REM

Green - Warner Brothers 1988

Tracks: 1. Pop Song 89 / 2. Get Up / 3. You Are The Everything / 4. Stand / 5. World Leader Pretend / 6. The Wrong Child / 7. Orange Crush / 8. Turn You Inside-Out / 9. Hairshirt / 10. I Remember California

Comments:

"Green" from 1988 was R.E.M.'s first album for Warner Brothers after the group had left I.R.S. I remember feeling, when I first heard the album that the group had changed style and sound towards a more hard-hitting style, less country-inspired.

You usually pay a lot of attention to opening songs and "Pop Song 89" is a perfect opener, with its fine catchy guitar riff and good melody - a very solid rocker and a keytrack on this album. The next track "Get Up" is even heavier, but not a particularly memorable track. The acoustic melodic ballad "You Are Everything" with i.a. mandolin points towards upcoming albums such as "Out of Time" and "Automatic for the People", but is not in itself a big number. "Stand", which was the second single from "Green" is another solid rocker - but not much more.

"World Leader Pretend" is the next highlight. Very much in the same vein as classics such as "Losing My Religion" and "Man of the World" – might probably have done well as a single. "The Wrong Child" is a quiet and somewhat anonymous song. "Orange Crush" was the first single taken from the album, and a really sensible choice as the number went to number one in several places. Like "Pop Song 89" catchy with a great riff. Then the album fades a bit with the two slightly boring "Turn You Inside Out" and "Hairshirt" before rounding off with the solid "I Remember California"

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