Friday Night Jukebox, Vol. CXXXII--R.E.M.: Imitation of Life

Trying to pick my favorite R.E.M. song was a bit like trying to pick my favorite dessert--far too many sweet, sweet choices.  In the end, I chose "Imitation of Life" because of how much it surprised me.  R.E.M. had pretty much reached the point of still being a very serviceable band, just not a band that I was still highly anticipating any release they had (and not that performers don't surprise later in their careers--Springsteen, Neil Young, and Lou Reed all had stellar releases at various points deep into their latter years).  And still does for that matter--whenever I'm listening to my R.E.M. playlist I find "Imitation of Life" to be one of the songs I most look forward to hearing.

Formed in Athens, Georgia in 1980, R.E.M. started as a critic's darling without a lot of sales and ended in 2011 as one of the greatest bands of all time with a shitload of sales.  They are often credited with being one of the biggest guiding forces of the alternative rock scene, and their influence on so many of the bands that came out of the 1990's alternative explosion (Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, and a host of others) was seismic.  Along the way they released 16 studio albums, sold over 85 million records, had epic world tours, won 3 Grammy Awards, and were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in their first year of eligibility.  And yet, as one comment I read while I was doing my half-assed research for this week's tune noted, they were one of the few bands to become popular and still remain cool.

Released in 2001 on their Reveal LP, "Imitation of Life" met with very little commercial success (par for the course for R.E.M. after the mid-nineties) only reaching #83 on the Billboard Hot 100 (and probably not with much of a bullet).  It did, however, become R.E.M.'s first #1 single in Japan, so at least there's that.

If there's any one word I could use to describe "Imitation of Life" it would be joyous, though I don't think the song is meant to be so.  Throughout the course of its career, R.E.M. often could turn songs of a sad nature into upbeat pop songs ("Fall on Me," "Man on the Moon," "Don't Go Back to Rockville"), and "Imitation of Life" is another such single.  Led by Michael Stipe's compassionate vocals and veiled lyrics, it seems to me a song about courage in the face of sorrow and one's daily strife, about enjoying the moment, though it could mean fuck all for all I know, as Stipe is known for a) obscure meanings, and b) never discussing his obscure meanings.  But I like the imagery, from freezing rain to hurricanes, from sugarcane to cinnamon, and Peter Buck's usual steadfast guitar work, all of which come together to form the umpteenth pop gem featured here on Friday Night Jukebox, of which I'm certain there'll be more than a few still coming.

Liner Notes:  "This lightning storm/This tidal wave/This avalanche, I'm not afraid..."

Enjoy (and note that in the video Michael Stipe gives ample evidence that being a good dancer is not a requisite for being a frontman for a great band...):

Enjoy:

Fuck Donald Trump,
emaycee