Murmur (album)

R.E.M. started preparing for their debut album in December 1982. I.R.S. paired R.E.M. with producer Stephen Hague, who had a higher profile than the band's previous producer Mitch Easter.Buckley, p. 71 Hague's emphasis on technical perfection did not suit the band; the producer made the group perform multiple takes of the song "Catapult", which demoralized drummer Bill Berry. Hague then took the completed track to Syncro Sound studios in Boston and added keyboard parts without the band's permission and to their dismay.Black, p. 72 Unsatisfied, the band members asked the label to let them record with Easter.Buckley, p. 72 I.R.S. agreed to a "tryout" session, allowing the band to travel to North Carolina and record the song "Pilgrimage" with Easter and producing partner Don Dixon. After hearing the track, I.R.S. permitted the group to record the album with Dixon and Easter.Buckley, p. 78

On January 6, 1983, R.E.M. entered Reflection Studios in Charlotte, North Carolina, to begin recording sessions with Easter and Dixon. Much of the band's material for the album had been tested on preceding tours. Because of their bad experience with Hague, the band recorded the album via a process of negation, refusing to incorporate rock music clichés such as guitar solos or then-popular synthesizers to give it a timeless feel. Berry specifically was resistant to "odd" musical suggestions, insisting that his drums be recorded in a drummer's booth, a practice that was antiquated at the time.Buckley, p. 79 Dixon and Easter took a hands-off approach to much of the recording process. The pair would only fix up a vocal track or ask lead singer Michael Stipe to re-record a vocal if it was very substandard.Buckley, p. 89 "Being both musicians, our approach was to leave as little imprint as possible," Dixon recalled in 1994. "We felt like our job was to, as cheaply as possible, reproduce what appeared to be just them playing live."{{Cite book |last=Hogan |first=Peter |title=The Complete Guide to the Music of R.E.M. |publisher=Omnibus Press |year=1995 |isbn=0-7119-4901-8 |pages=3}}

Due to Buck's Fender Twin Reverb amplifier being "dead", every song except 'Pilgrimage' instead featured Easter's Ampeg Gemini II. Mills's Dan Armstrong bass guitar was set aside in favor of a Rickenbacker 4001 owned by Easter's girlfriend.{{Cite web |author1=Rod Brakes |date=2021-06-03 |title=Producer Mitch Easter shares the inside story of R.E.M.'s early recording sessions: "It was glorious. They rehearsed a lot just because they liked to play together" |url=https://www.musicradar.com/news/Mitch-Easter-REM-RadioFreeEurope |access-date=2023-03-22 |website=MusicRadar}}

In a rare instance of R.E.M. co-writing, Stipe asked friend Neil Bogan to contribute lyrics to "West of the Fields".{{cite AV media notes |title=Murmur |date=April 12, 1983 |author=R.E.M. |publisher=I.R.S. Records |type=liner notes}}

Recording was completed on February 23, 1983.{{Cn|date=April 2025}}

On Murmur, R.E.M.'s sound is "firmly" rooted in American folk-rock, post-punk, and garage rock. According to Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic, the band abandoned the "garagey jangle pop" of their previous releases, instead opting for "a strangely subdued variation of their trademark sound." He explained, "Heightening the enigmatic tendencies of Chronic Town by de-emphasizing the backbeat and accentuating the ambience of the ringing guitar, R.E.M. created a distinctive sound for the album -- one that sounds eerily timeless. [...] Murmur sounds as if it appeared out of nowhere, without any ties to the past, present, or future. [...] The songs on Murmur sound as if they've existed forever, yet they subvert folk and pop conventions by taking unpredictable twists and turns into melodic, evocative territory." The album's production has been described as "atmospheric." The album also incorporates piano.

R.E.M. guitarist Peter Buck took stylistic cues from the Byrds, Television, and the Feelies. Vocalist Michael Stipe has been said to have "elevated mumbled vocals to an art form." The album's rhythm section is heavily influenced by British post-punk, though with less of the funk influence associated with the style.{{cite book |last1=Earles |first1=Andrew |title=Gimme Indie Rock: 500 Essential American Underground Rock Albums 1981-1996 |publisher=Voyageur Press |year=2014 |page=256}}

File:Athens Train Trestle 2.jpg

The front cover features an image of a large quantity of the noxious weed kudzu, which grows so rapidly that it overtakes the landscape and kills other plants by completely shading them. The trestle featured on the back cover of the original vinyl LP release, originally part of the Georgia Railroad line into downtown Athens, has become a local landmark. Plans to demolish the trestle, now commonly referred to as the "Murmur Trestle", were met with public outcry. On October 2, 2000, the Athens-Clarke County Mayor and Commission voted to save the trestle.{{cite web |url=http://www.athensclarkecounty.com/new/trestle.htm |title=Murmur Trestle Information |access-date=2005-04-27 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20010221050016/http://www.athensclarkecounty.com/new/trestle.htm |archive-date=February 21, 2001 }}, Athens-Clarke County Online. Retrieved August 17, 2006. In 2012, the local government said it cannot afford to keep it and declared in 2016 that it would likely come down.{{cite web |url=http://www.onlineathens.com/mobile/2016-07-09/murmur-trestle-likely-come-down-someday-commissioner-says |title='Murmur' trestle likely to come down someday, commissioner says |last=Thompson |first=Jim |date=July 9, 2016 |work=Athens Online}} Later that year, the Athens-Clarke County Commission suggested that a trail tax could fund its existence.{{cite web |url=http://www.onlineathens.com/mobile/2016-08-18/transportation-tax-could-fund-work-murmur-trestle-athens |title=Transportation tax could fund work at 'Murmur' trestle in Athens |last=Thompson |first=Jim |date=August 18, 2016 |work=Athens Online}} The Murmur Trestle was approved for demolition in 2019, and work began in 2020 to destroy it. The replacement bridge, part of the Firefly Trail, is composed of three sections: a replica of the original wooden trestle design and two sections of new weathered steel arches.{{cite web |url=https://eu.onlineathens.com/story/news/local/2021/07/09/removal-athens-trestle-made-famous-r-e-m-album-murmur-begins/7912865002/ |title=Athens' 'Murmur Trestle' being removed, replaced as part of Firefly Trail construction |last=Allen |first=Stephanie |date=July 9, 2021 |work=Athens Online}} The bridge was opened to the public in April 2023.{{cite web | url=https://www.accgov.com/8843/Sub-Project-4-Firefly-Trail--Trail-Creek | title=Sub-Project 4: Firefly Trail - Trail Creek Crossing | Athens-Clarke County, GA - Official Website }}

Copies of the initial tape edition (catalogue number CS 70604) list a cover of "There She Goes Again" by the Velvet Underground as the final track, but it is not present. This mistake was fixed with subsequent printings. The track was rumored to be intended for Murmur, but removed so that all the tracks would be original and the group would not have to take a royalty cut.{{citation needed|date=May 2017}} The band later distanced itself from this rumor.{{cite web |url=https://parklifedc.com/2024/02/16/live-review-michael-shannon-and-jason-narducy-play-rems-murmur-black-cat-2-10-24/ |title=Live Review: Michael Shannon and Jason Narducy Play REM's Murmur @ Black Cat — 2/10/24 |work=Parklife DC |date=February 16, 2024 |last=Satzberg |first=Steve}} The cover was included as a B-side to the I.R.S. issue of "Radio Free Europe" instead.{{Cite book |last=Hogan |first=Peter |title=The Complete Guide to the Music of R.E.M. |publisher=Omnibus Press |year=1995 |isbn=0-7119-4901-8 |pages=7}}

{{Music ratings

| rev1 = AllMusic

| rev1score = {{Rating|5|5}}{{cite web |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/murmur-mw0000650666 |title=Murmur – R.E.M. |publisher=AllMusic |access-date=August 30, 2015 |last=Erlewine |first=Stephen Thomas}}

| rev2 = Blender

| rev2score = {{Rating|5|5}}{{cite magazine |title=R.E.M. |magazine=Blender |volume=7 |issue=2 |date=March 2008 |last=Dolan |first=Jon |pages=106–107}}

| rev3 = Chicago Tribune

| rev3score = {{Rating|4|4}}{{cite news |url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-1991-03-24-9101260490-story.html |title=Traveling Through The Years With R.E.M. |newspaper=Chicago Tribune |date=March 24, 1991 |access-date=December 10, 2021 |last=Kot |first=Greg |author-link=Greg Kot}}

| rev4 = Entertainment Weekly

| rev4score = A{{cite magazine |url=https://ew.com/article/1991/03/22/rem-discography/ |title=An R.E.M. discography |magazine=Entertainment Weekly |date=March 22, 1991 |access-date=August 30, 2015 |last=Browne |first=David |author-link=David Browne (journalist)}}

| rev5 = Pitchfork

| rev5score = 10/10{{cite web |url=https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/12464-murmur-deluxe-edition/ |title=R.E.M.: Murmur [Deluxe Edition] |website=Pitchfork |date=November 24, 2008 |access-date=August 30, 2015 |last=Deusner |first=Stephen M. |author-link=Stephen Deusner}}

| rev6 = Q

| rev6score = {{Rating|5|5}}{{cite magazine |title=R.E.M.: Murmur |magazine=Q |issue=271 |date=February 2009 |last=Lynskey |first=Dorian |page=120}}

| rev7 = Rolling Stone

| rev7score = {{Rating|4|5}}{{cite magazine |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-album-reviews/murmur-104268/ |title=Murmur |magazine=Rolling Stone |date=May 26, 1983 |access-date=December 10, 2021 |last=Pond |first=Steve}}

| rev8 = The Rolling Stone Album Guide

| rev8score = {{Rating|5|5}}{{cite book |chapter=R.E.M. |last=Nawrocki |first=Tom |title=The New Rolling Stone Album Guide |title-link=The Rolling Stone Album Guide |editor1-last=Brackett |editor1-first=Nathan |editor1-link=Nathan Brackett |editor2-last=Hoard |editor2-first=Christian |editor2-link=Christian Hoard |publisher=Simon & Schuster |edition=4th |year=2004 |isbn=0-7432-0169-8 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/newrollingstonea00brac/page/685 685–687]}}

| rev9 = Uncut

| rev9score = {{Rating|5|5}}{{cite magazine |url=http://www.uncut.co.uk/music/rem/reviews/12660 |title=Album review: R.E.M. – Murmur |magazine=Uncut |date=January 12, 2009 |access-date=December 10, 2021 |last=Mueller |first=Andrew |author-link=Andrew Mueller |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101206053838/http://www.uncut.co.uk/music/rem/reviews/12660 |archive-date=December 6, 2010 |url-status=dead}}

| rev10 = The Village Voice

| rev10score = A−{{cite news |url=https://robertchristgau.com/xg/cg/cgv5-83.php |title=Christgau's Consumer Guide |newspaper=The Village Voice |date=May 31, 1983 |access-date=August 30, 2015 |last=Christgau |first=Robert |author-link=Robert Christgau}}

}}

Murmur was released in April 1983. The record reached number 36 on the Billboard album chart.Buckley, p. 357–358 A re-recorded version of "Radio Free Europe" was the album's lead single and reached number 78 on the Billboard singles chart that year. Despite the acclaim awarded the album, by the end of 1983 Murmur had only sold about 200,000 copies, which I.R.S.'s Jay Boberg felt was below expectations.Buckley, p. 95 Murmur was eventually certified gold (500,000 units shipped) by the Recording Industry Association of America in 1991.[https://www.riaa.com/goldandplatinumdata.php?table=SEARCH Search for R.E.M.: Gold and Platinum data.] RIAA.com. Retrieved on May 12, 2008.

The album drew substantial critical acclaim. Rolling Stone called it "epochal"{{cite web |title=The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time |date=February 16, 2024 |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-lists/best-songs-of-all-time-1224767/r-e-m-radio-free-europe-2-1225164/ |work=Rolling Stone |accessdate=March 7, 2025}} and gave the album four out of five stars. Reviewer Steve Pond felt the album fulfilled the promise the band showed on Chronic Town. He wrote, "Murmur is the record on which [R.E.M.] trade that potential for results: an intelligent, enigmatic, deeply involving album, it reveals a depth and cohesiveness to R.E.M. that the EP could only suggest." He concluded, "R.E.M. is clearly the important Athens band." Jonathan Gregg of Record described Murmur as "a splendid little film noir of an album, austere but rich in implication." He particularly praised the band's distinctive "twitchy, restless dance beat" and the incomprehensibility of the album's meaning, noting that Stipe's already enigmatic lyrics are often hard to make out due to being sung with a deliberate slur, lost in a muddy mix, and/or drowned out by the instrumental work, resulting in an impressive sense of meaning even as the meaning itself is not understood.{{cite journal|last=Gregg|first=Jonathan |title=Murmur review|journal=Record|date=June 1983|volume=2 |issue=8|page=22}} It was Rolling Stone's Best Album of 1983, beating Michael Jackson's Thriller, The Police's Synchronicity and U2's War. Buck noted in 2002 that I.R.S. was "mind-boggled" by the album's positive reviews, especially in the British press, since R.E.M. had not yet toured that country.Buckley, p. 77–78

A 2023 listing of the best debut albums by Paste included Murmur at sixth place, stating that "the way Buck’s guitar and Mike Mills’ bass busily bounced around otherwise simple choruses created something entirely new".{{Cite magazine |department=Music > Lists > Debut Albums |magazine=Paste |date=2023-11-06 |accessdate=2023-11-12 |url=https://www.pastemagazine.com/music/debut-albums/100-greatest-debut-albums-of-all-time-2 |title=The 100 Greatest Debut Albums of All Time}}

Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic gave the album a perfect score, and wrote: "R.E.M. may have made albums as good as Murmur in the years following its release, but they never again made anything that sounded quite like it." Music journalist Andrew Earles highlighted the tracks "Laughing" and "Sitting Still" in his book Gimme Indie Rock, calling them "required listening for absolutely any fan of American underground rock".

Since its release, Murmur has featured heavily in various "must have" lists compiled by the music media. In 1989, it was rated number eight on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 100 greatest albums of the 1980s.{{cite web|url=http://www.rocklistmusic.co.uk/rstone.html |title=Rocklist.net Rolling Stone Lists - Main Page |publisher=Rocklistmusic.co.uk |date=2002-10-17 |access-date=2012-03-02}} In 2003, the TV network VH1 named Murmur the 92nd greatest album of all time.{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=pRi-4Vmh_9QC |title=VH1: 100 greatest albums |date=2003 |publisher=Pocket Books |isbn=978-0-7434-4876-5 |editor-last=Hoye |editor-first=Jacob |location=New York |page=x}} Some of the more prominent of these lists to feature Murmur are shown below. The album was also included in the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die.{{cite book|first=Gareth|last=Thompson|editor-first=Robert|editor-last=Dimery|chapter=R.E.M.: Murmur|title=1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die|title-link=1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die|publisher=Universe Publishing|year=2006|isbn=978-0-7893-1371-3|page=[https://archive.org/details/1001AlbumsYouMustHearBeforeYouDie/page/n251/mode/1up 505]}}

All songs written by Bill Berry, Peter Buck, Mike Mills and Michael Stipe, except "West of the Fields" by Berry, Buck, Mills, Stipe and Neil Bogan.

Side one

1. "Radio Free Europe" – 4:06
2. "Pilgrimage" – 4:30
3. "Laughing" – 3:57
4. "Talk About the Passion" – 3:23
5. "Moral Kiosk" – 3:31
6. "Perfect Circle" – 3:29

Side two

1. "Catapult" – 3:55
2. "Sitting Still" – 3:17
3. "9–9" – 3:03
4. "Shaking Through" – 4:30
5. "We Walk" – 3:02
6. "West of the Fields"  – 3:17

R.E.M.

• Bill Berry – drums, backing vocals, percussion, piano on "Perfect Circle"{{Cite web |url= https://tapeop.com/interviews/9/don-dixon-2/ |title= Don Dixon, part II: REM, The Smithereens, and More |website=Tape Op}}
• Peter Buck – electric and acoustic guitars
• Mike Mills – bass guitar, backing vocals, piano,Niimi, p. 27 organ, acoustic guitar, vibraphone on "Pilgrimage"REM: Perfect Circle, Tony Fletcher, Omnibus Press (p 85–86)
• Michael Stipe – lead vocals

Production and additional musicians

• Greg Calbi – mastering at Sterling Sound, New York City
• Don Dixon – co-producer, additional acoustic guitars, bass guitar on "Perfect Circle"
• Mitch Easter – co-producer, additional acoustic guitars, backwards guitar on "Perfect Circle"
• Carl Grasso – art design
• Ann Kinney – art design
• Sandra Lee Phipps – photography and art design

Singles

Murmur was bundled together with Chronic Town and Reckoning in the United Kingdom as The Originals in 1993.

On November 25, 2008, I.R.S. Records, A&M, and Universal Music released a 25th anniversary edition two-disc reissue of Murmur. Disc one features the standard 12-track album, digitally remastered, and disc two contains a previously unreleased live concert the band played at Larry's Hideaway in Toronto on July 9, 1983. This set was recorded by Blair Packham of the Jitters.{{Cite web|url=https://www.torontomike.com/2022/05/blair-packham-toronto-miked-podcast-episode-1053/|title=Blair Packham: Toronto Mike'd Podcast Episode 1053|website=TorontoMike.com|date=20 May 2022}}

In addition to Murmur songs, the set includes tunes from the Chronic Town EP, a Velvet Underground cover, and early versions of songs from Reckoning and Lifes Rich Pageant.{{Cite web|url=https://pitchfork.com/news/33766-rem-announce-murmur-deluxe-edition/|title=R.E.M. Announce Murmur Deluxe Edition|website=Pitchfork|date=16 October 2008|access-date=May 21, 2020}} The release also includes a fold-out poster insert, featuring exclusive essays by Don Dixon and Mitch Easter, as well as former I.R.S. executives Jay Boberg, Sig Sigworth, and art designer Carl Grasso.{{Cite web|url=http://www.remhq.com/news_story.php?id=946&archive=true|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130201085535/http://www.remhq.com/news_story.php?id=946&archive=true|url-status=dead|title=R.E.M.HQ: NEWS - Murmur Deluxe Edition|archive-date=February 1, 2013|access-date=May 21, 2020}}

†I.R.S. Vintage Years edition, with bonus tracks

‡Remastered edition on 180-gram vinyl and gold Compact Disc

•Remastered Deluxe Edition, with Live at Larry's Hide-Away bonus disc

{{Portal|Rock music}}

• List of 1980s albums considered the best
• Paisley Underground

{{Clear}}

{{Reflist|30em}}

• {{cite book|editor-last=Sullivan|editor-first=Denise|title=R.E.M.: Talk about the Passion: an Oral History|publisher=Da Capo Press|year=1998|isbn=978-0-306-80857-9|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=6mdjUgSLSUkC }}
• {{cite book |last=Platt |first=John A. |series=Classic rock albums |publisher=Schirmer Books |year=1999 |isbn=978-0-02-865062-3 |title=Murmur: R.E.M. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2QAwAQAAIAAJ }}
• {{Cite book |last=Buckley |first=David |title=R.E.M.: Fiction: An Alternative Biography |type=Hardback |edition=1st |year=2002 |publisher=Virgin |isbn=1-85227-927-3 }}
• {{Cite book |last=Black |first=Johnny |title=Reveal: The Story of R.E.M. |type=Paperback |edition=1st |year=2004 |publisher=Backbeat |isbn=0-87930-776-5 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/revealstoryofrem00john }}
• Niimi, J. Murmur. The Continuum International Publishing Group Inc., 2005. {{ISBN|0-8264-1672-1}}

• [http://remhq.com/albums.php R.E.M. HQ on Murmur]
• {{MusicBrainz release|mbid=10f4f4ca-d983-4dda-9095-b89d58882953|name=Murmur}}

:*{{MusicBrainz release|mbid=fe9fed2e-4adb-43b6-aa2a-a32708220ec2|name=Murmur}} (I.R.S. Vintage Years edition)

:*{{MusicBrainz release|mbid=ed73b6a7-4770-44ac-8e60-d9375828be89|name=Murmur}} (Deluxe Edition)

• [http://consequenceofsound.net/2013/04/whats-michael-stipe-singing-on-r-e-m-s-murmur/ A detailed explanation of the lyrics] from Consequence of Sound
• [https://remhq.com/news/memories-of-murmur/ Memories of Murmur on its 40th anniversary]

{{R.E.M.}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Murmur (Album)}}

Category:1983 debut albums

Category:Albums produced by Don Dixon (musician)

Category:Albums produced by Mitch Easter

Category:I.R.S. Records albums

Category:R.E.M. albums

Category:Post-punk albums by American artists

Category:Garage rock albums by American artists