R.E.M.: Inside Out: The Stories Behind Every Song

I always find it fascinating to find out the whys a song was written and this book tells the whys. Very informative.

I've really enjoyed this book so far, it's very informative, and is beautifully designed. In 250 pages you can only cover so much of the fantasy universe, but I think they did a good job.I did notice that there are a lot of opinions, but there are many more facts, and the opinions make for a slightly more interesting read than just facts, as long as you take them with a grain of salt. I didn't notice overly negative opinions though, I saw a mix of positive and negative. And face it, a lot of pulp and mass-produced fantasy entertainment isn't of the best quality, that's just reality; I don't think it's unreasonable to call those types of items 'derivative'.In summary, definitely a fun book to browse through; even extends into gaming (learning the origins of D & D, etc was very cool). I never would've thought that I'd learn the origins of the name 'Wendy' from this book!

As a dedicated, longtime fan of the fabled Athens quartet, and a reader/owner of half a dozen other R.E.M. tomes, I thought I knew everything worth knowing. So when I saw it in a bargain bin at my local bookstore, I picked it up more on a whim than anything else. But I was pleasantly surprised at the wealth of information contained therein. Many factoids abound. The author clearly read virtually all of the worldwide press on the band. And his enthuusiasm for the subject shines through on every page. Anyone who has ever read interviews with R.E.M. knows that they are a good read. J.M. Stipe is often the source of many a memorable non-sequitir, such as the description of Fables of the Reconstruction sounding like "two oranges being nailed to a board." Peter Buck on the other hand, is what Rhino Records would call a music "geekus maximus," (albeit an extrememly cool one) who liberally sprinkles descriptions of his songs with references to cult heroes like Nick Drake, the Velvet Underground, Strawberry Alarm Clock and the 13th Floor Elevators. Occassionally we get a glimmer into their legendarily mysterious songwriting process as well. And the songs are divided by album with a nice overview of the sessions for said record, placed nicely in the context of their stunning evolution. To quote the Voice of Harold, a must.

I came across this book at the library, and checked it out right away. From just skimming thru it I can see that there could be more on the subject, but I still think it's a great book. The photoes are great too. I'm going to buy my own copy as soon as I get some extra money.

I think Inside/Out showed people the real stories and views behind songs, that they're not just words that someone sings.