Green

I’m shocked to see only one 5 star review for this. All I can say is what this meant to me when it came out. As a kid who was unsure of where or how to fit in, this was a world that I could inhabit. This was a place that felt like it belonged to me and that had tremendous depths to explore. Maybe it doesn’t sound new or different because of everything that’s been influenced by it. It was just serious enough to take seriously, just fun enough to be fun, just rocking enough to be rock, and just different enough from everything else to define the alternative. For an album this weird to be as successful as it was in the monoculture times, and break through to present itself to kids like me was almost a miracle. It was a gateway to a million other things but on its own it just about saved me.

Sometimes I feel like I can't even sing I'm very scared for this world, I'm very scared for me Eviscerate your memory Here's a scene You're in the backseat laying down, the windows wrap around To the sound of the travel and the engine All you hear is time stand still in travel And feel such peace and absolute The stillness still that doesn't end But slowly drifts into sleep The greatest thing you've ever seen And they're there for you For you alone, you are the everything Amazing album in its theme and its lyrics, and also in its encapsulation of the feeling of a decade. I dont always agree with this list, but this is definitely one of the albums that everyone should hear. 5/5

Trying to articulate what makes R.E.M. so great is as difficult as trying to deconstruct Michael Stipe's cryptic lyrics. They are hard to pin down, but their sound walks a delicate line between an uplifting and heartbreaking. In a word: beautiful. Something that rock music tends to shy away from. That beauty most likely stems from a certain vulnerability they display, particularly in Michael Stipe's voice.

I’ve said before that Green is in my top 5 REM albums, fighting it out with Life’s Rich Pageant for top spot, while Automatic for the People holds the door shut to keep Murmur from getting in. I divide REM into two eras, there are more but I’ll keep it simple. The two eras are Before Document and After Document. Green is the best of that latter period. It updates some styles from the earlier period and takes the rock elements that came in during Document. I was 19 when Green came out and it was in constant rotation. They’re all pretty great, but standouts for me are Pop Song 89, Orange Crush, The Wrong Child, World Leader Pretend and the Untitled cut that ends the album. Heck, even Stand, though killed by overplay at the time, is a pop gem with its Cars-like chorus. It was great to revisit this album!

Green

When I was a kid in 1990, a mere nine year old little shit, REM was one my favorite bands. I mean, I had never heard one of their albums and didn’t know their name, but I loved one of their songs. Truthfully, I didn’t even know that the song was theirs or that they were even an actual rock band. (If you’re over 40, you might know where I’m going with this…) The song was “Stand” and I only knew it because it was the theme song for my favorite television show, “Get a Life”. I don’t think I even knew REM was an actual, legitimate rock band until a few years later: I just figured the network just hired some random musicians to write a theme song for their brilliant sitcom starring Chris Elliot. For the uninitiated, Get a Life was a sitcom that aired on the burgeoning Fox network from 1990-1992. It starred Chris Elliot as 30 year old man-child who lived above his parent’s garage and was a paperboy (bicycle and all) for a living. The episodes were always off-beat and surreal with several of them ending with Chris Elliot’s character, Chris Peterson, dying. It was unlike anything on television at the time and for 9 year old me it was the perfect comedy: A live action slapstick cartoon. It’s still one of my favorite television shows ever and is at least partially responsible shaping my sense of humor through childhood and as an adult…a truly formative piece of art in my life. Here’s a brief synopsis of one of my favorite episodes, “Neptune 2000”, lifted from the internet: “When Chris was 12 he got a job as a paperboy so he could buy a submarine from the back of a comic book. Four to six hundred weeks later, when the kit arrives, Chris and his father put it together; however when they embark on the sub's maiden voyage (in Chris's bathtub) they become trapped.” Every time I’ve heard the opening organ riff from “Stand” over the last 33 years, I’ve thought about that episode or visualized the opening credits of the show where Chris gets distracted by an attractive lady in lingerie picking up her newspaper from her front lawn (it was Fox in the early 90’s, a scantily clad lady was practically a prerequisite) and crashes his bike into a parked car. Because of their association with “Get a Life”, REM will always get respect from me, even if I don’t like a lot of the music they released after this record. Green, clearly, is more than just “Stand”. It is a fantastic record and I’ve never really given it an in-depth, thorough listen until day. What a great record, it makes me realize that maybe I’ve been a little too harsh on REM over the years. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to watch some “Get a Life”. You should do the same…and while you’re at it, make sure you check out the TV show. Zing!

Really good alternative rock from the band that invented alternative rock. Crunchy and melodic. A lot of this really great, but there are a couple of points where the quality dips. Rating: 4/5 Playlist track: Orange Crush Date listened: 13/05/23

Today's album is a golden one! R.E.M. are an alt rock/post punk band from the United States. In the 80's, these guys were trailblazers for the genre of alt rock. Interestingly, I reviewed a Husker Du album last week, and they were another trendsetter for the genre. R.E.M. made it big, Husker Du remained a cult favourite. Michael Stipe's strange cryptic lyrics blend seamlessly into the folkish musical accompaniment. Apparently this album was the first to include mandolin, making this one closer to folk rock than its predecessors. Stand, Orange Crush, and Pop Song 89 were all radio favourites, and are phenomenal songs. These alone are enough to warrant a 5 star rating. There isn't a dud on this record at all. Overall, an amazing rock record. I've listened to it many times before, and will continue to. I've had R.E.M. on shuffle all day now! Favourite songs: Orange Crush, Stand, Pop Song 89, Turn You Inside-Out, World Leader Pretend, Untitled, You Are The Everything, I Remember California, Get Up Least favourite songs: Hairshirt 5/5

I always remembered not liking this band based on the singles I’d heard but this slapped. The Wrong Child is the best song on this album.

R.E.M. are a weird band. Objectively I understand why people like them, but at the same time find it wild that people could think this is the greatest music they’ve ever heard!

This is perhaps the only R.E.M. album I knew when it was current. I had it on a cassette tape with The Smithereens' Green Thoughts on the other side. I listened to it a lot on my walkman. Still love Pop Song 89 and Orange Crush. Great to hear it again today.

Should we talk about the weather? Should we talk about the government? No, I think we should talk about this album by R.E.M. Green was my introduction to this band so I'm not going to lie, I'm flat out biased. Over time it doesn't always hold the number one spot in my heart when it comes to their records, but it does occasionally claim the throne. As an aside, we are all, always, allowed to change our minds when it comes to matters of taste; and music is certainly within the domain of taste-based conversation. Mike Mills, the not-so-secret weapon of the band, is a revelation on this record. When I hear him sing his backing lines like "Get up, Get up" or "Freedom" the hair on the back of my neck and arms stands up as I get the feels. His contributions always bring an additional emotional layer as well as rounding out the sound. Songs like You Are Everything are necessary precursors to later hits a la Losing My Religion, and yet they are themselves affecting touchstones of a time in our lives when we held someone as absolutely essential to our being and being in the world. Let's not forget that this album moves effortlessly between such emotional songs and uptempo pop. We get a dose of the pop as the opener does what it says on the tin. Later we shift into it with Stand, which, pardon the pun, Stands out in that category. Hey, just another aside, as we're free-associating on this record: It was R.E.M.'s Stand and the Pixies Here Comes Your Man that were in serious rotation on MTV together and both secretly sneaking in more twangy guitar than I would've otherwise consented to. In retrospect it makes sense that we'd see a rise in indie-country sounds in the wake of that much play. World Leader Pretend, Orange Crush, Turn You Inside Out, I Remember California...I mean c'mon, every song deserves its own exegesis uncovering the influences, drawing connections and otherwise celebrating the craft of songwriting. But I only have a few minutes to write this review and I'd rather be listening to this great record than typing.

Green Despite listening to it all, I'm not as familiar with the full REM back catalogue as I really should be, so I’m not quite sure where Green quite sits in their overall story. Listening yesterday and today, and despite having some very well known songs, it feels like this might be a bit of a transitional album? I can hear echoes of both their more alternative sound and their massive commercial 90s sound, but perhaps without enough of the consistently great songs that make up their ‘big’ albums. Pop Song 89 is a great bit of catchy pop, and sounded particularly good after Sepultura yesterday. Great melody and hook. Get Up is ok, the ‘rock’ guitar sounds a little unconvincing but the harmonies are nice. You Are Everything is excellent, one of those very affecting REM mandolin songs, and the accordion adds some lovely touches of colour and tone. Stand, of course, is a brilliant song. It has that great REM thing of a slightly unusual vocal rhythm whilst being insanely catchy. Great stuff. World Leader Pretend is fantastic, feels like a bit of a lost classic, I love the piano line and the snare drum. The Wrong Child doesn’t quite work for me, nowhere near as strong as You Are Everything, which shares a similar sound. Orange crush - I have always loved the riff (so catchy!) and bass on this, one of my favourite REM songs. I really like the swampier sound and bass groove on Turn You Inside Out, the slightly rougher edge and less overtly pop melody is a nice counterpoint. Hairshirt is fine, the keyboard in the back of the mix is great though. I Remember California has really grown on me, even I’m not quite convinced by it for some reason. I like the vocal melody and lyrics, but musically I’m not sure about it, particularly the bass and drums. And Untitled is very nice, the organ is great and it has a very pleasant atmosphere of amiable wistfulness. Not sure what I’m scoring this against, their whole career or as an album in its own right. Probably a bit of both. As a standalone album there are some absolute bangers, but mixed in with some fine, if forgettable tracks. And in the context of what followed it doesn't quite have the majesty or weight of say Automatic for the People or New Adventures in Hi-Fi. I think that adds up to a 4 - still a great album but not in the top bracket ✅✅✅✅ Playlist submission: Orange Crush

I think I always thought of this album as the midway point between R.E.M being an indy band and getting huge. The one album that could keep everyone happy. Life’s Rich Pageant was always my favourite but can’t argue this one.

the album cover isn’t even green

Indie meats Punk in a good way. Too bad these songs are not as well known as the two REM hits. Very spiritual sounding instruments, and the usual voice harmonics for REM.

En av 80-talets absolut bästa skivor. Ja, i hela musikhistorien till och med.

This is the R.E.M. album I own, bought years back to try to shift my dial from apathy and academic admiration on them, which failed then and today. I suspect the big ‘90s records, when they come to us, may boot me out of this. These songs are fine, well-wrought and personal, just not on my frequency, Kenneth.

This annoyed me and I don't know why. Maybe I was expecting too much, maybe it's the blandness of this album. For me, R.E.M. works with dark and sad themes and atmosphere. I really like "Losing My Religion", "Fire", and their album "Automatic for the People". "Green" on the other hand tries hard to be "green". To be a feel-good alt-rock piece. It's mostly major key, instead of minor. It didn't work for me, but again, maybe it's just me and my irrational disgust against feel-good alt rock stuff. They feel like corporate rock; "live, laugh, love" in the form of guitar riffs and upbeat lyrics.

The opening track is a banger. The rest of the album really kicks ass too. I know I've listened to this album before but I enjoyed it more this time. R.E.M. really is one of the great American rock bands 5 stars all day.

This is the R.E.M. album I grew up with. I already love every song. The only true timeless classic on it is Orange Crush, but I still cannot skip a single second.

My first R.E.M. album. It's my favourite by them. It's got 'Stand' on it, one of my best Karaoke songs back in the 90's. 'Orange Crush' one of the best songs ever. It was many years later when I discovered it wasn't an Amercan drink! The rest of the album is a band beginning to hit their stride into the mainstream, and unable to do wrong even with a mandolin and a megaphone (TOTP 1989 appearance). So a well deserved 5 stars.

One of the best albums from one of the great American bands. Orange Crush and Stand are the highlights, but it’s solid from beginning to end. Stipe sounds his awkwardly confident best, and Mills and Buck do their thing exceptionally well here. I’d rank this alongside Murmur as their best album of the 80’s, and only clearly bested by Automatic for the People in their catalog.

Perfect Friday album. I definitely prefer this to R.E.M.’s slower stuff.

Exceptional. The beginning of 90s grunge and alternative rock.

I had this when it came out and fell in love with the sound - one of the gateway albums into the indie/alternative scene for me. Discovered their back catalog, saw them on the Green tour (30+ songs on the set, support from Hoodoo Gurus and Go Betweens), and then saw them transform from an Indie darling to stadium filler. As for this actual album - it certainly sounds 90s not 80s, and I suppose that indicates how much influence REM had on the shape of 90s alternative rock. Michael Stipe is a big part in this - vocal stylings as well as his public persona were like nothing else at the time. But it's not just about him - as a band they had changed their sound from simplistic guitar noodlings to a garage band that knew their chops. Mandolin was a strange addition but it works here. The way the bass and the guitar work together on all-time banger Orange Crush is fantastic, and the drums just drive everything along. Great to listen to this one again.

Pretty perfect. The end of their second three-album cycle, moving from the janglemumble sound of the first three, to world-conquering titans. The first time I can really hear the mandolin in their work - crucial to the track that made them global megastars. There's another list song (I remember california), a dry run for a more straightforward acoustic ballad (Hairshirt) and a fistful of ironic powerpop songs (Stand, Orange Crush, Pop song). So, excellence as usual.

This is the first REM album I owned and listened to in repeat forever. This album is so full of nostalgia for me and that may color my rating a bit. You Are the Everything and World Leader Pretend are my two favorite non hit tracks, but honestly there isn’t a single song that doesn’t hit home for me. My advice is…Go Listen to it now!

I got my spine I got my orange crush Also Stipe just makes a meal of the word ‘conscious’. Legend.

I enjoyed this album. Some of the songs contributed to a somewhat ironic feeling that does a good job of conveying the cold war era disillusionment I associate with R.E.M. Some rock bangers on here (Orange Crush, Stand) The mandolin is kinda funny, I enjoy it on the first song it came up (You Are The Everything) on, but on Hairshirt it doesn't do as much for me. The lyrics in World Leader Pretend were enjoyable, the theme of "ahhh I'm fucking up my life damn lemme fix this" is communicated well through the imagined world leader scenario, and also highly topical for 1988.

R.E.M. go major label with a glossier result, but the same underlying songwriting strengths and idiosyncratic lyrics. Standouts are ‘World Leader Pretend’ and ‘Orange Crush’

Moody and great.

For all the jokes about Stipe mumbling I find his voice clear and concise. The music is solid and not over the top or imbalanced. It’s almost wrong to label R.E.M. as an Alternative Rock band because they’re much too good for that. A thoroughly enjoyable album.

I really like this. Made me feel more than I expected. How was I not an REM fan before?

R.E.M.'s sixth album continues their political lyrics but departs musically from their previous material. Unlike their minor key college rock sounds, this album leaned into a major key more pop sounding music. This gives way to a highly melodic sound that is more upbeat. The songs are catchy and the album is well sequenced and is the perfect length.

Don't listen to this as much as some other REM albums, perhaps because I have to be on alert to skip "Stand". Has a few of my favorites esp. "You Are The Everything" and "Orange Crush". A bit more mainstream than earlier ones, as is well-documented, but Green is really quite inventive for the late '80s. Good arrangements, indeed. Not enough for full marks, but solid.

Good vibes, grunge late 90’s, reminds me of Arizona

This is my 9th or 10th favorite REM album, which speaks more to the greatness of REM than it does Green. If I were to list essential REM albums to new blood, I probably wouldn't even include this one. It sounds like I'm shitting on this album, but frankly I love it. There may be better REM, but Green is still a great album. It would serve as many other artists best album. No one did "Side 1, Track 1" better than REM, and Pop Song 89 continues that streak. This is clearly a band looking for a way to grow beyond Murmur and Reckoning. They'd finally find that on "Automatic For The People". But Green has some bangers, mainly the songs you may not be familiar with. Plus this album gave Chris Elliott the theme song for his short lived television series "Get A Life". That's a benefit in anyone's book, so much so I'm almost ashamed to rate this anything less than a 5.

Pop Song 89 opens with a much peppier guitar riff than I was expecting. Michael Stipe kind of sounds happy. Fun polyrythm at the end. It could have worked in the mid 90s even. Maybe I heard it on Friends? Get Up maintains the energy. I seriously came into this thinking REM were a sadsack band but this is like grunge Brian Wilson. Your Are the Everything is acceptable but maybe got mixed up with the John Prine album?? Stand is great. Achieves what Neil Young was aiming for with Crazy Horse... super catchy. Wait a minute... is Michael Stipe Canadian? Either way he reverts to form in World Leader Pretend with a blase vocal performance. The Wrong Child continues with some hippy dippy mandolin folk nonsense. The single Orange Crush is at least a bit more upbeat and has some familiarity to it. Makes me want to bop along, move my shoulders a bit. Hairshirt is just morose. Kind of lost patience with Turn You Inside Out and Untitled. I Remember California closes out with a killer bit of sadness song. Morrisey eat your heart out. As far as alt-rock goes its really well ornamented and quite complex compared to the grunge that came immediately after it. The 2013 remaster sounds great. Its not exactly my thing but there are quite a few really well done tracks on here. Half a good album?

Ok REM.

Rather unremarkable, but I didn't mind listening to this. Just a solid 3.

Pure 90s nostalgia

I mean it's alright? But REM has just never really resonated with me all that much

Another nostalgia blast. Interesting to hear his life performance, and to know how much he was influenced by other early rock, and R&B artists.

A couple good tracks but it's just not for me

The album is solid with a couple songs that I liked, particularly Orange Crush, though it was kind of forgettable otherwise. I definitely liked Document more.

Shocked to see this album has a lot of 5 star reviews A lot of the songs sounded the same. Really don't like the singers whiny voice either Wouldn't rate it as terrible, but it was bad. Bland to put it nicely. 40 mins of my life I won't be getting back 2 ⭐️

Are they called REM because they made me fall asleep?

Honestly, overall, this album is meh. I think automatic for the people is a lot better. Maybe, this was more relevant for people when it came out. Who knows? The wrong child was a moving/haunting song but the rest of them are either boring and the lyrics hidden behind obscurity. I won't be listening to this album again. I guess orange crush was okay but again, not going out of my way to listen to this album

i dont know what all the hype is over this band. his voice is nasally and goofy. the jangle chords over upbeat sunny pop rock is silly. i dont understand. i dont. its not compelling, it washes over you like the sound of waves (if it was beach rock that would rule), its got know spirit. white noise. boo.

Limp dick band

I know this one well. It’s a good album.

Superb

Great album, not much else to say. Some damn good alt rock from the 90s, and just overall a total banger.

Sign of a great album is when you know the track that’s coming next

One of the first bands I ever saw on MTV. This one brings back old, old memories. Highly enjoyable.

Nice album after a stressful day. 5/5

Really good

I love this album, even though REM fans rag on it. 5 *

The tempo of You are the everything reminds me of walking in the irish countryside

R.E.M. is one of those first bands I really liked, long before music became a more serious topic of my life. Green represents the experimental transformation of R.E.M. as this college-aged band already known for their ambiguous and/or incomprehensible lyrics and were titans of a burgeoning scene in Athens, Georgia. Only R.E.M. would find a way to be mainstream and still sound like themselves without completely compromising their artistic integrity. I've already listened to this album before the challenge, so I'm not adding more than that it's a good album, probably not the only R.E.M. album on this list (and if it is, it begs quite a number of questions). They are an important enough band to have about 3 records on the list, Green probably being my third answer after Automatic and Murmur. Those three albums do a great job of briefly summarizing most of their music. Moving on.

Love!

Very relaxing Monday evening on the sofa!

Listen: they’re starting to win me over, what can I say?

I forgot how good this album was!

5 Stars (14/15)

None

Absolutely loved this album.

Amazing album. Amazing band

Less well known and less obvious than some of their others. A great listen

As someone who thinks REM’s catalog is comparable to The Beatles, I was giving this five stars when it came up. That said, not sure it’s even one of their three best.

One of the great ones!!!

Classic, love it. Top 100

R.E.M. is always a hit, there's something beautiful about those jangly guitars with Stipe's vocals. He might be one of my favourite male vocalists, it has such a unique texture and feeling.

Alt rock pioneers. This is the perfect length and filled with bangers. Jangle guitars with Mike Stripe's beautiful voice. Go on then

First R.E.M. record I ever heard. Consistently good from beginning to end.

More R.E.M.! This was wonderful. It needed a few listens to click for me but when it did it did. This is way less fluid that most R.E.M. albums I’ve heard before but I think the grit adds a sonic interest that truly makes this stand out. Genuinely filled with bangers once again not a single miss

Sublime. The best REM

Green is the last album for REM as a "college rock band", before Losing my religion changed it all. I got this record from a friend who didn't like it and for me this was one of the most played albums of the late 80's. Michael Stipe's soulful singing and the mystic lyrics, the groove of Berry & Mills and especially Peter Buck's down to earth guitar playing was something that i really relished as a guitar playing teenager. This album have all sides of REM in perfect balance, the pop songs, dark rockers, country vibes and Led Zeppelin like mandolin tracks. REM did make good records after this one, but it just wasn't the same anymore. .

Much as I love REM’s stratospheric years that followed the album after this one, it’s the records up to and including Green that stay with me the most. This one is the first of their albums I bought on release so I’ve always felt a special attachment to it. Although songs like Stand, Orange Crush and Pop Song 89 lean towards the stadium-friendly pop end of the spectrum they ended up embracing, they still sound wonderful and somehow unique. And World Leader Pretend and You Are The Everything remain among my favourite REM moments to this day.

Incredible 80s indie rock. Probably my favourite REM album.

Great album with a lot of strong tracks. My favourites ...Pop Song 89 ...Stand ...World Leader Pretend Aand of course Orange Crush

I love R.E.M., though I am not shy about admitting what's their good and bad work. Green is a good album, though I don't know if I think it's one of my favorite albums by R.E.M. This is not a reflection on the quality of the album more than a reflection on how I like their work. I would have put one of the earlier albums (along with Murmur) in the book instead of Green. Saying that, this is an important album for the band as it was their major label debut. They move their jangle-rock sound to a larger budget and combine it with a more arena-ready set of songs. They were accused of "selling out," which I always found to be an unfair criticism. The band specifically went with Warner Bros because they had full artistic control over their music and the music they want to make. Doing what they want with the money from a major label doesn't feel like selling out to me. And doing what they want is exactly what R.E.M. did. This album is a set of demos in some way. What they experiment with here is a sample of the directions they may go in the future. Sort of trying out what these different sounds would be like. Pop Song '89, Get Up, Stand are all "Out of Time." World Leader Pretend, the Wrong Child and You Are Everything are "Automatic for the People," while I Remember California and Turn You Inside-Out are "Monster." It's a testament to the band they manage to experiment and still put out a quality album.

LOVE this... a complete classic. An anthem to kids in the US who grew up in the late 80s.

What an album. Probably in my Top 5 REM albums who are in my top 5 artists ever. Became aware of them around "Out of Time" and absolutely devoured everything I possibly could. Sure, it's kinda pop (pop-adjacent?) which the purists seem to dislike, but WHAT AN ALBUM

Already knew and loved "Stand" and "Orange Crush" obviously, but enjoyed "Pop Song 89" "You Are The Everything" and "Turn You Inside-Out"

Classic, catchy, and introspective. R.E.M. maintains themselves as an al time band representing the zeitgeist of a generation

I love this album. Every track brings me back to being 12-14 and full of life, while also discovering so much new and interesting music. Still very relevant today.

Often my go to album when I want to listen to REM.

One of many really good REM albums, I especially enjoy the mandolin. Grew on me so much so raised to a low 5!

More Classic goodness

Hell yeah

Love, much like how I love They Might Be Giants and the Magnetic Fields. I just love REM. I don't think this is their most revolutionary album but I will say I think it's perfect for today. End of Summer, beginning of fall? Perfect time to listen to this album. I love that the album feels Green. It just reminds me of being outside in the forest on a pretty day. I think it's fun and pretty and simple enough to be impactful in the ways that I want it to be. It's making me smile.

Disclaimer R.E.M. are one of my favourite bands, and have been for more than 30 years. This is an accessible big label album while maintaining their own indie path, don’t think bands are allowed to develop like this anymore, which shows what a shame that is. 5 Star

I know there were people in disappointed in Green when it came out. Said it was too Poppy or too janglyly, but I thought it was a great transition album with solid solid songs. I think when you look at the REM catalogue as a hole, it is entirely appropriate for where it sits.

Great album, numerous hits, very few low points.

My introduction to Athens’ finest rockers.

As brilliant as ever.

It is REM. No brainer 5 stars.

Great album, the live tour was fantastic! REM polished and rocking.