R.E.M. “Murmur” released 40 years ago today, April 12th, 1983. R.E.M.’s debut album was a critical success, included on a ton of best-of lists (Spin, Rolling Stone, etc) and it hit #36 in the US. The alternative (at the time more likely called college-radio rock) jangle rock LP did not do that well commercially at the time (my guess is that college kids had no money to buy records) but since has gone gold. One of my favorite R.E.M. songs, “Radio Free Europe” appears on the album, though a different version was released as the album’s first single; it hit #78 on the main US Hot 100 chart and went to #25 on the Mainstream Rock chart. “Radio Free Europe” was added to the Library of Congress’ National Recording Registry in 2010 for “setting the pattern for later indie rock releases by breaking through on college radio in the face of mainstream radio’s general indifference.” (wiki) It also features the band’s early trademark jangle and unintelligible, opaque lyrics. I love it. Also top for me on Murmur is “Talk About the Passion” (their second and final single from the record, released in Europe only), the hauntingly sparse and beautiful (and totally not-understandable) “Perfect Circle,” the complexity and epicness of the guitar and rhythm of “9-9” and the Byrds-esque “Sitting Still.” The lyrical discussion of this track is hilarious: it’s mostly Michael Stipe making up “nonsensical vowels strung together and that he merely approximates the words when he sings the song in concert” and the line, “We can gather, throw a fit” has often been misinterpreted as “We can gather, throw up beer,” which is absolutely perfect for college rock.