In Time: Best..1988-'03 Ltd ed: R.E.M.: Amazon.ca: Music

Disc: 1
1. Man On The Moon
2. The Great Beyond
3. Bad Day
4. What's the Frequency Kenneth?
5. All the Way To Reno (You're Gonna Be A Star)
6. Losing My Religion
7. E-bow The Letter
8. Orange Crush
9. Imitation Of Life
10. Daysleeper
See all 18 tracks on this disc
Disc: 2
1. Pop Song '89 (acoustic b-side of Pop Song '89)
2. Turn You Inside-Out (from Tourfilm)
3. Fretless (from Until The End Of The World soundtrack)
4. Chance (dub) b-side from Everybody Hurts
5. It's A Free World Baby (from Coneheads soundtrack)
6. Drive (from Live Greenpeace)
7. Star Me Kitten (featuring William Burroughs from X-Files)
8. Revolution (from Batman And Robin soundtrack)
9. Leave (from A Life Less Ordinary soundtrack)
10. Why Not Smile (Oxford American version)
See all 15 tracks on this disc

Product Description

From Amazon.co.uk

In 1988, REM were a cult on the cusp of major success. In 1992 they were somewhere close to being the biggest band in the world. In 2003, they're marginalised again, a middle-aged institution purportedly on the wane. Still, uninformed listeners to In Time might find it tricky to work out which songs come from which era. The 18 singles collected here in non-chronological order show a band that's operated at a terrifyingly high standard throughout the period, so that less lauded songs like "The Great Beyond" stand proud alongside the familiar anthems from the early 1990s. Of course, these compilations are sent to irritate loyalists, whose relief at the inclusion of "E-Bow the Letter" (a mesmerising duet with Patti Smith from 1996) will be undermined by the bewildering absence of 1992's tearjerking epiphany "Find the River". For a more comprehensive survey of REM's excellence, you'll also need The Best of REM, the highlights of their elliptical early years.

One suspects a box set that tells the full story of this enduring band can't be that far away. For now, though, In Timewill do well enough, especially in this limited edition two-CD set, which augments the hits with 15 B-sides, live tracks and duets with William Burroughs and such. It also reveals REM's penchant for chucking away some mighty songs ("It's a Free World Baby", "Revolution") on the soundtracks of mediocre movies. --John Mulvey

Product Description

REM In Time 1988-2003 (2003 US issue Limited Edition 2-CD album set comprising of CD album including 18 classic tracks plus 15-track bonus disc featuring rarities and b-sides presented in screen printed plastic slipcase complete with fold-outdigipack poster and extensive photo and song history booklet!)

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Customer Reviews

173 Reviews

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4.0 out of 5 stars (173 customer reviews)

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3 of 4 people found the following review helpful

1.0 out of 5 stars The first good thing since "Out of Time.", Jun 24 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: In Time: The Best of R.E.M. 1988-2003 (Audio CD)

If that's a compliment.

Here's a new and strange recipe for success. Release an unlistenable album every 18 months or so, but make sure that there's at least one song per disc that will make a bit of a splash on the radio. Watch fans buy the record--hoping for more of the great sound they heard on the air--then watch these disappointed fans flood used record stores across the country with a million billion copies of Monster and Reveal. After fifteen years of this, select out a few of the radio tracks and a few of the droning unlistenable stuff, add two new tracks, re-release and re-repeat.

I know: There are two schools of thought here. One is that the early albums (Murmur, Reckoning) rocked hard and that everything after (with bumps at Out of Time and Automatic) has been kind of a gradual descent into experimental stuff that sounds intriguing once, but which would never, ever make it into one's CD wallet for a long roadtrip. The other is that the band has been getting better and better with every album. Sorry to be blunt, but those who adhere to this second point of view are members of a small and dedicated cult who are desperately trying to cling onto god-knows-what delusions they have about this band. I'd never let any of these people within a hundred yards of the CD player at a party.

If you're a member of the esoteric order of Stipe and enjoy tracks like Reveal's "All the Way to Reno," then this is the album for you. However, if you like the early REM and the REM of the radio, you'll probably be better off getting one of your REM cultist buddies to make you a mix tape. Not that I'm advocating piracy, but if this is the legal, band-selected "best of," that might be the only way to get a good REM sampler.

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2.0 out of 5 stars REM's unimaginative best, July 11 2004

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MAGA (Lampasas, Texas United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: In Time: The Best of R.E.M. 1988-2003 (Audio CD)

REM is one of the greatest bands ever, OK? I will never deny that. I have all of their albums and have seen them many times in concert. However, there are two kinds of REM fans. There are the ones that have been with them all along and still like listening to "Murmur" and "Lifes Rich Pagent." Then there are those fans that love "Out of Time" and "Automatic For the People." Now, i will give you that Austomatic was a great album, Out of Time was not. However, the differences between the two groups are demonstrated by a love of the early, non-commercial stuff and the mid '90s commercial stuff. The compilation is all about the mindless singles that gave REM mainstream success. Excluding "Electrolite," none of these songs really needed to be included for a "best of" album. It was an attempt by REM to pick up a paycheck because their most recent albums were not selling well. Sad but true.

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5.0 out of 5 stars This is a really excellent collection!, July 7 2004

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Jacqui_O_Lantern (Route 666) - See all my reviews

This review is from: In Time: The Best of R.E.M. 1988-2003 (Audio CD)

I've been an off and on fan of R.E.M. for a very long time but was really interested in this CD after it came out and I have to say that it does not dissapoint and really compiles a lot of the best stuff of their's from 1988 through 2003 from their "Green" album to two subpar tracks that were solely for this CD. All of my favorite songs are from this time period with songs like "Everybody Hurts", "Orange Crush", "Losing My Religion" and even "What's the Frequency Kenneth". This CD would've been a little better if it included "It's The End of the World As We Know it And I Feel Fine" but that track came out in 1987 and thus isn't included on here. Oh Well. For what it is though "In Time" is a wonderful collection and is certainly a CD worth buying.

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Most recent customer reviews

3.0 out of 5 stars Yawn
I like R.E.M. I liked them in the late 80's and in the 90's. This is a good collection of hits. No more exciting than that.

Published on July 7 2004

5.0 out of 5 stars The first good thing since "Out of Time."
Here's a new and strange recipe for success. Release an unlistenable album every 18 months or so, but make sure that there's at least one song per disc that will make a bit of a... Read more

Published on Jun 24 2004