Automatic for the People

 

 

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Here is one of those rock voices everyone knows immediately!

1.Drive: One of the best rock songs ever written. I think people can even remember where they were the 1st time they heard this song. Michael Stipes voice is just so pure and the musical construction of this song is just so dynamic. The acoustic sounds so great with the other musicians as well. His voice is at the forefront but this song couldn't be without the band's backing as they are so good together. By the time the electric guitar components & orchestral instruments come into it your already hooked. I still see concert images in my head of artists free flying into the concert crowd with this one. Such a well written song about our days of "youth" and the freedom of our youth to not have to conform, to being a time when we are still figuring out who we are. Just so well done. Yes...still!

2.Try Not To Breathe: The instrumentation of this song reminded me of an Irish ballad. The lyrics are so telling of someone finding their own confidence and strength during a difficult time. Love the acoustical guitar in this again!

3.Everybody Hurts: Another classic R.E.M. song that takes you back. Lyrically one of the best impowering songs of faith, strength, support, determination....against all odds! I'm sure this saved more than one life over & over again! Just absolutely outstanding lyrics, melody, vocals (soft, sweet, powerful) and musical arrangment. I don't think anyone can give justice to critiqing this song; not even Hemingway himself! Still on my favorite playlist with Drive!

4.New Orleans Instrumental #1: I just love that they had the guts to put an instrumental on this CD. Love what sounds like a variety of strings, cello, bass & violin. I think it showed their range & versatility as performers.....hey we're not just your regular rock band! Great!

5.Sweetness Follows: OMG...the vocal on this is just so precious. It sings like a memorial song to someone deeply loved ...a song of reflection.....like a family portrait......where you ponder the circular movements to & fro to find each other over and again. A song of tragedy, triumph....love the guitar so much in this song.......after hearing this I realize ...the Sweetness did follow!

6.Star Me Kitten: This song seemed like a song that someone like Chris Isaak could have recorded. I like him using his voice in a lower register; gave it an unknown unique style from his usual vocal delivery. Interesting!

7.Man On The Moon: This seems like a Happy Go Lucky song from the guys. Love all the historical references to moments & persons in history and what would this song be without him singing "yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah" in it. Love the attempt to sound like Elvis; that was so cool!

8.Find The River: I love the guitar intro to this song...still captivates me right up to when he begins the vocal. One of my favorite Michael Stipes vocals....just a pretty ditty! I think he was channelling Gordon Lightfoot for this one! It just flows like the tides of an ocean in perfect harmony! I feel like if I could jump into this song....I'd be on that green, green Irish soil..skipping to the pub to share a pint with the boys! Ha! Ha!

These are my favorite songs on this classic CD....hope you all can spend an evening listening to it & enjoying it again as much as I did tonight!

Cheers!

This is another short and sweet reviews and straight to the point. This is a magnificent album. There are lots of well written and they sound brilliant. It is one of those albums that should be on a list of must listen's before you die. Just brilliant.

A bold, acoustic album which such spectacular sound quality that it sounds like it was taped last year! This album features R.E.M. at their most intimate, professional and accurate. I would not say that it is a better album than "Out of Time", but it is more masterful craft-wise. All in all, this is R.E.M. at their best, and it is the 'must have' album of their career. Dark, witty, humorous and deep, alternative rock with a country feel doesn't get any better than this.

"Drive" - The opening song of regret, striking right from the get-go. Acoustic and yet adding an electric edge. Sound-wise perhaps the most addictive song on the album. Stipe's amusing wordplay is apparent right from the start: "Smack, crack, bushwhacked. Tie another one to the racks, baby..."

"Try Not to Breathe" - Very country, and oozing with well mastered melody. Perhaps not one of the more striking songs, but never the less it holds its own.

"The Sidewinder Sleeps Tonite" - An artsy spin on "The Lion Sleeps Tonight" song, which is both cute and astonishing, featuring one of Stipe's very best vocal performances and some of his most trippy lyrics.

"Everybody Hurts" - Everyone has heard this song a 1,000 times. It is a beautiful classic to be sure.

"New Orleans Instrumental No. 1" - A filler, and I never listen to it. But it does fit in with the style and mood of the album.

"Sweetness Follows" - Very moody and sentimental song about drifting apart which grabs me every time I hear it. Very bassy and bound to ignite darker feelings.

"Monty Got A Raw Deal" - This one refers to the actor Montgomery Clift, accused of Communism by McCarthy. One of the stranger songs on the album, both for its sound and lyrics. You just have to listen to it.

"Ignoreland" - The song which stands out from the rest as it doesn't seem entirely finished somehow. Perhaps rushed, or something. But a highly energetic spew on 80's politics.

"Star Me Kitten" - There was a version of this song released on the "X-Files" TV series soundtrack which is far its superior, voiced instead by writer and vocal performer William S. Burroughs. However, this take is nicely done in its own subtle way. The lyrics linger somewhere between cute and dirty.

"Man on the Moon" - One of their best-loved songs, and one which Peter Buck has boasted as being the 'quintessential R.E.M. song'. About controversial comedian Andy Kaufman, and used in the 1999 film by the same name.

"Nightswimming" - One of those songs that you'll either love or hate. Shamelessly cute and addictive, and easy to get lost in. A song lost in a beautiful moment with innocent piano and Stipe at perhaps his most giving.

"Find the River" - The last song and perhaps my personal favorite. It's about letting go and embracing the spiritual journey, into the beyond. A simple country-flavored ballad which delivers, to the patient listener, treats as great as other moments in this classic album.

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5.0 out of 5 stars Everybody Hurts
This CD arrived in a timely fashion and in good shape. I really like Everybody Hurts and am so happy to have this CD Thank You!

Published 18 months ago by Jan Church

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the best albums of all time.
I just had to buy this album after all the hype and reviews that surrounded it. R.E.M. are my favourite band of all time, and this is the second album I bought (after "Out Of... Read more

Published on May 31 2004 by Dan Stanley

5.0 out of 5 stars REM's third masterpiece
Well, the last reviewer CLEARLY showed his lack of knowledge on REM or his good taste. So, where to start?

REM had hit their high point twice in the past. Read more

Published on May 1 2004

5.0 out of 5 stars lite comforting tunes
My favorite tracks here are Drive, Man on the Moon, and Nightswimming. But there are others worth noting. Read more

Published on April 29 2004 by I ain't no porn writer

5.0 out of 5 stars Five stars doesn't do this album justice!
Not only is Automatic for the People my favorite R.E.M. album, it's one of my favorite albums ever made, period! Read more

Published on April 26 2004 by Reviewer

5.0 out of 5 stars A Song For Every Mood.
Quiet and gentle for most of the album, this CD encompasses more emotions then 20 of the top pop albums do combined today. Read more

Published on Mar 26 2004 by Meg

5.0 out of 5 stars if you buy one R.E.M. record...this is the one to check out!
R.E.M.'s masterpiece "Automatic for the People" is the rare record that transcends time and space (and current fads. Read more

Published on Mar 17 2004 by Chris Edwards

5.0 out of 5 stars unable to be topped
before automatic for the people, REM had released several amazing albums such as murmur, reckoning, document, and out of time, but after making an album this good, its hard to... Read more

Published on Mar 11 2004 by F. A Ognibene

5.0 out of 5 stars A bittersweet classic
Automatic for the People is, quite simply, a masterpiece. It is my first (and so far, only) REM record, but it glows with such incredible emotion and depth that it should last... Read more

Published on Mar 10 2004 by Anthony

1.0 out of 5 stars An Unhealthy Recording
On the list of the most annoying bands in the history of rock and roll, R.E.M. comes in at number three along with U2, the Cure, the Smiths/Morrissey, and Rage Against The... Read more

Published on Mar 9 2004 by Janitor X

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