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Automatic for the People

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Automatic for the People is the eighth album by the American alternative rock band R.E.M., released in 1992. The album was a critical and commercial success, with three top 40 hits in the United States and UK. It was the band's first widespread popular album in the UK - placing at number 1 for four non-consecutive weeks (1992 and 1993) - and on the album charts for 179 weeks.[1] In America it reached number 2 and remained on the album charts for 75 weeks.[2]

Details

Automatic for the People continues the folk/country rock/classical pop elements of Green and Out of Time but with fewer pop elements and a generally more sombre tone overall. U2's Bono called it 'the greatest country record never made.'[3]

The album name refers to the motto of Athens, Georgia eatery "Weaver D's Delicious Fine Foods." The photograph on the front cover is not related to the restaurant: it shows a star ornament that was part of the sign for the Sinbad Motel on Biscayne Boulevard in Miami, near Criteria Studios, where the bulk of the album was recorded. The motel is still there, but the star is gone. The slanted support where it was once attached is still there on the roof of the Sinbad. The interior jacket shows a two - three story circular platform that was the sign for the old Bon Aire Motel on the former Motel Row on Miami Beach. The Bon Aire and other motel row establishments have mostly been demolished for new high rise condominiums. The album was also recorded in New Orleans.

Arriving on the heels of the previous year's breakthrough album, Out of Time, Automatic for the People entered the U.S. charts at #2, selling over four million copies, and spent several weeks at #1 in the United Kingdom as well. Despite not having toured after the release of Out of Time, R.E.M. again declined to tour in support of this album. In the UK, it was the second-best selling album of 1993 behind only Meat Loaf's comeback album Bat Out of Hell II.

Automatic for the People had six singles released, tied with Monster for the most from any R.E.M. album. Many of Automatic for the People's songs proved to be very popular: "Drive," "The Sidewinder Sleeps Tonite," "Everybody Hurts," "Nightswimming," "Find the River," and the Andy Kaufman tribute "Man on the Moon", which would become the title of the comedian's 1999 biographical movie starring Jim Carrey. "Drive," the album's opening track and first single, was not included on the band's hits collection In Time: The Best of R.E.M. 1988-2003, nor was final single (and final track) "Find the River." However, four tracks from Automatic for the People were included, more songs than from any of their other albums.

John Paul Jones, the bassist of Led Zeppelin, in his string arrangement role, scored the strings for "Drive," "The Sidewinder Sleeps Tonite," "Everybody Hurts" and "Nightswimming."

In 2005, Warner Bros. Records issued a two-disc edition of Automatic for the People which includes a CD, a DVD-Audio disc containing a 5.1-channel surround sound mix of the album done by Elliot Scheiner, and the original CD booklet with expanded liner notes.

Critical acclaim

Mostly acoustic and typified by its dark lyrics (many of which ruminate on mortality, death and those departed), Automatic for the People is generally considered to be among R.E.M.'s best albums, and one of the finest popular music releases of the 1990s. It was nominated for Album of the Year at the Grammy Awards of 1993.

In 1997 Automatic for the People was named the 18th greatest album of all time in a 'Music of the Millennium' poll conducted by HMV, Channel 4, The Guardian and Classic FM. In 2006, Q magazine readers placed it at number 7. In 2003, the album was ranked number 247 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time.

Packaging and artwork

The front cover of the album shows a greyed-out photograph of a Miami motel sign placed over an embossed image, which is also included inside the album's booklet distorted on a white background. The back cover features a photograph of an old building with the track listing written over at the same angle that the building is viewed from. Other photographs, taken by Anton Corbijn, feature the band members on a beach.

Track listing

All songs written by Bill Berry, Peter Buck, Mike Mills and Michael Stipe.

  1. "Drive" – 4:31
  2. "Try Not to Breathe" – 3:50
  3. "The Sidewinder Sleeps Tonite" – 4:06
  4. "Everybody Hurts" – 5:17
  5. "New Orleans Instrumental No.1" – 2:13
  6. "Sweetness Follows" – 4:19
  7. "Monty Got a Raw Deal" – 3:17
  8. "Ignoreland" – 4:24
  9. "Star Me Kitten" – 3:15
  10. "Man on the Moon" – 5:13
  11. "Nightswimming" – 4:16
  12. "Find the River" – 3:50

Personnel

Additional personnel

All of the musicians below play on tracks 1, 3, 4 & 11

  • George Hanson – conductor
  • Knox Chandler – cello
  • Kathleen Kee – cello
  • Daniel Laufer – cello
  • Elizabeth Murphy – cello
  • Denise Berginson-Smith – violin
  • Lonnie Ditzen – violin
  • Patti Gouvas – violin
  • Sandy Salzinger – violin
  • Sou-Chun Su – violin
  • Judy Taylor – violin
  • Paul Murphy – viola (lead)
  • Reid Harris – viola
  • Heidi Nitchie – viola
  • Deborah Workman – oboe

Technical personnel

  • Scott Litt – producer, mixing engineer
  • Clif Norrell – recording engineer, mixing engineer
  • George Cowan – second engineer (Bearsville)
  • Andrew Roshberg – second engineer (Miami)
  • John Keane – recording engineer (Athens)
  • Mark Howard – second engineer (New Orleans)
  • Ted Malia – second engineer (Atlanta)
  • Ed Brooks – second engineer (Seattle)
  • Tod Lemkuhl – second engineer (Seattle)
  • Stephen Marcussen – mastering engineer (Precision Mastering)
  • Mark "Microwave" Mytrowitz – technical assistance

Charts

Album
Year Chart Peak
Position
1992 Billboard 200 2 [2]
1992 UK Album Chart 1 [1]
Singles
Year Song Chart Peak
Position
1992 "Drive" Billboard Modern Rock Tracks 1 [4]
1992 "Drive" Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks 2 [4]
1992 "Drive" Billboard Top 40 Mainstream 23 [4]
1992 "Drive" Billboard Hot 100 28 [4]
1992 "Drive" UK Singles Charts 11 [1]
1992 "Ignoreland" Billboard Modern Rock Tracks 5 [4]
1992 "Ignoreland" Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks 4 [4]
1992 "The Sidewinder Sleeps Tonite" Billboard Modern Rock Tracks 24 [4]
1992 "The Sidewinder Sleeps Tonite" Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks 28 [4]
1992 "The Sidewinder Sleeps Tonite" UK Singles Charts 17 [1]
1993 "Everybody Hurts" Billboard Modern Rock Tracks 21 [4]
1993 "Everybody Hurts" Billboard Top 40 Mainstream 13 [4]
1993 "Everybody Hurts" Billboard Hot 100 29 [4]
1993 "Everybody Hurts" UK Singles Charts 6 [1]
1993 "Man on the Moon" Billboard Modern Rock Tracks 2 [4]
1993 "Man on the Moon" Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks 4 [4]
1993 "Man on the Moon" Billboard Top 40 Mainstream 9 [4]
1993 "Man on the Moon" Billboard Hot 100 30 [4]
1993 "Find the River" UK Singles Chart 54 [4]

Certifications

Organization Level Date
BPI – UK Gold October 1, 1992 (1992-10-01) [5]
BPI – UK Platinum November 1, 1992 (1992-11-01) [5]
CRIA – Canada Gold November 6, 1992 (1992-11-06) [6]
CRIA – Canada Platinum November 6, 1992 (1992-11-06) [6]
RIAA – U.S. Gold December 17, 1992 (1992-12-17) [7]
RIAA – U.S. Platinum December 17, 1992 (1992-12-17) [7]
RIAA – U.S. 2 X Platinum December 17, 1992 (1992-12-17) [7]
RIAA – U.S. 3 X Platinum November 16, 1993 (1993-11-16) [7]
BPI – UK 2 X Platinum January 1, 1993 (1993-01-01) [5]
CRIA – Canada 2 X Platinum January 19, 1993 (1993-01-19) [6]
BPI – UK 3 X Platinum August 1, 1993 (1993-08-01) [5]
BPI – UK 4 X Platinum August 1, 1993 (1993-08-01) [5]
BPI – UK 5 X Platinum January 1, 1994 (1994-01-01) [5]
RIAA – U.S. 4 X Platinum February 9, 1995 (1995-02-09) [7]
BPI – UK 6 X Platinum March 1, 1995 (1995-03-01) [5]
CRIA – Canada 7 X Platinum September 29, 2003 (2003-09-29) [6]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e "UK Top 40 Hit Database". Retrieved 2008-05-31.
  2. ^ a b "allmusic (((Automatic for the People > Charts & Awards > Billboard Albums)))". Retrieved 2006-03-14.
  3. ^ Handler, Shane, R.E.M. Live, Glide Magazine.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p "allmusic (((Automatic for the People > Charts & Awards > Billboard Singles)))". Retrieved 2006-03-14.
  5. ^ a b c d e f g "BPI Certified Awards". Retrieved 2008-05-31.
  6. ^ a b c d "CRIA Certifications". Retrieved 2008-05-31.
  7. ^ a b c d e "RIAA Gold and Platinum". Retrieved 2006-03-20.
Preceded by UK number one album
October 10, 1992 – October 16, 1992
April 24, 1993 – April 30, 1993
May 8, 1993 – May 14, 1993
May 22, 1993 – May 28, 1993 		Succeeded by
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