounds of the chorus kicked in. That is exactly the way I react when I hear that Stipe/Mills harmony. That is one of the many things I love about REM. If you like that layering, you must check out “Fall On Me.” The three part harmony with Stipe, Mills, and Berry is beautiful and you can just get lost in it.
@@suzieredfoxfur6982 oh, me too! Green Grow the Rushes, Gardening at Night, Exhuming McCarthy, Flowers of Guatemala, Superman, Perfect Circle… I know their talent became more refined later but their early work is near and dear to my heart.
Eddie Vedder said Mike Mills is R.E.M.’s secret weapon, and he’s right. I also love songs on which Mills takes the lead vocal. “Texarkana” and “Near Wild Heaven” are both gorgeous, and Stipe’s voice wouldn’t be right for them. Stipe has more grit in his voice, which is perfect when pain or snark is what the song calls for. Mills’s voice is cleaner, almost angelic.
I remember watching the "Losing My Religion" video on a huge screen with my girlfriend at her high school prom. Everyone started screaming because that video came on. I remember thinking at the time, "This must be the biggest song of this genre that's out right now." Great band 🎶🔥🔥🔥
When you're ready for more of their hits from the 80's, check out "Radio Free Europe", "So. Central Rain (I'm Sorry)", "The One I Love", "Driver 8", and "Fall on Me". And for a few deeper cuts also check out "Carnival of Sorts (Boxcars)", "Gardening At Night", "7 Chinese Brothers", and "(Don't Go Back To) Rockville" along with many others.
This is one of the best songs to just listen to the vocals. Try REM's "Man On The Moon" which is also a movie with Jim Carrey about actor Andy Kaufman. That is also a must see.
REM - LOSING MY RELIGION...that's the song that took REM from an independent college rock band to world wide rock stars. Also check out their song WHAT'S THE FREQUENCY KENNETH. They literally have dozens of fabulous songs.
yes!!! more REM!!! one of my favorite bands, im glad you are exploring more of the band. I think you would love some of their songs like "losing my religion", "shiny happy people", "man on the moon"
I have 5 or 6 of their cds. I will never forget discovering them as I walked past a Wherehouse music store at the mall in Hampton Roads Virginia. I think it was 1986 and they were blaring the cd "Life's Rich Pagent" I liked the sounds I heard so much that I immediately bought two of their cds.
Great reaction once again guys. Actually I was just going through the comments, and realised they were playing ORANGE CRUSH on my radio. So I agree with everyone that’s recommended that you react to it, so please do.
The thing with great bands is that they have their own style, their sound, and REM is definitely a great bend. If only music today had bands like this, although that's impossible, they are unique.
The counter-melody vocal in the chorus is (something close to) "time I found some time alone" Y'all correct me if I'm wrong! And... Jay & Amber: mark me down as another vote for "Losing My Religion" as the next R.E.M. request. Thanks!
I'm not sure what age gap is tuning in but I love to see how Jay Jay and Amber discover music from the 80s and the music my family listened to I am 53yrs.old and I love love love the 2 of you ❤ I have watched others but you guys are amazing thanks for making my day everyday Michelle H.
I'm so glad you got back to REM!!! Michael Stipe was absolutely one of the defining voices of the '90s. This songs' cadence matches the time it was written in with all of its cultural references. Surprisingly, the world today is even faster than it was back then. They had so many great songs and I hope you listen to more REM. Losing My Religion, Man on the Moon, Radio Free Europe, Orange Crush, What's the Frequency, Kenneth? are some of their best work.
Before the 90s, REM grew from the darlings of the Athens, Georgia music scene to one of the best known indie/college radio bands in America. They were rock heroes long before their "Green" album made them a 90s staple band.
You definitely have to delve deeper into REM and do more reactions. The whole Automatic For The People album is genius, even if not reacting to it all you should definitely give it a listen sometime. It's not one of their hit singles, but I love Find The River, it just speaks to me. From this album are Sidewinder Sleeps Tonite and Man On The Moon are the best known songs, but my favourite is Find The River. All their songs have meaning, that's just who they were, not just amazing musicians but good people who cared about their community and I don't think ever got too big for their boots.
One of the bands that we used to play in the car while heading up into the hills on our fishing trips! LOVE R.E.M! Your smile all the way through the song says it all!
A similar song is Billy Joel's 'We Didn't Start the Fire,' which rapid-fires a Boomer's perspective on history. I love Neil Diamond's 'Done Too Soon,' with its fantastic orchestration (studio version) and its listing of famous names from world history and a reflection on the one thing they all had in common.
One of my favorite bands of all time!! 80s kid here and to watch their style grow with the decades is amazing. Lucky to have met Mike Mills a coup of times. Great guy! Do “Losing My Religion” next. You will not regret it.
I met Mike, too! I had nothing to do for my birthday, but a friend knew somebody else who shared my birthday, so we went to her party which was in a restaurant, and Mike was there! Not for her birthday, just hanging out. Icing on the cake. :)
@@Jessica_Roth that is soooo cool!! I worked at a bookstore here in LA and he came in a couple of times when he was in town on business. Got to help him & chat. Very cool dude.
I once signed up for this at karaoke. Then I realized what that meant, and spent the next half hour outside the bar with my headphones on. 🤣 Also, Mike Mills is one of the best bassist/high harmony performers in all of rock, up with Michael Anthony of Van Halen.
That’s hilarious. Hope you took a speed-reading class prior to Karaoke Night. I have trouble reading along with it, so… how’d you do on stage? Id a liked ta seen that one!
I thought I’d heard this song but quickly realized I’d only heard the chorus. The speed reminded me of One Week by Barenaked Ladies. It played all over when it came out so I’ll be surprised if you haven’t heard it.
Uh, also. The duet Michael Stipe did with Kristin Hersh called “Your ghost” is pretty amazing. Haunting, moody and very emotive. It’s something else. Other than that… “Losing my religion”, “Shiny happy people”, “Nightswimming” and “Drive”.
I think you guys would like "Shining Happy People" because of its positive message. In the song REM collaborates with Kate Pierson of the B52s (I remember you listened to "Love Shack" a while ago). Also, "Talk About the Passion" is hauntingly beautiful.. It's a song about world hunger.
Here's the thing.... when we were going to the college bars and clubs in 1988 about 1 in the morning after multiple beers and drinks we would be dancing and the song would come on .. we would be screaming the lyrics to the song and dancing are butts offs.we knew the lyrics by heart and it was awesome,!
This is the closing song of "Document" my favorite REM album. "Fall on Me" is also a great song, especially if you like the multipart vocals between Michael Stipe and Mike Mills.
@@richmcelmeel5430 King of Birds is wonderful. I think Document was the REM album that was "perfect" along with Murmur. Life Rich Pageant is ALMOST perfect.
A radio station here in Minnesota changed from it's previous format to a new format. 93X. The week before they changed over they planed this song on repeat for a week straight! CRAZY.
REM are great! My favourites are "The one I love" and "Drive", but agree with all the others regarding "Losing my religion". It was a major hit for them and the video is a masterpiece!
It fascinates me that most fans never mention their first 5 albums. Their early stuff is so beautiful. It's almost like REM started in 1987 to them. Gardening at Night? Radio Free Europe? Perfect Circle? Sitting Still? South Central Rain? Camera? Driver 8? Fall on Me? Cuyahoga? Give it a try.
This song reminds me a lot of the Billy Joel song "We didn't start the fire". That song pre-dates this one but it's got a very similar vibe and theme. REM was one of those bands that quietly ruled the '90s. They were terrific and the "leaders" of the "college rock" scene. And I'm sure others have mentioned that Michael Stipe, the lead singer, was very close to Kurt Cobain, the lead singer from Nirvana.
When REM started in the early 80s their songs were very murky and moody, beautiful in their own way, but hard to decipher the lyrics. Michael Stipe's singing style was very muffled and obscure. Even he said some of their early songs do not have lyrics per se but sometimes wordless vocals. As the band got bigger Stipe had more specific things he wanted to write lyrics about so he switched his singing style to clearly enunciate all the words. This song is the best example: the words come rocketing at you at machine gun speed but he is enunciating all of them.
They are on my Mt. Rushmore of favorite bands. A wide variety of sounds, and quite the rabbit hole to go down. A fee suggestions. True southerners would like "Can't get there from here", a tear jersey is "Sweetness Follows", and an all around classic "Man on the Moon", and if you want to rock out a bit "Bang and Blame".
One of my all time favourite bands! So many great songs - please please please react to Losing My Religion - the song that catapulted them around the world and quite deservedly so
SO GOOD!! This was on the radio when I was in high school and college- just a great period when you couldn't classify a band or really label it. What I think is super cool here is that I know you guys like the Bob Dylan song Subterranean Homesick Blues, and REM has said this song was inspired by that one. I still have no idea what the song means, if anything, but it's a glorious piece of raw energy. PLEASEPLEASEPLEASE check out the full album this song is from. It's called Document and it is BRILLIANT. I suggest listening all the way through it, but if you can only grab a song or two, make sure you check out Welcome to the Occupation, and The One I love. unbelievably good!
Went to more than a few Frat parties with REM playing on the lawn somewhere on the campus of UGA!! They were just down-to-earth good ole Southern boys, who came out of nowhere and took the world by storm..I will never forget a 5 yr reunion, It was 1987 having a great time dancing with my boyfriend, when all of a sudden this couple approaches us, she starts talking to my guy and I'm hanging out with he husband....and he is complimenting me on my crazy iridescent blond hair when mid-dance it hits me, I'm dancing with Michael Stipe, lead singer of REM!! This is right about the time they are hitting the big time!! On the inside, I am dying cause I'm a huge fan but on the outside, I just kept telling myself It's just some guy married to that chick! HAHAHA! Anyway, the rest of the band was there and we all decided to head to their room and ended up partying all night long in a beautiful hotel in downtown Atlanta!! So much Fun!! This was before he came out! But all of them not effected by fame or money at all! ..
Easily one of the all time best bands with a huge back catalogue to explore. There's the big hits such as "Losing my religion" and "The one I love", but that would be skimming the surface of what this band has achieved. Some of my faves include "Fall on me", "So central rain", "Find the river", "Electrolite", "I'll take the rain" and "Daysleeper". And as I said, that's still just skimming the surface of how good this band is.
If you've never heard this song before, then you've never seen the movie Independence Day with Will Smith, Jeff Goldblum, Bill Pullman, Randy Quaid, and so many other great actors! Wow. You have got to watch that movie! It is iconic! What the heck? You will NOT be disappointed! ✌❤
REM was a "go to" alternative rock band for those of us who were in college in the 80's - their later music became more mainstream but they were rockin' and a big part of the alternative scene.
Way back in the mid-90's I was in a band with some of my college friends. We played this song, but the only way I could sing the verses and keep up was with my bass player singing alternate lines. I'd sing four lines and then he'd sing four and so on. Our guitar lead would do the backup vocal (It's time I had some time alone). I've heard REM do this song live and Micheal Stipe never sings it like the studio version. It's a super easy song to play but terribly hard to sing on your own. It's still one of my favs.
In the 90’s my wife & I owned a cd/tape/lp music store & every Friday we had local artists come in to play for free. Our favorite band always did 3 REM songs: The One I Love, Losing My Religion, and (well, sometimes) the end of the world as we know it. Loved it, loved it. So I’m right there with you on The One I Love. Such simple lyrics, but so much emotion.
Appreciate your reaction to this great song. Interesting tidbit: As Microsoft was getting ready to release Windows 95, they wanted to license _The End of the World as We Know It_ as the advertising campaign's theme. I'm guessing they would have only used the chorus. They were willing to pay REM $3 million for the license, but REM turned them down. They disliked Microsoft a lot (a common attitude at the time). Years later, REM did license the song for the game _Rock Band_ on the XBox, so I guess the disdain wasn't permanent.
What a great blast from the past! I can’t believe I used to know all those words … Getting old can be a drag - BUT it’s better than the alternative, LOL. More “fire” from you guys as always.
Driver 8 was always my favorite REM song. would be great to see you listen to it. I remember a time when REM was college radio..what a great time it was (this was before the internet and you tube, college radio launched many a great band)
Highly recommend REM's unplugged recording for those who may not have heard it. It got overlooked by the hugely popular unplugged shows like Nirvana, but it's absolutely wonderful. It might even be on You Tube.
One of the radio stations here decided to change their format from rock to alternative 20 some years ago. Instead of telling everyone what is going on, they decided to play this song for 3 or 4 hours straight before even attempting an explanation. Got so sick of it that day, I still can't stand it today.
A station in Lake Charles did something similar when I was in my twenties. 24 hours of Katrina and the waves "Walking on Sunshine" and the broke in middle of the song with "Dirty Deeds" by ACDC.
I lived in Athens, GA during this era - my college years. The guys in REM lived in the town and would be seen around a lot. The same town that gave us the B-52s, Pylon, Love Tractor, Drive-by Truckers, of Montreal, Widespread Panic, Neutral Milk Hotel, Azure Ray, Vic Chestnutt, Vigilantes of Love, Mark Heard, Reptar, Dreams so Real… I could go on. There are so, so many. It’s the greatest little town in American music history.
