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A military brat, born on this day in 1960 in Decatur, Georgia, Michael Stipe (born John Michael Stipe) went on to become one of the greatest singer-songwriters fronting the band R.E.M. from 1980 to 2011. Here's my Happy Birthday Michael Stipe Mixtape of my favorite R.E.M. songs from each album (along with some songs where Michael was a guest vocalist).
At age 14, Stipe read an article in Cream Magazine about punk rock and the CBGB scene. The article also featured a photo of Patti Smith, who Stipe came to idolize. He bought Smith’s debut album Horses when it came out in 1975, and he never looked back from music.
While attending University of Georgia, Stipe met Peter Buck at a local record shop. They bonded over music and decided to form a band and started writing songs together. It was a short time later that Bill Berry and Mike Mills would join the two to form R.E.M., a name Stipe selected at random from a dictionary.
The band issued its first single, “Radio Free Europe” in 1981. It was later re-recorded for their debut album, Murmur. Many have tried to figure the lyrics out for the song as they are hard to discern. Stipe has even admitted that his lyrics on the song were “complete babbling”.
After releasing a solid EP, Chronic Town (which contains one of my top five R.E.M. songs - “Carnival of Sorts (Boxcars)”), their debut album, Murmur put the band on the map - Rolling Stone magazine ranked it eighth on their 100 greatest albums of the 1980s and it became a staple on college radio with Stipe’s cryptic lyrics along with the melodic bass from Mills and Buck’s jangly guitar - a sound that would follow them throughout their career.
Stipe was also very involved with the artwork of the band’s albums including their second, Reckoning. He drew a picture of a two-headed snake, which he then gave to artist Howard Finster to fill in as a painting. Stipe stated that the imagery was an attempt to define the elements, explaining, “Part of it is rocks and part of it is the sun and part of it the sky.” Reckoning was a step forward in sonic sound and focused on darker lyrics from Stipe. There were also challenges with Stipe’s vocals as he was worn out from the 1983 tour for Murmur.
After a difficult recording of the third album, Fables of the Reconstruction, Stipe soon identified himself as suffering from exhaustion and depression. Working through that, the album didn’t chart as well as previous ones, but served as a transition album and retrospectively, the reviews are generally positive. Stipe’s lyrics were much more storytelling and character driven and less cryptic.
1986 brought the release of my favorite R.E.M. album - and the first that I bought, Lifes Rich Pageant. The first single was “Fall on Me”, an ecologically conscious song and one of Stipe’s favorites of all-time. Throughout the album, you can hear a growing confidence in Stipe’s vocals, dare I say he was developing into a rock star.
1987 saw the release of Document (their final album of original material on IRS records). It contained their first top 10 hit song, “The One I Love”, and was their first album to crack the top 10 on the Billboard 200. Stipe’s confidence in his vocals and lyrics continued to grow, focusing a lot on his socio-political concerns.
Warner Brothers called and R.E.M. jumped to a major label for their next album, Green. While it was a departure from the jangle-pop sounds of albums in the past, the lyrics from Stipe were still political and his vocals were layered beautifully on songs like “The Wrong Child” and “You Are The Everything”. And while the band swapped instruments they hadn’t featured previously, it was still Stipe’s vocals that helped set the tone for this album.
Out of Time is an album you basically love or hate. There’s not a lot in between. Chances were taken with a more pop sound and guest appearances. It was R.E.M.’s first number one album. And while it didn’t necessarily “redefine pop history” as Stipe predicted in 1991, it did give us some amazing tunes including the lead single “Losing My Religion”, “Country Feedback” and the incredible “Me In Honey” where Stipe trades vocals with the B-52s Kate Pierson.
I could go on and on and on about R.E.M. and my love for Stipe’s lyrics and vocals and to me, pure coolness. Automatic for the People, Monster (which was a pretty big departure), New Adventures in Hi-Fi (the last album recorded with drummer Bill Berry), Up, Reveal, Around the Sun, Accelerate (which is highly underrated and should be listened to now) and closing up with Collapse Into Now - There's also Dead Letter Office, a fantastic collection of covers and B-sides.
Stipe has been on dozens of songs from other artists including 10,000 Maniacs, Neneh Cherry and Indigo Girls. He’s produced albums by Magnapop and Chickasaw Mudd Puppies. His vision lately has turned to other art forms including photography. While he’s released a few solo songs, it’s still up in the air as to what is next for Michael Stipe, but you can bet I’ll be there for it.
Singer - Songwriter - Political Activist - True Artist - Happy Birthday Mr. Stipe!
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