Maps of Music

Out of Time (1991)

Where the lyrics of Out of Time take you, and where it was really made.

R.E.M.'s first UK and US No. 1 album was recorded in studios scattered across New York and Georgia, and the band did not tour to promote it.

Key places

Bearsville Studios, Woodstock (1991)

Recording site Bearsville Studios — The album's recording credits list Bearsville Studios in Woodstock, New York, as one place where the album was recorded. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

John Keane Studios, Athens (1991)

Recording site John Keane Studios — The album's recording credits list John Keane Studios as one of the studios used, in Athens, Georgia. The pin marks the city center. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Soundscape Studios, Atlanta (1991)

Recording site DARP Studios (Atlanta) — The strings were performed at Soundscape Studios in Atlanta, Georgia, in October 1990, and the credits list it as a recording location. The pin marks the city center. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Album story

Overview

• Out of Time: seventh studio album by American alternative rock band R.E.M.
• Released 12 March 1991 by Warner Bros. Records
• Combines pop, folk, and classical elements heard on the previous album Green
• Adds a new concentration on country elements, which continued on Automatic for the People (1992)
• Guest appearances by KRS-One and Kate Pierson of The B-52's
• Preceded by "Losing My Religion", which became R.E.M.'s biggest US hit
• Gave the band their first US and UK No. 1 album
• No tour to support the release; only occasional TV and festival appearances

Background

• Recorded almost two years after Green (1988)
• Recording sessions held between September and October 1990
• In Germany it is the band's best-selling album, with more than 1,250,000 copies sold (5× gold)
• The 25th anniversary edition was remastered and released through Concord Records on 18 November 2016

Recording

• Tracks recorded at Bearsville Studios (Woodstock, New York) and John Keane Studios (Athens, Georgia)
• Strings arranged by Mark Bingham and performed at Soundscape Studios in Atlanta, Georgia, in October 1990
• Final mix done at Paisley Park Studios, Chanhassen, Minnesota
• Mastered at Precision Mastering, Los Angeles
• Producer and engineer: Scott Litt

Cover

• Artwork pictures by Ben Katchor: "Marble Steps" and "Passerby"
• Band photograph by Frank Ockenfels
• Song titles hand-lettered by Ed Rogers

Sources: en.wikipedia.org · www.discogs.com · es.wikipedia.org · fr.wikipedia.org

Tracklist

Sources: musicbrainz.org

Artist

Formation

• American rock band formed in Athens, Georgia, in 1980 by Bill Berry, Peter Buck, Mike Mills, and Michael Stipe, all University of Georgia students
• Released the single "Radio Free Europe" in 1981 on the independent label Hib-Tone
• Signed with I.R.S. Records in 1982

Members

• Michael Stipe (lead vocals), Peter Buck (guitar), Mike Mills (bass, vocals), Bill Berry (drums) until 1997
• Bill Rieflin served as touring drummer from 2003 until his death in 2020

Career

• Breakthrough hit "The One I Love" in 1987 from Document; signed with Warner Bros. in 1988
• Out of Time (1991) and Automatic for the People (1992) made them leaders of alternative rock
• Continued as a trio after Berry left in 1997
• Broke up in 2011 after selling more than 90 million albums worldwide
• Inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2007 and the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2024

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Reception

At release

• Greg Kot of the Chicago Tribune called it "R.E.M.'s most consistent effort since Reckoning"
• David Browne of Entertainment Weekly felt it fell short of the band's earlier standards
• Richard Cromelin of the Los Angeles Times noted it diverged from the sound of Green
• Mark Cooper of Q described it as a "brooding departure" at their most reflective
• Terry Staunton of NME highlighted the eclecticism, from "Shiny Happy People" to "Country Feedback"
• Parke Puterbaugh of Rolling Stone wrote that R.E.M. had branched out and consolidated their strengths at once
• David Cavanagh of Select labeled it the band's "finest album to date"

Reappraisal

• Voted number 49 in Colin Larkin's All Time Top 1000 Albums (2000)
• Featured in Time magazine's 2006 list of the "All-Time 100 Albums"
• 25th anniversary re-release scored 80 out of 100 on Metacritic from nine critic reviews
• Won the Q Award for Best Album of 1991

Records

• Topped album sales charts in the US and UK
• 109 weeks on US album charts, with two separate spells at No. 1
• 183 weeks on British charts, including one week at No. 1
• More than 4.5 million copies sold in the US; more than 18 million worldwide
• Certified 4× Platinum by the RIAA
• Three Grammy Awards in 1992, including Best Alternative Music Album

Sources: en.wikipedia.org · pt.wikipedia.org

Trivia

• The CD longbox packaging carried a petition for Rock the Vote, approached by Warner Bros. executive Jeff Gold with Jeff Ayeroff.
• In Germany the album is the band's best-selling release, with more than 1,250,000 copies sold.
• Spain held a contest for a limited-edition cover, and the winner was an abstract oil painting.
• "Shiny Happy People" was the band's first collaboration with Kate Pierson of the B-52's.
• "Losing My Religion" was written by Stipe as a song that is not literally about religion, and its title is a Southern expression.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org · es.wikipedia.org

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