"Can't Get There From Here" is an instruction manual on how to write a crap song
― morning wood truancy (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Saturday, 18 November 2017 17:05 (six years ago) link
Yeah, it hasn't aged very well!
― Gholdfish Killah (Turrican), Saturday, 18 November 2017 17:07 (six years ago) link
xpost Ha. I was thinking of what songs on Reckoning or Fables would count as dumb kids music, and that was the first to pop to mind.
― Josh in Chicago, Saturday, 18 November 2017 17:12 (six years ago) link
i don't find its faux goofiness as off-putting as some of their later ones but i wouldn't go to bat for it. it does feel exceptionally out of place in the middle of Fables tho.
― faked potato (Noodle Vague), Saturday, 18 November 2017 17:15 (six years ago) link
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Niy4Q_1d8Zw
― Josh in Chicago, Saturday, 18 November 2017 17:20 (six years ago) link
“can’t get there from here” is great wtf
― ToddBonzalez (BradNelson), Saturday, 18 November 2017 17:33 (six years ago) link
cover of King Of The Road as a legit B side properly kicks off the silly bollocks done for yucks era IMO.
― piscesx, Saturday, 18 November 2017 17:35 (six years ago) link
One of their earliest originals was the goofy "Narrator":
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vqMNPzYFly8
― Brad C., Saturday, 18 November 2017 17:45 (six years ago) link
"Cant Get There From Here" is like "Ages of You" in that it's a fusion of different types of song that don't fully cohere. Stipe's Elvis impression + the horns + the main riff go for soul mode but the jangle is still there on the verses. The chorus bores quickly. Is that Stipe or Mills' falsetto? I would never forgive Stipe's vocal here if he hadn't lived in the south (Jagger gets no such benefit).
but it's full of great moments too, besides the falsettos they're Stipe's proclamations:
kiss the groundbad to swallowhypnotized, suit and tiedgentlemen, justify
& PHILOMATH ! I went there in high school just because of the song like probably 1/4 of Atlanta area teens. also I now work in philomath in another sense so I did get here from there too!
― droit au butt (Euler), Saturday, 18 November 2017 17:51 (six years ago) link
The middle 8 is the best part of it.
― Gholdfish Killah (Turrican), Saturday, 18 November 2017 17:58 (six years ago) link
The one I really dislike is 'Radio Song' ... of all the ones mentioned, that's the one that has me reaching for the skip button right away... I like/can tolerate the others. It's just one of the reasons I rank Out of Time at the bottom of the pile of all the Bill Berry-era albums.
― Gholdfish Killah (Turrican), Saturday, 18 November 2017 18:22 (six years ago) link
Cant Get There From Here has always been top 5 REM for me, I remember being surprised when I found out that most people on ilx think it's not very good. I think I like all of the goofy REM songs mentioned aside from Radio Songdid they do any more of this kind of song after Sidewinder? stuff like Star 69, King Of Comedy + Wake Up Bomb seems feels related but they're goofy in a faux-sleazy rather than faux-naif way, and then Up/Reveal/Around the Sun bring back the faux-naif cutesy stuff but without anything bouncy or zany like earlier examples (maybe Wanderlust?)
― soref, Saturday, 18 November 2017 18:39 (six years ago) link
"Hey hey alligator" kinda on the last album
― timellison, Saturday, 18 November 2017 18:41 (six years ago) link
More than kinda, actually
― timellison, Saturday, 18 November 2017 18:42 (six years ago) link
"That Someone Is You""A Month of Saturdays"
― timellison, Saturday, 18 November 2017 18:47 (six years ago) link
I'm Gonna DJ too but it had plenty of attack live, enough to make it less lolsome.
― piscesx, Saturday, 18 November 2017 18:49 (six years ago) link
There's nothing wrong with 'I'm Gonna DJ' and never has been.
― Gholdfish Killah (Turrican), Saturday, 18 November 2017 18:54 (six years ago) link
"Alligator" has more attack on the live at Hansa Studio video, too, but is pretty much pure bubblegum on the album. Bubblegum with a Lenny Kaye solo.
― timellison, Saturday, 18 November 2017 18:57 (six years ago) link
Is that Stipe or Mills' falsetto?
That's Stipe, and it killed live back in the day (saw Little America and Pageantry tours).
― campreverb, Saturday, 18 November 2017 19:45 (six years ago) link
I rank Out of Time very low on the Berry-era list too. Maybe their lest consistent record. And yet! I’ve come to find Radio Song endearing and never hated SHP.
― sctttnnnt (pgwp), Saturday, 18 November 2017 19:51 (six years ago) link
I can't put "We Walk" in this box at all. Or really anything on the albums pre-Superman. But they were definitely into goof-covers live ("In the Year 2025," drunk-wacky "King of the Road" on Dead Letter Office, etc.)
"Can't Get There From Here" meanwhile is eternally classic.
― Guayaquil (eephus!), Saturday, 18 November 2017 19:57 (six years ago) link
The fanclub singles are ripe with goofiness (“Ghost Reindeer in the Sky”). They’re great.
― droit au butt (Euler), Saturday, 18 November 2017 20:32 (six years ago) link
I love those IRS era albums, but people wildly overstate the quality of them in comparison to the first five WB albums. There's not that much of a gulf in terms of quality and never has been.
otm.
― Freedom, Saturday, 18 November 2017 20:34 (six years ago) link
I'm not sure. Was trying to think of where "We Walk" even comes from. My first inclination was to think it was something outside of rock and roll completely (and possibly in the children's music realm, like Disney or something). Putting it on, though, I think of the Velvet Underground and I am reminded of their own children's music aspects.
― timellison, Saturday, 18 November 2017 21:07 (six years ago) link
"I'm Sticking with You," "Andy's Chest," "Velvet Nursery Rhyme"
― timellison, Saturday, 18 November 2017 21:08 (six years ago) link
I mostly connect "We Walk" to Herman's Hermits - "Silhouettes"
― JoeStork, Saturday, 18 November 2017 21:11 (six years ago) link
'We Walk' was always one of my least favourite tracks on Murmur. That and 'Moral Kiosk' could have both comfortably have been bumped from the record and I wouldn't miss 'em.
― Gholdfish Killah (Turrican), Saturday, 18 November 2017 21:13 (six years ago) link
“moral kiosk” is so good
― ToddBonzalez (BradNelson), Saturday, 18 November 2017 21:20 (six years ago) link
Then again, I've never been one for having this stance that Murmur is the best thing the band ever did, like some do. God no.
― Gholdfish Killah (Turrican), Saturday, 18 November 2017 21:35 (six years ago) link
"We Walk" was huge for me. It was like that famous quote from Peter Pilbeam's approval of the Beatles in their BBC audition well before they even had their record contract. "Not as rock-y as most, more country and western with a tendency to play music." A "tendency to play music" unrestricted by this genre affinity or that.
― timellison, Saturday, 18 November 2017 21:43 (six years ago) link
Think I only saw them play it once and it was later, on the Pageantry tour. One of my distinct memories of that concert.
― timellison, Saturday, 18 November 2017 21:45 (six years ago) link
And the eerie pool sounds rule.
― albvivertine, Saturday, 18 November 2017 22:00 (six years ago) link
idk i think mumur has such a singular vibe that i totally understand why some people think it’s their best. (i’ve thought it was at different points in my life but rn i prefer new adventures)
― ToddBonzalez (BradNelson), Saturday, 18 November 2017 22:12 (six years ago) link
“Listing my religion” at 730 am is something no one should be subjected to
― calstars, Saturday, 18 November 2017 22:17 (six years ago) link
"chronic town" > fables > murmur > pageant > green > reckoning > new adventures > automatic > out of time > document > monster > all the rest
― reggie (qualmsley), Saturday, 18 November 2017 23:55 (six years ago) link
I can't be arsed to rank them again, all I'll say is the ones that I return to the most are Reckoning, Document, Green, Automatic for the People and New Adventures in Hi-Fi. These have been all-time favourites from the beginning pretty much except for Document which has increasingly become a favourite over the last few years, whereas Lifes Rich Pageant has become less of a favourite.
― Gholdfish Killah (Turrican), Sunday, 19 November 2017 00:17 (six years ago) link
Best imo: New Adventures/Reconstruction/Murmur with Reckoning and Monster close behind.
― albvivertine, Sunday, 19 November 2017 02:30 (six years ago) link
Oh and maybe Up too. Dullest posts ever but it's kinda interesting to me they revived themselves creatively so well in the mid 90s. There's plenty of good stuff from Life's to Automatic, they just all feel kinda lacking in identity or something.
― albvivertine, Sunday, 19 November 2017 02:41 (six years ago) link
top 3 albums: Murmur, Lifes Rich Pageant, Automatic for the People
top 3 songs: Harborcoat, Perfect Circle, The Sidewinder Sleeps Tonite
― ufo, Sunday, 19 November 2017 02:55 (six years ago) link
top 3 songs: "stumble", "life and how to live it", "shaking through"
― reggie (qualmsley), Sunday, 19 November 2017 04:53 (six years ago) link
hmm..top 3 tracks=Disturbance at the Heron House, Sweetness Follows, Kohoutek.
― campreverb, Sunday, 19 November 2017 05:11 (six years ago) link
Kohoutek laughing the one I love
― ur-oik (rip van wanko), Sunday, 19 November 2017 05:26 (six years ago) link
Live stream going on right now on their Facebook page of the one show they did post-Automatic for the People release, at the 40 Watt Club. Recently restored video footage - looks and sounds great.
― timellison, Sunday, 19 November 2017 20:55 (six years ago) link
Loving this set.
― Well bissogled trotters (Michael B), Sunday, 19 November 2017 21:08 (six years ago) link
Turns out that 40 Watt set had been previously released--it showed up 3 tracks at a time across 4 Monster CD singles.
― Hideous Lump, Monday, 20 November 2017 02:14 (six years ago) link
Speaking of that set...there's now official video, via the band's own YT channel
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=52sMbXI22gg
― Ned Raggett, Thursday, 23 November 2017 00:13 (six years ago) link
Ah, gather this was the Facebook stream. But anyway, here it is.
― Ned Raggett, Thursday, 23 November 2017 00:15 (six years ago) link
awesome. great sound!
always loved stipe's stage presence
― understood by moron level and above (brimstead), Thursday, 23 November 2017 00:35 (six years ago) link
a bunch of my friends were there, if I'd have gone to UGA with the rest of them I'd have been there too. a few hung out with the band after the show too, got to meet Mike Mills' parents.
― droit au butt (Euler), Thursday, 23 November 2017 07:56 (six years ago) link
i really like the version of "drive"
― understood by moron level and above (brimstead), Thursday, 23 November 2017 18:46 (six years ago) link