[Review] R.E.M.: Lifes Rich Pageant (1986)
The band cleans up their act, sort of, with the help of John Cougar’s producer.
Kronomyth 4: The pink cougar.
As legend has it, R.E.M. reached out to record producer Don Gehman after being impressed with the production quality of John Mellencamp’s music (which, it should be noted, is a different thing than being impressed by John Mellencamp’s music). Once the terms were settled, the band traveled to Gehman’s Indiana studio (where the last Mellencamp album had been recorded) in search of a brighter, cleaner and more commercially palatable sound. They found that sound on Lifes Rich Pageant, which featured two big hits: Fall on Me and a cover of The Cliques’ Superman (sung by Mike Mills). The consensus among critics is that Lifes Rich Pageant finally vanquishes the band’s murky tendencies, both in the vocals and the instruments (particularly the drums). I’d agree with that assessment, while noting that band’s murkiness never bothered me that much to begin with. And, while you can argue that the band sounds better, the material isn’t ostensibly better. Cuyahoga, The Flowers of Guatemala, Just a Touch, These Days and Swan Swan H are the sort of songs that grow on you over time, but fans had already grown accustomed to this level of quality on earlier albums. Some see Lifes Rich Pageant as a transitional record, as the albums that followed elevated R.E.M. to star status. I don’t hear a lot of commercial concessions being made. What’s here is a next step in evolution as the band continued to define and refine their voice. R.E.M. remains equally at home with punk (“Just a Touch”) and kitsch (“Superman”), taking themselves seriously one moment, then acting silly the next. (The album’s title, for example, is said to be inspired by a line from Peter Sellers in The Pink Panther.) The pageantry would be more visible on later albums like Document, Eponymous and Green. To my knowledge, R.E.M. hasn’t made an album that isn’t worth owning, so whether you see this album as a slight change in direction or a refinement of what made them wonderful to begin with, Lifes Rich Pageant beckons.
Original elpee version
A1. Begin the Begin (3:24)
A2. These Days (3:21)
A3. Fall on Me (2:49)
A4. Cuyahoga (4:17)
A5. Hyena (2:48)
A6. Underneath the Bunker (1:24)
B1. The Flowers of Guatemala (3:53)
B2. I Believe (3:32)
B3. What If We Give It Away? (3:31)
B4. Just a Touch (2:56)
B5. Swan Swan H (2:39)
B6. Superman (Gary Zekley/Mitchell Bottler) (2:50)
All songs written by Berry, Buck, Mills, Stipe unless noted.
The Players
Bill Berry (drums, vocals), Peter Buck (guitar), Mike Mills (bass, vocals), Michael Stipe (vocals). Produced by Don Gehman; recorded and mixed by Greg Edward and Don Gehman; additional engineering by Ross Hogarth.
The Pictures
Back cover painting by Juanita Rogers. Band photo by S.L. Phipps. Colossal packing assistance by R.O. Scarselli. Blink drawings by B. Slay. Stick drawing by M. Bird.
The Plastic
Released on elpee, cassette and compact disc in August 1986 in the US (I.R.S., IRS/IRSC/IRSD-5783), the UK (I.R.S., MIRG/MIRGC 1014), Brazil (Epic, 144.905) and Japan (I.R.S., 28AP 3240) with picture innersleeve. Reached #21 on the US charts (RIAA gold-certified album) and #43 in the UK charts.
- Re-issued on elpee in 2016 in the US (Universal, B0024823-01).
