R.E.M. released its debut album, Murmur

Murmur R.E.M.

Released: April 11, 1983 Peak: 36 US, 100 UK, -- CN, -- AU, 9 DF Click for codes to charts. Sales (in millions): 0.5 US, 0.1 UK, 2.0 world (includes US and UK), 2.56 EAS Genre: college rock

Tracks: Click on a song title for more details. Radio Free Europe [4:06] Pilgrimage [4:30] Laughing [3:57] Talk about the Passion [3:23] Moral Kiosk [3:31] Perfect Circle [3:29] Catapult [3:55] Sitting Still [3:17] 9-9 [3:03] Shaking Through [4:30] We Walk [3:02] West of the Fields [3:17] Total Running Time: 44:11 The Players: Bill Berry (drums, percussion) Peter Buck (guitar.) Mike Mills (bass, piano, keyboards) Michael Stipe (vocals)

Rating: 4.580 out of 5.00 (average of 44 ratings) Awards: (Click on award to learn more).

About the Album “Athens, Ga., was as unlikely a birthplace for a nationally renowned music scene…But there’s something about a college town nestled in some small corner of rural America that ignites creativity in kids who grow up and discover that there actually are others out there who share their passion for music, film or art. In 1983, the spotlight was on Athens, thanks to R.E.M.’s full-length debut, Murmur. All four of the band’s members spent part of their lives far from Georgia, but Murmur became indelibly tied to its city of origin because it sounded unlike anything from anywhere else.” PM The Members Michael Stipe, the band’s leader singer, has said the title “was chosen because it’s one of the easiest words to pronounce in the English language.” JD Ironically, it is also an apt description of his singing style; he “unspooled his lyrics as if they constituted some new secret language.” 500 However, at the same time “his smooth pop vocal mannerisms sweeten the enigmatic poetry.” AZ The band’s “cryptic lyrics” EW’93 “and the melodies seem buried, almost subliminal, and even the hookiest songs…resist clarity.” 500 “His voice works more as a fourth instrument, complementing the band musically.” PK “Stipe knew that words chosen merely for the way they sound and phrases that suggest something without actually saying anything can be much more powerful than lyrics that try to tell a story, because the listener is free to fill in the blanks with his or her imagination.” JD “Like all great bands, R.E.M.’s individual parts…are as interesting as the collective sound.” AZ Peter Buck’s guitar playing draws “heavily on the trademark Rickenbackers of the early Byrds, with the occasional burst of Velvets-style feedback and garage-rock fuzz thrown in for emphasis.” JD Mike Mills provides “melodic counterpoints with his ultra-musical bass parts, and [drummer Bill] Berry shows considerable imagination in varying his propulsive backbeats with deft and colorful use of elaborate patterns on the tom-toms. Both also add beautiful harmony vocals.” JD Their Backgrounds R.E.M. developed from “local heroes to college-radio staples” EW’93 and, a half decade later were poised to become the biggest band in the world. Interestingly, though, prior to Murmur “the members of R.E.M. never planned on being professional musicians. None of them considered themselves more than mediocre talents, none of them had written songs before, and even after making a splash on the American underground with their first few albums, they wondered aloud what kinds of jobs they would have five years down the line.” CS They formed in 1980 to play at a birthday party for a friend, then toured the south for months, and finally dropped out of the University of Georgia to pursue their music. Developing a Cult Following R.E.M. made its recording debut in the summer of 1981 “with a song that paid homage to the spirit of the young, independent broadcasters…The tiny Hib-Tone label only pressed 1,000 copies of Radio Free Europe, but the single topped the Village Voice’s year-end critics' poll, and the attention helped the band land its deal with I.R.S.” JD The band followed up the success of their single with the E.P. Chronic Town in 1982. Mitch Easter recorded the album at his Drive-In Studio in North Carolina. TBA Recording Murmur The band started working on its debut album at Reflection Sound Studios in Charlotte, North Carolina, on January 6, 1983. “Then-college radio stalwarts” PK Mitch Easter, who’d worked on Chronic Town, and Don Dixon, produced the album. TBA The production “is shimmering but never slick, making this rise above the early DIY indie rock dustheap without falling prey to the new wave excesses of the early ‘80s scene.” PK The band was already leaving “behind the garagey jangle pop of their first recordings,” AM “de-emphasizing the backbeat and accentuating the ambience of the ringing guitar.” AM It makes for a “darker, more obtuse version of the jangly, folk-tinged rock R.E.M. would perfect on the multiplatinum albums Out of Time and Automatic for the People in the early 1990s.” TBA “Throughout the sessions, there was pressure from I.R.S. to produce a hit, but…the band say they tuned the company out and proceeded to craft the sort of finely textured cult album they adored” – Big Star’s Third/Sister Lover, Velvet Underground’s eponymous third album, Neil Young’s Tonight’s the Night, and Wire’s Pink Flag. JD The Sound “Stipe’s trademark oblique lyrics are already in place and are lent a further air of mystery on Murmur by his suitably mumbled delivery.” TBA His “lyrics are both endlessly suggestive and inscrutable. Inspired by the metaphor-rich poetry of Patti Smith, Stipe writes in blinding torrents, concerning himself with the meter of his phrases rather than their linear meaning.” TM “The other members of R.E.M….have said that they were just learning how to play their instruments during the band’s early days. They grew proficient by playing together. By Murmur, their sound is tightly knit – a refined and delicate waving of needlepoint-precise guitar lines, each ringing with great and almost fierce clarity.” TM “The focal point is often Peter Buck’s distinctive guitar playing, which drew equally on The Byrds and the more contemporary sound of post-punk.” TBA Buck, “a rock scholar who had worked in a record store,” 500 said, “We wanted to have this kind of timeless record.” 500 Indeed, “the songs on Murmur sound as if they’ve existed forever, yet they subvert folk and pop conventions by taking unpredictable twists and turns into melodic, evocative territory.” AM The Album’s Legacy The “result should have been a complete mess” PK but R.E.M.’s “simple, stripped down songs merging Byrds-like jangly guitars with Velvet Underground-ish drony melodicism” PK pushed R.E.M. to the forefront of “the alternative rock movement in the mid-1980s, providing an escape from post-punk depression, new-wave ennui, and the shallow glitter of corporate rock and pop metal.” CS The band “blew tantalizing fresh air through the prefab world of rock, spearheading the movement that became known as ‘college rock.” TM Murmur “marked the point at which the punk legacy made peace with rock history, and a new U.S. folk music was born.” BL After the rise of punk rock in the ‘70s, the early ‘80s gave birth to “a strong network of small, independent labels and a string of clubs, fanzines and college radio stations to support them. R.E.M. tapped into this scene, took full advantage of it and arguably became its biggest cheerleader.” JD R.E.M. “showed that the D.I.Y. aesthetic of punk didn’t just have to mean fast and loud.” TM “Though critics swamped R.E.M.’s 1983 full-length debut with country-rock comparisons to the Byrds, Murmur sounds like no one else.” AZ While “firmly in the tradition of American folk-rock, post-punk, and garage rock, Murmur sounds as if it appeared out of nowhere, without any ties to the past, present, or future.” AM It sounded like that because R.E.M. didn’t have “a clearly discernable set of easily classified influences.” CS Even Stipe said, “It’s not that we’re so original. We’re not doing anything new…The closest that any of us have come [to describing it] is ‘folk rock,’ and that’s so undefineable in 1982 that it probably works.” CS It became “one of the most remarkable, near-perfect debut albums of the rock era” PK and “a founding document of alternative rock, released just as Gen X was starting to go to college.” 500 “Truly a must-own album.” PK “Nearly every song is an unforgettable gem.” PK Notes The 1992 IRS Vintage Years edition added R.E.M.’s cover of the Velvet Underground’s “There She Goes Again” as well as live versions of “9-9,” “Gardening at Night,” and “Catapult.” The 2008 Deluxe Edition added a second disc of a live performance from Larry’s Hideaway in Toronto on July 9, 1983. The Songs Here’s a breakdown of each of the individual songs.

Radio Free Europe R.E.M.

Writer(s): Bill Berry, Peter Buck, Mike Mills, Michael Stipe Released: 7/8/1981 (single), Murmur (1983), Eponymous (compilation: 1981-87, released 1988), Best of (compilation: 1981-87, released 1991), Singles Collected (compilation: 1981-987, released 1994), And I Feel Fine…The Best of the I.R.S. Years (compilation: 1982-87, released 2006), Part Lies, Part Heart, Part Truth, Part Garbage (compilation: 1982-2011, released 2011) B-Side: “There She Goes Again” First Charted: 5/21/1983 Peak: 78 BB, 25 AR, 1 CO, 1 DF Click for codes to charts. Sales (in millions): -- Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, 4.55 video, 26.69 streaming

Awards: (Click on award to learn more).

About the Song: R.E.M. formed in Athens, Georgia, in 1980. They released their debut single, “Radio Free Europe,” in 1981 on the independent record label Hib-Tone. Lead singer Michael Stipe said in 1983 that most of their early songs “didn’t have any words. I just got up and howled and hollered a lot.” SF He said he intentionally wanted the lyrics to be difficult to decipher because he hadn’t written words yet, even telling New Musical Express in 1988 that the lyrics were “complete babbling.” WK The song’s hard-to-understand lyrics became a trademark of early R.E.M. and their “DIY energy came across lound and clear.” RS The title refers to a radio network operated by the government of the United States and broadcasted in Europe and the Middle East. The intent was to promote democracy and freedom, but R.E.M. thought it could easily cross the line into propaganda. SF Author Dave Thompson says the song is about “cold war politicking” DT but author Paul Williams asserts that this “is a song about music, the flow of music, the excitement in the fact that it just keeps coming.” PW Rob Sheffield said the song “brought a fresh sense of mischief and excitement to the rock scene.” RS It “marks the point when post-punk turned into alternative rock,” TBS combining traditional and avant-garde elements into something mysterious and yet radio friendly.” TBS Jeff Tweedy of Wilco said “it was disorienting and intoxicating to have new music that felt somehow old.” JT The National Recording Registry noted the song for establishing “the pattern for later indie rock releases by breaking through on college radio in the face of mainstream radio’s general indifference.” WK Drummer Bill Berry said “college radio and major city club scenes embraced the song and expanded our audience…The additional revenue made it possible to logically pursue this wild musical endeavor. I dare not contemplate what our fate would have been had this song not appeared when it did.” SF The song’s success led to a deal with I.R.S. Records in 1982. The band re-recorded the song for Murmur, their 1983 debut album. The newer version featured a slower tempo and some slightly different lyrics. It gave R.E.M. its first taste of chart success, reaching #78 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #25 on the album rock chart. The band didn’t like it as well as the original, saying of the Hib-Tone recording that it “crushes the other one like a grape.” WK

Pilgrimage R.E.M.

Writer(s): Bill Berry, Peter Buck, Mike Mills, Michael Stipe Released: Murmur (1983), And I Feel Fine…The Best of the I.R.S. Years (compilation: 1982-87, released 2006) Peak: 21 CO Click for codes to charts. Sales (in millions): -- Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, -- video, 3.37 streaming About the Song When R.E.M. set about recording their first album, they started working with Stephen Hague, who would later work with New Order, the Human League, and O.M.D. CR-20 However, the band didn’t like his approach. As Peter Buck said, “Hague had us do songs 35 times. And then he’d put together an edit of say, the chorus from the 13th with he bridge from the 29th.” CR-20 The band convinced I.R.S. Records to let them work instead with producers Mitch Easter and Don Dixon. R.E.M. went to Reflection Sound Studios in Charlotte, North Carolina, in December 1982 to record and mix a demo of “Pilgrimage.” Easter said, “That’s the only take we ever did and the only mix we ever did, that’s why I’m so pleased with it.” CR-25 “The track begins with a haunting and distant Stipe vocal and features an undeniably catchy chorus highlighted by Mills’ and Bery’s backing vocals. Berry’s percussive effects add a nice touch.” CR-25

Laughing R.E.M.

Writer(s): Bill Berry, Peter Buck, Mike Mills, Michael Stipe Released: Murmur (1983) Peak: -- Click for codes to charts. Sales (in millions): -- Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, -- video, 2.99 streaming About the Song “With its layered guitar strums and Stipe’s sweet singing, ‘Laughing’ is…one of Murmur’s heavenly, but most mysterious treats, as most of the vocals are hard to decipher.” CR-25 Ironically, one of the few decipherable lyrics has been “misconstrued.” Stipe sings about “Laocoon, a freak mythological figure who had two sons. All three were devoured by serpents.” CR-25 Peter Buck has said even he was confused by the song. CR-25 “While Stipe’s lyrics, even with any kind of explanation, remain for the most part a mystery, the instrumental approach to the song was fairly straightforward…‘We did this sort of protest sit-in thing with four people on acoustic guitars. It was me, Don Dixon, Pete Buck, and Mike Mills. Then we tracked it again, so there are eight acoustic guitars on it.’” said producer Mitch Easter. CR-25

Talk About the Passion R.E.M.

Writer(s): Bill Berry, Peter Buck, Mike Mills, Michael Stipe Released: 11/14/1983 (single), Murmur (1983), Eponymous (compilation: 1981-87, released 1988), Best of (compilation: 1981-87, released 1991), And I Feel Fine…The Best of the I.R.S. Years (compilation: 1982-87, released 2006), Part Lies, Part Heart, Part Truth, Part Garbage (compilation: 1982-2011, released 2011) B-Sides: “Shaking Through,” “Carnival of Sorts (Boxcar),” “1,000,000” Peak: 36 CO, 10 DF Click for codes to charts. Sales (in millions): -- Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, -- video, 9.53 streaming About the Song “The melancholic Talk About the Passion” AM “is the only song that R.E.M. didn’t have completely written before entering Reflection Sound Studios to record Murmur.” CR-26 Bill Berry has called the song a favorite. It “features Buck’s first guitar solo, which was taught to him by Mills, the bassist.” CR-26 They also hired a cello player “to add to the song’s bittersweet atmosphere.” CR-26 “While the song’s emotionalism shined through the sweet melody and vocal, few picked up on the intent of Stipe’s lyrics. He said, “The song was about apathy…When I wrote it, I was thinking about the hunger in the world.” CR-26 When the song was released as a single in support of the band’s Eponymous compilation in 1988, a video clip made the intent clear. It “featured images of homeless people juxtaposed with a warship.” CR-26

Moral Kiosk R.E.M.

Writer(s): Bill Berry, Peter Buck, Mike Mills, Michael Stipe Released: Murmur (1983) Peak: -- Click for codes to charts. Sales (in millions): -- Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, -- video, 2.33 streaming About the Song “The amusing perplexity of…Moral Kiosk” SL “upped the ante on Murmur, hinting at a return to the more rocking approach the band favored on Chronic Town. On the track, Buck’s guitar has a more angular sound, while Berry adds some interesting percussive effects that bring the listener in and out of the song’s chant-like chorus. Another highlight is a Stipe yodel.” CR-26 Regarding the lyrics, Mike Mills said, “Well, if you take what a kiosk is – a column and place where they post notices that say this is what you should do tonight or tomorrow – a moral kiosk, I guess, is either a place to tell you what you should do morally or a place to hide yourself from decisions you have to make.” CR-27

Perfect Circle R.E.M.

Writer(s): Bill Berry, Peter Buck, Mike Mills, Michael Stipe Released: Nov. ’86 (B-side of “Superman”), Murmur (1983), Best of (compilation: 1981-87, released 1991), And I Feel Fine…The Best of the I.R.S. Years (compilation: 1982-87, released 2006) Peak: 7 DF Click for codes to charts. Sales (in millions): -- Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, -- video, 4.50 streaming About the Song With its “winding guitars and pianos” AM Perfect Circle “is one of the most beautiful songs R.E.M. have ever recorded.” CR-27 Stipe called it one of his “real gut-spillers.” CR-27 “The song developed from a Buck observation that was filtered through Stipe.” CR-27 Buck said, “I really love that song. I still have a real warm feeling for it.” CR-28 “Berry came up with the music.” CR-27 He composed it on a little Casio keyboard in his kitchen. CR-27 In the studio, however, they used real pianos – in fact, two pianos. Bill Berry and Mike Mills were playing at the same time. CR-27

Catapult R.E.M.

Writer(s): Bill Berry, Peter Buck, Mike Mills, Michael Stipe Released: 10/16/1984 (B-side of “Don’t Go Back to Rockville”), Murmur (1983) Peak: 10 CO, 33 DF Click for codes to charts. Sales (in millions): -- Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, -- video, 2.52 streaming About the Song “With its thumping bass and uplifting vocal that highlights the joys of childhood, ‘Catapult’ is an early R.E.M. standout, even if the band didn’t like it.” CR-28 When R.E.M. started working on their first album, they were paired with producer Stephen Hague. He “tried to professionalize the band’s sound with the use of a click track and overdubbed synthesizer” CR-28 on Catapult. Mitch Easter, who was later brought in with Don Dixon to replace Hague, said, “That was a problematic song…They hated that version of it so much…We recorded it again, but I don’t think they ever liked it.” CR-28 He believed in it enough that he said he thought it could have been a single. CR-28 Peter Buck did note that the song “showed off a country influence that would become more apparent on Reckoning’s ‘Don’t Go Back to Rockville.’’ CR-28 He said, “It’s melodic and pithy and not chord-oriented, without being jerk-off guitar solos. I stick things in all the time that are real country.” CR-28

Sitting Still R.E.M.

Writer(s): Bill Berry, Peter Buck, Mike Mills, Michael Stipe Released: 7/8/1981 (B-side of “Radio Free Europe”), Murmur (1983), And I Feel Fine…The Best of the I.R.S. Years (compilation: 1982-87, released 2006), Part Lies, Part Heart, Part Truth, Part Garbage (compilation: 1982-2011, released 2011) Peak: -- Click for codes to charts. Sales (in millions): -- Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, -- video, 5.02 streaming About the Song “’Radio Free Europe’ wasn’t the only oldie to turn up on Murmur. Unlike that song, however, the band didn’t re-record Sitting Still, the B-side of the Hib-Tone single for Murmur.” CR-29 Producer Mitch Easter said they mixed it again and slowed it down a bit and might have re-done some out-of-tune backing vocals but essential the recording was the same. Guitarist Peter Buck said, “I think Mike re-did the bass, but the basic track is the same.” CR-29

9-9 R.E.M.

Writer(s): Bill Berry, Peter Buck, Mike Mills, Michael Stipe Released: 10/16/1984 (B-side of “Don’t Go Back to Rockville”), Murmur (1983) Peak: -- Click for codes to charts. Sales (in millions): -- Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, -- video, 1.71 streaming About the Song “This explosive and discordant rocker…is the one song that threw a wrench into the theories that R.E.M. was nothing more than a group of Byrds copyists” CR-29 Producer Mitch Easter said, “It’s kind of not like anything else on the record. They were into bands like Gang of Four…and it was probably meant to be more…that type of song.” CR-29 9-9 “also has the distinction of being the R.E.M. song that is the most difficult to decipher, but that was their intent.” CR-29 Michael Stipe said, “We purposely recorded it so you would never be able to decipher any of the words except the very last phrase, which is ‘conversation fear,’ which is what the song is about.” CR-29 “The amusing perplexity of 9-9” SL

Shaking Through R.E.M.

Writer(s): Bill Berry, Peter Buck, Mike Mills, Michael Stipe Released: 11/14/1983 (B-side of “Talk about the Passion”), Murmur (1983), And I Feel Fine…The Best of the I.R.S. Years (compilation: 1982-87, released 2006) Peak: -- Click for codes to charts. Sales (in millions): -- Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, -- video, 1.97 streaming About the Song This is another song that dates back to Chronic Town. R.E.M. did a demo of the song at the time but never recorded Stipe’s vocal. Otherwise, the version that appears on Murmur isn’t that different. “Highlights of the recording include a majestic piano, a catchy guitar part, and a wonderfully warm Stipe vocal.” CR31 Neither Peter Buck nor producer Mitch Easter were “particularly big fans of the song.” CR-30 Easter said, “It was a little too complacent sounding to me. It didn’t grab me the way the others did.” CR-31

We Walk R.E.M.

Writer(s): Bill Berry, Peter Buck, Mike Mills, Michael Stipe Released: Murmur (1983), And I Feel Fine…The Best of the I.R.S. Years (compilation: 1982-87, released 2006) Peak: 33 DF Click for codes to charts. Sales (in millions): -- Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, -- video, 1.90 streaming About the Song “With its nursery rhyme-like lyrics, sugary guitar picking, and odd studio effects, We Walk is possibly the weirdest and most enduring song on Murmur.” CR-31 It was one of the most difficult to record. Producer Mitch Easter tried using tape looping which gave the song the steadiness it needed, yet something still wasn’t right so they tried some studio experimentation. Easter said, “We had a mike set up in the hallway, in the staircase hallway near this rec room, which was under the control room, and that’s where Michael would sing.” CR-31 The recording picked up the sound of a pool game, which they kept in because, as Easter said, “the sound of the slowed-down pool balls colliding made that song make sense…God knows why.” CR-31 Stipe said an old acquaintance inspired the lyrics. “I used to know a girl who lived on the second floor of this house and every time she walked up the stairs, she would say, ‘Up the stairs, into the hall.’” CR-31

West of the Fields R.E.M.

Writer(s): Bill Berry, Peter Buck, Mike Mills, Michael Stipe, Neil Bogan Released: Murmur (1983) Peak: 35 DF Click for codes to charts. Sales (in millions): -- Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, -- video, 1.34 streaming About the Song This is a rare example of R.E.M. collaborating with someone outside the band. Neil Bogan was an Athens’ pal of Stipe’s who helped his friend fill in lyrics about a trip to New Orleans. Producer Mitch Easter called it a “kind of a cool dramatic song” CS-31 while guitarist Peter Buck said, “It just wasn’t any good…We wanted no lead guitar, and no heavy punk – just a fast, weird folk-rock record with tons of overdubs.” CR-31

Resources/References: AM AllMusic.com review by Stephen Thomas Erlewine AZ Amazon.com review by Steve Knopper BL Blender (10/08). “100 Greatest American Albums” JD Jim DeRogatis (2006). “The Great Albums” EW’93 Entertainment Weekly (10/29/1993). “100 Greatest CDs: A Love-It-Or-Loathe It Guide to the Essential Disc Library” TM Tom Moon (2008). 1,000 Recordings to Hear Before You Die. Workman Publishing Company, Inc.: New York, NY. Pages 642-3. PM PasteMagazine.com (6/3/2024). “The 300 Greatest Albums of All Time” PK Pop Kulcher/Marc Fagel Greatest Rock & Roll Albums of All Time 500 Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Albums of All Time RS Rolling Stone (5/18/2021). “R.E.M. Celebrate 40th Anniversary of ‘Radio Free Europe’ With New Reissue” by Rob Sheffield CR Craig Rosen (1997). Inside Out. Thunder’s Mouth Press: New York, NY. SL Slant Magazine (6/30/2003). “Vital Pop: 50 Essential Pop Albums” by Slant staff CS Chris Smith (2009). 101 Albums That Changed Popular Music. Oxford University Press. Pages 164-6. SF Songfacts page for “Radio Free Europe” DT Dave Thompson (2011). 1000 Songs That Rock Your World. Krause Publications: Iola, WI. Page 160. TBA Thunder Bay (2005). Albums: The Stories Behind 50 Years of Great Recordings. Thunder Bay Press; San Diego, CA. Page 219. TBS Thunder Bay Press (2006). Singles: Six Decades of Hot Hits & Classic Cuts. Outline Press Ltd.: San Diego, CA. Page 195. JT Jeff Tweedy (11/7/2023). World Within a Song. Dutton/Penguin Random House. Pages 169-70. PW Paul Williams (1993). Rock and Roll: The Best 100 Singles. Carroll & Graf Publishers, Inc.: New York, NY. Pages 199-200. WK Wikipedia page for Murmur WK Wikipedia page for “Radio Free Europe” Related DMDB Pages: First posted 3/23/2008; last updated 10/4/2026.