R.E.M. - E-Bow The Letter (Official HD Music Video) feat. Patti Smith

"E-Bow The Letter", featuring Patti Smith, from R.E.M.'s 1996 album, "New Adventures in Hi-Fi"
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#REM

[@hadleygodden2323]

Patti's voice sounds like it's being piped in from another realm. Angelic.

[@maciejorzeszko7837]

Michael Stipe is not only a singer and composer. He's one of the greatest contemprary American poets and this song proves it like no other.

[@harrythompson9315]

this and "world leader pretend" man I couldn't agree more!. cheers!

[@bi3962]

Modern beat poet

[@FlickanIDetKroktaRummet]

according to some article on wikipedia, he only wrote lyrics for REM

[@scottvincent184]

For sure!

[@KevinKaffy]

Huh??...never thought his lyrics meant much to be honest..this is a superb tune though

[@Jlyblylvr]

This song instantly takes me back to being 16. This song has an incredible moodiness to it. It evokes a warm car ride on a rainy day. It was such a gift to be alive when R.E.M. was making music.

[@dylangrahams]

Totally 💯

[@anthonytaylor4473]

Described it beautifully

[@ThomasBaxter]

The sound of this song is the library in North Grenville District Highschool 1996. Passing around the headphones of my discman. Knowing I needed people to hear this. Not knowing who I was.

[@Jlyblylvr]

@@ThomasBaxter I hope that this song helped you start on that journey.

[@moonlightrider24]

EXACTLY, it feels like the windshield wipers synchronize with the song

[@lorenzofortibuoni6279]

1996 has been the darkest year in my life, listening to this album was my only consolation

[@jacquelynmccloud1430]

1996 was horrible for me too. Glad to see you're still hangin in there in 2023 at least. Good on you. REM has helped me thru a lot over a few decades.

[@emmaacosta8679]

Mine too.

[@TheGhostfisherman]

@@jacquelynmccloud1430 im glad you are still here..

[@edwardmorris3453]

What songs, specifically? I was a kid then, so it definitely wasn't the darkest year for me. Why that album?

[@lorenzofortibuoni6279]

That song in particular helped me surviving. In a way or another, I am still here

[@danielamaterano7123]

My husband died in 2013. This masterpiece makes me feel connected with this huge lost. But not in a painful but complex and hard way to explain. This song is like a bridge between him and all the emotions and words that now are sleeping in a box. Is like he was a teenager again and once and again he became my friend and my partner, singing with me, asking these questions… It took me a long long long time to write this. “I got it”

[@ncc74656m]

💜

[@buenasangre22]

fuerza 💪🏽rem lo cura todo 💖💞

[@jamiebrooks5359]

Sorry for your loss x there is a huge catalogue of music to help us through those hard times x keep smiling

[@fabiusspeck2518]

perdere il proprio compagno, con cui si ha camminato a lungo nella vita credo sia la cosa più orrenda del mondo. spero che da quando hai postato questo commento le cose vadano un po meglio sembrerà assurdo e forse stupido pronunciato da uno sconosciuto su youtube, è comprensibile. non ho mai conosciuto nè tuo marito nè te, nè mai lo farò probabilmente, ma ti auguro davvero di trovare un po di pace in questa vita feroce. mando un fortissimo abbraccio a te e a tuo marito

[@bartdegraaf2161]

Sorry for the big loss. If the music gives you sweet memories and helpps you to go on . Than is that the best medicine you can have . I hope that the sun always guides you

[@ksworld1744]

This song was about a letter that Bill Berry wrote to River Phoenix when it was painfully obvious to those around him that he was in the process of crashing and burning. When Phoenix died Stipe asked Bill whether he could make a song of it and this is the result. The e-bow bit is the guitar attachment used to create the sound. Their best song - gives me goosebumps every time I hear it. who's listening? 8th March, 2021

[@okdude9716]

What do you mean he was the process of crushing and burning??

[@ksworld1744]

@@okdude9716 spiralling down

[@okdude9716]

@@ksworld1744 im so really sorry but i didn't understand it again:/

[@Deilajaxx]

@@okdude9716 he was visibly going downhill. Those around him saw River personally and professionally losing. Unfortunately, no one could change the course of his life

[@okdude9716]

@@Deilajaxx oh thank you i got it now:)

[@dmavridi]

“I can smell the sorrow on your breath”. Burns a hole in your mind.

[@FlickanIDetKroktaRummet]

very Tove Jansson:)

[@richardnorris9256]

Funnily enough for the last 28 years until today I've always thought the lyric was "I can smell the SALT on your breath", and wondered wtf that was all about (I do know who Maria Callas is, though).

[@anthonytaylor6972]

Haunting lyrics and music

[@TeddyRidal]

I can smell the shit on your nazi breath

[@iammrbeat]

Arguably their most underrated song.

[@HeinoBartels]

A timeless masterpiece

[@Wildwind58]

I'm soon to be 64 years old, this song still gives me goosebumps

[@LP-cr7jo]

Why not? Feelings are ageless. :)

[@pipkingdom]

I’m 5’ 7 and I like it too…

[@TheBloodiac]

I remember staying up all night in 1996 with my good old cassette deck ready, waiting for the radio to play this new R.E.M. song so I can record it. . After hours of waiting they finally played it and I listened to it day and night.

[@kennethhufnagel4699]

+TheBloodiac you are one of me; the ones that dance between the raindrops, as I too share your anecdote from your youth and the history of music from your memoirs

[@dixonstreetdrummer1846]

Yes indeed. Yes, indeed.

[@catsilvy]

+TheBloodiac: You weren't alone in that. :)

[@adamlewis4047]

+TheBloodiac I did the same, I was SHOCKED. I was expecting Monster (Part 2). Especially with the preview of "Wake Up Bomb" we had on MTV in September, 1995. I was so shocked by a ballad.

[@CommonUnity]

+TheBloodiac I WAS BORN IN 1996! Must've been an awesome year :D

[@michaeldevino8920]

I remember in 96, I was on my back on the roof of my apartment building on a blustery spring day in Manhattan just staring up at the clouds listening to this song. It was beautiful and surreal and I was in a euphoric ethereal moment that I find hard to describe. Whenever I listen to this song it brings me right there, at that moment and I feel it all over again. The wind and the slow moving clouds. That feeling in my stomach, like being madly in love. Who said time travel isn't possible. Amazing!

[@TheDerekclarkmep]

amazing comment......

[@Pipegameryt6]

euphoric ethereal moment...

[@condors1972]

Michael Devino are you still under that roof?

[@condors1972]

What a lovely song.

[@TooL1993]

I remember the melancholy sound of this song gave me the idea for my impression of what a Thunderbird (if it existed) would look like. Some massive ancient creature, the last of it's kind, flying in the same summer heat as I would walk home from school in. Alone, just like me at the time. But it was fine with it. It would survey the world and enjoy the wind under its wings. I drew it in a way you could see its age. Where it's skin was thinning and you could see the outline of its bones but it still had an elegant, regal presence about it. I would imagine the occasional breeze when walking home and listening to this song, would be from its massive wings flying above me.

[@DavidSmith-ln7gm]

REM certainly doesn’t get enough credit as one of the best bands ever.

[@pipkingdom]

Don’t agree

[@yogablu]

I think that might be because they ended their union with a definitive to never to return. I think Stipe tapped out. He gave all he could and although he surfaces now and again, he may be empty of more quality poetry. Super sad.

[@hardnine]

I just think you need to give it more time

[@youanded]

@@yogablu The whole band just got tired of everything that wasn't making and performing music (business, politics, money, etc.), that is very well documented. Stipe still writes and has put out music, collaborations and solo, in the last decade-plus.

[@yogablu]

@@youanded I follow all of their other projects. And they were tired of playing the same songs over and over again. So I know that, while Stipe has done a few things here and there, Buck and Mills have been out and about. I go see all their bands when they come to town. They seem happy

[@TheEverSerene]

This song was everything to me when I was 13. I'm 38 now and it still makes time stop.

[@carmentaborda971]

me too, also same age

[@michaeljones2464]

This band has been a pillow,a warmth and a kick up the arse to me.......and a workout eveytime I have robed in to watch them.

[@Andyface79]

Same age too. I was 12 going on 13 when this came out.

[@msjessicahall]

Same. I'm now 40

[@bradcole494]

Can I have your #? Same age and ditto

[@SlackrUk]

Patti Smith is a legend. Her voice on this beautiful song... Love it so much!

[@scottab140]

Agree.

[@michaelmoraga2926]

Patti in Prague... sublime 💜

[@MakeupNeverSleeps]

This is one of the best songs I've ever heard, and it's like no one knows about it. Beyond underrated.

[@iamandrewssoul]

Too true, it's like cats just stop with "losing..." or something. Like REM stopped there.

[@catsilvy]

A lot of people know about the song, Rachel. It's just too non-commercial and slow for radio. But it's a beautiful song, one of many they did.

[@Ummagumarios]

REM it's really a very special band. Most of the people only know them for ''losing my religion'' :( This one ''E-Bow the letter'' is one of the best ever...

[@psalmist]

Daniel Lind Daniel, I did receive some airplay. Having Patti Smith on the track, brought enough attention to make it on the college radio circuit as well as a month or two on Mtv, Remember, REM had just signed a large contract, and the company wanted something.

[@antmanfersil]

Ummagumarios +1

[@jeffreyoser7590]

Whenever I see my son smile, I have this song to thank. If not for this song I would have never made it past 25. This was the first song he ever heard. I’m now nearly 36 and my son 4. This song made me not take my life, and for that I get to share the rest of it. With my most prized possession.

[@nclayton877]

Incredible 🙏

[@Arupojonu]

REM was a genre of their own.

[@timorlinski2692]

So true

[@tsoiboy4073]

So well put.

[@davemsn1]

Michael said on an interview with CBS this June (24) that the song was written during a sound check. He actually went into his dressing room and grabbed a letter he wrote and said it became this song nearly word for word. Fascinating.

[@okifurbi]

New Adventures in HI FI, Adore from Smashing Pumpkins and Ok Computer will always be my comfort albums. No matter how much music I listen to, I always come back to them and feel like home.

[@jamieparry6744]

okifurbi adore is one of my fav albums aswell :3

[@korbendallas7181]

ADORE yes! all the way through!

[@tyleranddaniel2039]

okifurbi me tooo!!

[@vanhelsing4623]

You have a good musical taste.

[@D_isco_D_ancer]

*This is the only band that I can hear 24/7 every decade of my life.*

[@nbml4756]

Amen!

[@flumpyhumpy]

Fuck you must have a boring life.

[@annakarina3640]

Snurt Groolan what would you listen to mr perfect music taste🙄

[@dannysmith3639]

@@flumpyhumpy shut up knobhead

[@mathdoyle]

Honestly tis song is perfection

[@user-dh3fj9uv9d]

the best song of REM!

[@Indyariya]

Out of the blue, I felt the urge to listen this song again! I searched Spotify and listened again. It’s still sound great with Patti smith haunting background vocals! It’s one of the best song in the album!

[@sjdinergrrl]

I taped this shortly after 9/11/01. Taped it off the radio. Like you, about a week ago started hearing it in my head. Well here I am. 08/28/2024sjdinergrrrl

[@MrMonikerjay]

"Aluminum, tastes like fear" One of the best lines ever written in a song. Simple, but you know exactly what he's talking about. This is Stipe at his absolute best.

[@TheWickerMan1981]

So glad I saw them live and next door for a private show in Athens at the bowling alley a few years ago as well.

[@MrMonikerjay]

Very cool!

[@riverertresvaagzeal774]

it kinda has the feeling he's into some of the directing also, i think so at least. queer intense angles and alienated commodities everywhere.

[@justinbrown8214]

MrMonikerjay what does he mean?

[@leesdroidaccountharbin9665]

whenever you get shocking news, you usually get a metallic taste in your mouth

[@NicHills]

Nobody quite does melancholy like rem, my god I miss them so much... So powerful.

[@JasonDebly]

Agree! And Stipes lyrics are vague enough that they can apply to our own individual situations, or so beautifully melancholic that we adapt them to our own particular circumstance.

[@aquapolusa9549]

Your said it. This was a period of joy and melancholy, just the right mix!

[@kristopherryanwatson]

Nic & Andrea Hills except maybe, you know, The Smashing Pumpkins.

[@garethlawless8519]

Fuck off. It's just music. They're not responsible

[@Orangeforever66778]

areth Lless . it's your shit & control they lyric from .

[@danieledanny9625]

i want back my years

[@JJSX09]

who doesn't

[@wildmercuryfilms]

daniele borbotti look forward

[@danieledanny9625]

i try it

[@Nofarewell]

I think I know what you mean, there might be better days in the future but those "years" will never come again.

[@julienichols5490]

I know exactly what you mean and I want my years back too I have this in playlist under Fall of '96 (around the time I first heard it on the radio)

[@Fixxxer24]

Its funny that for most REM fans, you cant possibly listen to this track once.....you always have to play it on repeat a couple of times....

[@Goodywagon]

True from the first listen all those years ago.

[@jzneter736]

True

[@CannibalWHORE22]

Hahaha I am so glad someone said it because this has been on repeat

[@wreckofthehesperas8323]

CannibalWHORE22. Same, with the vid.

[@rockandroller80]

Amen brother

[@the0point]

Will you live to eighty-three? Will you ever welcome me? Will you show me something that nobody else has seen? It gets me every time.

[@livemealone1]

Be honest, it's not your first time here.

[@jorgeguisa7920]

Ethereal, deep, fragile, moving, poetic... majestic song.

[@shux422]

Criminally underrated? No, criminally ignored.

[@lukesters7234]

It’s having a Renaissance critically. Fans always knew how good it was

[@milliemitchell7716]

I look it as some ppl not being worthy of loving this.

[@marciocouto3543]

The places, the cinematography, the twilight, the loneliness, Patti's spectral voice, the guitar echoes, Stipe poetry... ...everything, I mean, EVERYTHING, in this song + video is absolutely perfect. I would not change a single note in the arrangement. E-bow the letter always kinda makes me numb.

[@samrodshenassa978]

Absolutely agreed on everything, but you left out the most important: as a top band when this was released, the balls it took them to fund, produce, and release such a beautiful video, against all trends, is admirable. While I've always liked this song and video, I don't think I appreciated both as much until I just watched it now. Such perfection and depth.

[@davidswartz2925]

r.e.m, took college radio,to the world.

[@eileenstubington8592]

The letter was to be sent to river phoenix

[@gregallen4333]

I have to agree everything is perfect and not over done. Here Patti's voice is so perfect but it's also background again making this song so great. Two voices no one else joins in and they shouldn't. It's my absolute favorite and I could listen to it on repeat all day!

[@themusic5229]

R.E.M. - Love this song - Love R.E.M. 💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜 R.E.M. - Love this song - Love R.E.M. 💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜 R.E.M. - Love this song - Love R.E.M. 💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜 R.E.M. - Love this song - Love R.E.M. 💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜 R.E.M. - Love this song - Love R.E.M. 💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜 R.E.M. - Love this song - Love R.E.M. 💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜

[@OneBentMonkey]

who’d have thought tomorrow would be so strange my loss and here we go again

[@MikeyC19836]

1996 was one of my favorite years of existence. This song reminds me of that wonderful time.

[@MrJonpac]

This man has a unique style that's unrivalled. The lyrics to all his songs have helped me navigate through life.

[@TheChadls]

It's the band

[@racelkoleci9901]

Same for me

[@dillanfolkers669]

@@TheChadls Stipe is one of the best lyricists in rock history, but the band elevates them to an emotional level they couldn't reach otherwise

[@themusic5229]

R.E.M. - Love this song - Love R.E.M. 💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜 R.E.M. - Love this song - Love R.E.M. 💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜 R.E.M. - Love this song - Love R.E.M. 💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜 R.E.M. - Love this song - Love R.E.M. 💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜 R.E.M. - Love this song - Love R.E.M. 💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜 R.E.M. - Love this song - Love R.E.M. 💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜

[@annamarineva]

It's the type of person you see him,you hear him and you love him!!

[@mattr.1310]

E-bow the Letter is great poetry. Love the line: Aluminum,tastes like fear. Adrenaline, it pulls us near....... Patti Smith's vocals make this song so special!! It is one of R.E.M's finest songs. The lyrics are exceptional & unique. It floored me when I first heard it. It still has that effect on me. It is so unique & different among their catalogue of songs. You can listen to this song over & over and never get tired of it!

[@RIvardDan]

Thank God for the 80's

[@diddy5346]

90 ti's

[@smiley1960]

I was an unhappy lonely depressed abused 17 year old when this came out. It takes me right back.

[@Iggy-ft3jf]

'here we go again'

[@traceya9615]

Well, the other day. my friend's 22 year old son asked me if I'd heard of Patti Smith! What goes around comes around! Really. there are no words to describe what a fabulous band R.E.M. were....Saw them in Dublin on the "Green" tour... Still fresh as a daisy in my mind 🥰

[@spencerjones1928]

It will really have gone around when he asks you if you have heard of Maria Callas.

[@alexarias5717]

Hearing people talk about their memories and feelings with this song is so wonderful. It shows this music is that beautiful, R.E.M is an astounding band

[@vladimik]

Alex Arias yes is so emotional

[@corvideity]

what's scary is there's only one top comment about river... almost like it was cherry-picked by yt mods 🤨😶

[@Caltops78]

Just thinking about how the band wrote this song for River Phoenix with simple yet mysteriously sad lyrics is amazing. One of my favorite R.E.M. songs I'll listen to for the rest of my life

[@rax816]

Not sure this one is (not specifically anyway)

[@1qwasz12]

The Album "Monster" is dedicated to River Phoenix.

[@Caltops78]

@@rax816 well whoever wrote it did a great job. I always come back to listen

[@brabbit3389]

I think it was actually a letter that Stipe wrote and was going to send to River about making the guitar sound like a violin or something - he died before it was sent and so it was never sent. Then this song was made from reworking that original letter - this maybe bullshit but that’s the story I think

[@Caltops78]

@@brabbit3389 I wasn’t exactly sure who wrote it but that would make sense. Never knew about the violin to guitar part either. Thanks for adding some new perspective to one of my fav songs

[@michelegiampieri4237]

The e-bow is a very cool guitar effect

[@dylangrahams]

Patti’s lyrics are so beautiful and understated ❤

[@bread9408]

One of the most underrated songs of all time

[@richwells630]

One of their greatest songs an absolute masterpiece , never fails to move me .

[@michelegiampieri4237]

New Adventures in Hi-Fi was a great album. I knew it thanks to my mother that like Rem so much. I'll be always in connection Rem and my mother ✨❤️ thank you mum for makes me know REM when I was a child

[@delboy20091]

Almost 25 years old already, the 90's were the best by far.

[@uncledarthy7573]

This song takes you way back to the special hidden place in your mind that only you can see, that place you want to share with everyone, but you don’t know the words to explain it, so you stare blankly in their eyes and wish they can experience what you can.

[@cherrysnow74]

This is eerily accurate.

[@damirarslanovic7377]

I miss you a lot! You made your sad songs into the most beautiful medicine that healed my broken soul into something beautiful and I also thank God who has created beautiful REM.....I was lucky enough to see you live in Roskilde festival in 1999 and in Gothenburg, Sweden

[@WRS-xg2tf]

Take me back to my teenage years. Also i remember when MTV used to play music videos.

[@zephirothstryfe0713]

This is one of the most gorgeous songs ever made by R.E.M

[@voyt00s]

Michael Stipe is my favourite rapper

[@jacekwedroch2167]

agree

[@alexk3529]

i never thought of him as a rapper. Cool

[@eileenstubington8592]

Kill yr idols

[@Ryuhza]

Hey Hey Hey

[@olafwitte906]

Stipe on rememberance to Callas. Amazing, honourful.

[@jean-baptiste6479]

I am happy that REM is so underrated, I feel more connection with anybody who likes them.

[@Fatherjohn76]

REM top 5 without question. God I miss the four of them delivering this opaque magic

[@StoryCircle12]

Look up, what do you see? All of you and all of me Fluorescent and starry Some of them, they surprise The bus ride I went to write this 4 a.m. this letter Fields of poppies, little pearls All the boys and all the girls Sweet-toothed Each and every one a little scary I said your name I wore it like a badge of teenage film stars Hash bars, cherry mash and tinfoil tiaras Dreaming of Maria Callas Whoever she is This fame thing I don't get it I wrap my hand in plastic to try to look through it Maybelline eyes and girl-as-boy moves I can take you far This star thing I don't get it aluminum, it tastes like fear Adrenaline, it pulls us near (I'll take you over there) It tastes like fear (I'll take you over) Will you live to 83? Will you ever welcome me? Will you show me something that nobody else has seen? Smoke it, drink Here comes the flood Anything to thin the blood These corrosives do their magic slowly and sweet Phone, eat it, drink Just another chink Cuts and dents They catch the light Aluminium The weakest link I don't want to disappoint you I'm not here to anoint you I would lick your feet But is that the sickest move? I wear my own crown and sadness and sorrow And who'd have thought tomorrow could be so strange? My loss, and here we go again aluminum, it tastes like fear Adrenaline, it pulls us near (I'll take you over there) It tastes like fear It pulls us near (I'll take you over) Look up, what do you see? All of you and all of me Fluorescent and starry Some of them, they surprise I can't look it in the eyes Seconal, Spanish fly, absinthe, kerosene Cherry-flavored neck and collar I can smell the sorrow on your breath The sweat, the victory and sorrow The smell of fear I got it aluminum, it tastes like fear Adrenaline, it pulls us near (I'll take you over) Aluminum, it tastes like fear (take you there) Adrenaline, it pulls us near (I'll take you over) It tastes like fear (take you there) It pulls us near (I'll take you over) It tastes like fear (take you there) It pulls us near it tastes like fear (Tastes like fear) it pulls us near (Pulls us near) nearer, nearer (Over, over, over, over, over, over there) I'll take you there (oh) I'll take you there (there) I'll take you there (oh, over) I'll take you there (over, baby) I'll take you there (there) I'll take you there (there, baby, yeah)

[@of_the_how_or_why_of_me__t8685]

And this ... provokes in me a scream of all screams.. the scream that will make man and animals hair stand as a shiver to chills rolls over their bodies, that will feel as if it's going to burst out of my body if I don't open my mouth wider ... the emotions the will emit from that scream would resonate with its echo through the universe ... that's how it makes me feel.

[@powderedground78]

Some of the most incredible lyrics ever penned.

[@TriniGamerGirl7]

Thank you!

[@m.maclellan7147]

Ah. The melancholy of cities. The melancholy of getting older. The poets know. The artists weep. The homeless wander down the street......

[@mariella71114]

Thanks

[@frankiefuckles]

Listening this over 20 years later. Nothing short of a masterpiece.

[@danemiller6190]

I bought this as a single when I was too young to know anything about anything, but I remember thinking, "Oh, I think this is what people are trying to achieve when they talk about writing poetry."

[@Caltops78]

Very poetic song. I remember not understanding the lyrics but the music hooked me. I hadn’t even known it was about River Phoenix. Still a song I come back to on KZbin often. This song has one of the best comment sections

[@angieedwards3650]

River Phoenix. This road will never end ❤🌻

[@fedezy6922]

It probably goes all around the world

[@RednaZela]

This song has put me in a daze and given me chills multiple times. The last minute or so is so emotional. And I don't even know what emotion it is.

[@hipp0stratus]

Regret

[@TrippyKitty08]

I listened to this song all the time in high school. It's dreamy and mysterious…even knowing the backstory and "meaning" of the song…That dream like sensation can never be erased from this song. It always makes me think of cold rainy October mornings. Waiting for the bus. Thinking of loved ones that have passed away. Complex things that are really simple, and simple things that are really complex.

[@Lulustucru2393]

Beautifuly said !

[@someguy2381]

R.E.M. attracts the nicest types of people. :)

[@alexarias5717]

+some guy just that fact that you made that comment and were so happy about it really does show that R.E.M has the nicest fans

[@TheGhostfisherman]

very beautiful..

[@waterhead001]

I don't know the story of this song or it's meaning. I like your description.

[@AnthonyMoitzger-nw1id]

LOVE THIS SONG 🎵. REM with Patti Smith. What a great morning music. Peace ✌️ and joy.8888

[@Sakolas81]

So lucky i grow up musically in 90's ...

[@magzdilluh]

This was so haunting in 1996, still haunting today

[@Romalvx]

Patti's voice rising like an angel. Scorching, beautiful lyrics.

[@surajkrishna5434]

In 96 I was 15...this song was ephemeral, but never ending....stuck in a moment of evanescence....REM was the end and the beginning....everlasting melody......this was the endless vibe of everything that came before, after and has existed ever since....oh such bliss!

[@glennhorne6783]

2nd highest charting UK single. Underrated, as was the band!!!

[@bollocknaked4190]

Knowledge squire.

[@2degucitas]

Glenn Horne Never heard it played here in the USA. But then, my cities radio sucks.

[@TimQuinn-i9p]

They are one of the greatest bands ever, no question

[@jameshall2841]

The more times I listen to this, the more astonishing it sounds. Even after 25 years. And one of their best videos too. Just brilliance.

[@mollyhall2954]

Somewhere, Thom Yorke sang Patti Smith's part and it was lovely but to me there was just no replacing her voice. I remember when Stipe talked about how he felt about Patti Smith when he first heard her, and when she became a friend. When he went to hear her sing once, that's when he told Donald Trump to shut up, because he was talking and Patti was starting to sing. Trump got up and left. If only...

[@johnstanley708]

PATTI SMITHS VOICE SURELY MAKES THIS SONG ONE OF THE GREATEST EVER RECORDED

[@johnstanley708]

listen out for patti smiths voice it is truly magnificent

[@danpfd]

R.E.M. has written some of the most beautiful songs in music, and this is one of their best.... It's wonderful hearing Patti Smith's voice on this song, and seeing her in the video!

[@dirkrichter293]

She drives trough Prag...Czech...

[@phoenix8488]

Rest in heaven, River...

[@JohntheManc]

His wordsmithery is amazing!

[@YlliksenMummo]

Breezy autumn evening with sun warming my 16 year old face as I try to figure everything out, walking down the empty country road... We come a long way since then, but the memories remain strong as ever. Thanks Michael and the band for everything you did for me back in the day. Forever grateful.

[@NicHills]

They paint a picture with words and sounds that describes how I feel better than I ever could.

[@paulopenshaw9115]

Nic & Andrea Hills me too

[@LuaBloe]

Very nicely put :) I love the way they make words sound and dance. It's also a delight to sing along ;)

[@TheDerekclarkmep]

Beautiful

[@jasonbarbush4991]

as for me i have black and blue ink

[@Connibolognese]

At a loss for words to describe... R.E.M. just says how feel in my deepest soul. A safe place for my soul. That music helped me recover from the suicide of my first love. At was there when no words could help.

[@ms.venable5200]

This is one of my top favorite R.E.M. songs. It is still as cool as the day it was released. The lyrics, music, and those vocals work a magnificent magic. Perfect collaboration. I will always love this band:)

[@veshlb]

I agree completely

[@PYSCOPOMP]

Lena Lovee' Words of magic. Cheers.

[@ms.venable5200]

PYSCOPOMP Thank You. :)

[@PYSCOPOMP]

Lena Lovee' leaving new york is second magic. Never easy. :)

[@ms.venable5200]

PYSCOPOMP I can only imagine. I've often wanted to experience NYC. At least study art there.

[@danielholmes-nj5nq]

New Adventures... is without doubt one of the best albums I've ever heard.

[@jackjude]

The strangest, most enigmatic UK No 1.

[@lukesters7234]

Album not single

[@ripelivejam]

some of stipe's most poignant and poetic work. their best album, too.

[@tomaszmikuszewski4990]

To z pewnością najlepszy zespół rockowy na świecie oby ciągle , nagrywali , tak , jak , dalej , każdą , płytę , w , innym klimacie .

[@juliocesargamboasalazar1976]

The pride of USA is REM !

[@marialauratobz2072]

se mi chi dessero la canzone preferita di sempre, direi questa. Ha un potere evocativo, una carica di malinconia struggente. L'unica che mi riporta agli anni '90 al concerto Rem a Bologna, nostalgia incolmabile.

[@madeco_39]

Fantastico. 💚

[@mattzinicola7460]

I remember standing in line until midnight on the release date of this album... Bringing it back to my college apt off-campus, and immediately looping it on pirate FM airwaves for 24 hours to let it be heard... This was my favorite track from that album. Haunting. Truly great times.

[@josepholiva5108]

I appreciate this song for the boundaries it seems to break through in my head. Whenever I hear this song I feel less I insecure about myself because the lyrics are so naked revealing. This kind of music is a creative masterpiece.

[@sonofaseawarrior]

I've listened to this song close to 200 times since it dropped. ☘️ EVERYTIME it gives me goosebumps! 😲 Masterpiece. 👌

[@patrickmullen516]

Are you a Murphy? I believe that is Gaelic for "sea battler."

[@bobdanger-palmer4430]

The perfect song

[@mmcguire80]

One of the greatest songs ever written

[@1michelemichele1]

I love how R.E.M.'s lyrics shift & change over the years, but I can't believe that it took almost 25 years for me to realize that Patti's vocalizing the siren song of addiction's promise of relief. I'm sitting here kind of shocked right now -- this struck me, I dunno, half an hour ago? Age hasn't calfified my brain yet, glee!

[@paulmaxwell-walters8861]

A great song from probably REM's most underrated album.

[@keithjones6023]

Paul Walters, not underrated by me, this is my favourite REM album 👌

[@georgevanek6093]

My favourite REM album, too🙂

[@Alan-gi2ku]

One of my favorites.

[@MehdiElharti]

I remember the day this song came out.... just fell in love with it. But now hardly anyone knows it :( I think it's one of REM's top 3 songs.

[@leslielivengood8607]

I saw these guys twice in my high school days. I will always love Michael Mike Peter and Bill. All equally talented

[@amjh4lah809]

Man. Nostalgic vibes. First R.E.M. single i bought being a new fan and bought New Adventures In Hi-Fi as it came out new, having just finally becoming a fan❤

[@johansterk354]

These lyrics should be given an award, what a terribly underrated song, great singing, mysterious Patti Smith, ... melancholy, maudlin moods, narrating voices ... Maybelline eyes and girl-as-boy moves I can take you far this star thing, I don't get it Maria Callas, whoever she is ...

[@veraargentieri733]

New avventure in hi fi è stato un disco spaziale non finivo mai di ascoltarlo ...si era consumato il CD e dovetti ricomprarlo...capolavoro

[@MaidNoMore]

Didn’t appreciate this song at the time, love it now.

[@keithjones6023]

A lot of great songs take time to grow on you.

[@shawnkay8747]

This song is hauntingly beautiful. It's gotten me through some sad times.

[@Stripeyperch]

In a fast moving world there is nothing quite like an rem album for reflecting on life.

[@feliperubilar7653]

I´m from Chile, in South America. This is one of the most wonderful songs that i´ve ever ear