R.E.M. - Opinions

Rickenbacker · 06-06-2009, 07:54 PM

Oh, I'm not speaking of lyrics. Rather, song structure. Stand and Shiny Happy People are composed like very basic pop songs, radio staples in the late eighties and early nineties.

Also, I always thought Shiny Happy People was about the Tiananmen Square massacre. Something about the press release that the chinese gave and how it was mistranslated.

Burning Down · 06-06-2009, 07:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mirrorball95

Firstly, 'Shiny Happy People' along with 'Stand' suck man. I dont mind 'Losing My Religion' but its so overplayed it really gets on your tits after a while. I think the whole of 'Around The Sun' is excellent & its definitely in their top 5 best albums along with 'New Adventures In Hi-Fi' which I cant speak highly enough of (as you may have already noticed).

"Stand" sucks, I agree with that, and the video they made for it is absolutely horrendous. "Shiny Happy People" sucks for the most part, but I personally like it. It's not my favourite though, and I hate how the majority of people who know REM just for their singles automatically associate them with "Shiny Happy People." It's pathetic and I believe the band has even said so.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rickenbacker

Stand and Shiny Happy People aren't meant to be looked at as serious songs. They were both written to make fun of the popular music on the radio those days. The problem was that people were stupid enough to think that those songs were great pop songs, and they charted highly. I'm sure Michael was cracking up when he heard that his song that was written to make fun of pop music had become a pop song!

Well that's kind of ironic isn't it?

I also think that "Stand" ruined the flow of Green, which is one of my favourite albums regardless of that song.

I also heard somewhere that "Shiny Happy People" is not technically a 'happy' song as the band had written it as a response to protests in Tiananmen Square in 1989.

Burning Down · 06-06-2009, 07:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rickenbacker

Oh, I'm not speaking of lyrics. Rather, song structure. Stand and Shiny Happy People are composed like very basic pop songs, radio staples in the late eighties and early nineties.

Also, I always thought Shiny Happy People was about the Tiananmen Square massacre. Something about the press release that the chinese gave and how it was mistranslated.

Haha I posted this just a minute after you

JJJ567 · 06-06-2009, 08:37 PM

Strange...as much as I love the band I have never actually listened to Around the Sun and Reveal. I was sort of putting them off just because of their reputation as sub-par albums. I have the bulk of their discography on my computer and on other formats. I should probably find a non-cassette version of Green though, haha.

Rickenbacker · 06-06-2009, 08:42 PM

Reveal did have one great stand out track, which of course was Imitation of Life. One of the best songs of the decade there.

Burning Down · 06-06-2009, 08:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JJJ567

Strange...as much as I love the band I have never actually listened to Around the Sun and Reveal. I was sort of putting them off just because of their reputation as sub-par albums. I have the bulk of their discography on my computer and on other formats. I should probably find a non-cassette version of Green though, haha.

Don't worry, there are CD copies!

Mirrorball95 · 06-07-2009, 09:04 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Burning Down

"Stand" sucks, I agree with that, and the video they made for it is absolutely horrendous. "Shiny Happy People" sucks for the most part, but I personally like it. It's not my favourite though, and I hate how the majority of people who know REM just for their singles automatically associate them with "Shiny Happy People." It's pathetic and I believe the band has even said so.

Well that's kind of ironic isn't it?

I also think that "Stand" ruined the flow of Green, which is one of my favourite albums regardless of that song.

I also heard somewhere that "Shiny Happy People" is not technically a 'happy' song as the band had written it as a response to protests in Tiananmen Square in 1989.

Yeah thats what puts me off the 'Green' album as it has some sh*t on it. Another album I think is worth mentioning is 'Murmur' (a very early one from 1983- maybe their debut) as 'Radio Free Europe' is a good song.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rickenbacker

Stand and Shiny Happy People aren't meant to be looked at as serious songs. They were both written to make fun of the popular music on the radio those days. The problem was that people were stupid enough to think that those songs were great pop songs, and they charted highly. I'm sure Michael was cracking up when he heard that his song that was written to make fun of pop music had become a pop song!

I dont look at them as 'serious songs'. Whether they were written to make fun of pop music or not, they still suck & even worse became popular. Surely Michael would have known that catchy songs like that (however bad & especially in the 80s) would climb the charts.

Burning Down · 06-07-2009, 11:29 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mirrorball95

Yeah thats what puts me off the 'Green' album as it has some sh*t on it. Another album I think is worth mentioning is 'Murmur' (a very early one from 1983- maybe their debut) as 'Radio Free Europe' is a good song.

I love Murmur. And the fact that Rolling Stone named it "Album of the Year" in 1983 (over Thriller!) just makes it even better

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mirrorball95

I dont look at them as 'serious songs'. Whether they were written to make fun of pop music or not, they still suck & even worse became popular. Surely Michael would have known that catchy songs like that (however bad & especially in the 80s) would climb the charts.

Who knows what Michael was thinking when he penned the lyrics to those songs, especially "Stand". In regards to "Shiny Happy People", if you just watch the video it seems like they're just going through the motions. They all look distracted! Michael's said that he's grown to appreciate the song, but that doesn't mean he likes it. Bill and Mike hated it and I don't know about Peter.

JJJ567 · 06-07-2009, 11:44 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Burning Down

Don't worry, there are CD copies!

Ah, I was under the impression that all of the CD copies have been destroyed.

Mirrorball95 · 06-07-2009, 12:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Burning Down

I love Murmur. And the fact that Rolling Stone named it "Album of the Year" in 1983 (over Thriller!) just makes it even better

Who knows what Michael was thinking when he penned the lyrics to those songs, especially "Stand". In regards to "Shiny Happy People", if you just watch the video it seems like they're just going through the motions. They all look distracted! Michael's said that he's grown to appreciate the song, but that doesn't mean he likes it. Bill and Mike hated it and I don't know about Peter.

Yeah, its a pretty swell album. As for Michael Jackson's Thriller...no comment (I feel this is the best option in order to avoid 4 pages of arguing about Michael Jackson). All I will say is that it truly was class when Jarvis ****er hijacked his gig at the Brit Awards in the 90s and pulled a moonie

.

06-06-2009, 08:37 PM	#64 (permalink)
JJJ567 Music Addict Join Date: Jan 2009 Posts: 120	Strange...as much as I love the band I have never actually listened to Around the Sun and Reveal. I was sort of putting them off just because of their reputation as sub-par albums. I have the bulk of their discography on my computer and on other formats. I should probably find a non-cassette version of Green though, haha. __________________ http://www.last.fm/user/JJJ567

06-06-2009, 07:54 PM	#61 (permalink)
Rickenbacker / Join Date: May 2009 Location: The Conn Posts: 1,338	Oh, I'm not speaking of lyrics. Rather, song structure. Stand and Shiny Happy People are composed like very basic pop songs, radio staples in the late eighties and early nineties. Also, I always thought Shiny Happy People was about the Tiananmen Square massacre. Something about the press release that the chinese gave and how it was mistranslated.

06-06-2009, 08:42 PM	#65 (permalink)
Rickenbacker / Join Date: May 2009 Location: The Conn Posts: 1,338	Reveal did have one great stand out track, which of course was Imitation of Life. One of the best songs of the decade there.