Strange Currencies

Trust Me #61
Strange Currencies by R.E.M

My wife and I are currently working our way through The Bear on Disney Plus. It's outstanding television. The first 7 episodes absolutely fly by at a furious pace, then in episode 8, the last in the first series, there is a feature length that really properly begins to introduce the characters to us and the storyline. It blew me away.

Last night we watched episode 2 in series 2. Strange Currencies by R.E.M plays towards the end and it is a simply perfect fit for the scene.

So here it is. Added to my Trust Me series and my Trust Me playlist.

I hadn't heard this song in a long, long time. I remember my brother Ross having R.E.M's Monster album on CD, but although Strange Currencies was released as a single, I didn't remember it at all when I heard it on The Bear. How could I forget a song as good as this? Probably because I haven't listened to Monster this century!

Anyway, that's a whole other thing, lets focus on the song.

Strange Currencies is glorious. Peter Buck's guitar sound is so warm, fuzzy and inviting. Michael Stipe sings his heart out, in full flow, hammering the chorus over driving chords that switch effortlessly to a picked riff.

Things slow down for the final verse, until Stipe is almost breathless as he sings everything he has to say, leading to the chorus again, with Stipe adding a little extra for good measure. His lyrics are so heartfelt and poetic, beautiful to read, sublime to hear.

You know with love comes strange currencies

And here is my appeal

I need a chance, a second chance, a third chance

A fourth chance, a word, a signal

A nod, a little breath

Just to fool myself, to catch myself

And make it real, real

These words, you will be mine

These words, you will be mine, all the time

The production on Strange Currencies is stunning. I've just listened to the song 7 times on headphones and I've not tired of it. R.E.M are on fire, the strings coming in at the end just lift everything higher, add even more emotion

R.E.M were a remarkable band and when you look back at their discography you realise/remember how exceptionally prolific they were. Six albums from Murmur in 1983 to Green in 1988, and then 5 in the 90's from Out Of Time in 1991 through to Up in 1998. They would go on to release a further 4.

I've now enjoyed revisiting Monster on headphone, loving the cranked up, fuzzed, or distorted guitars and the sound of a band having fun. It's like R.E.M went back being a garage band after the largely acoustic/stripped back albums Out Of Time and Automatic For The People.

Check below for all previous blogs in my Trust Me series. For the playlist, search for Everything Flows - Trust Me on Spotify , or CLICK HERE

Previous Trust Me blogs

1. Something On Your Mind by Karen Dalton

1A. Crimson and Clover by Tommy James and the Shondells

2. I Am, I Said  by Neil Diamond

3. Where's The Playground Susie?   by Glen Campbell

4. If You Could Read My Mind by Gordon Lighfoot

5. Gimme Some Truth by John Lennon

6. Gone With The Wind Is My Love by Rita and the Tiaras

7. In The Year 2525 by Zager and Evans

8. The Music Box by Ruth Copeland

9. The Ship Song by Nick Cave

10. Sometimes by James

11. I Walk The Earth by King Biscuit Time

12. Didn't Know What I Was In For by Better Oblivion Community Centre

13. When My Boy Walks Down The Street by The Magnetic Fields

14. The Man Don't Give A F**k by Super Furry Animals

15. All Flowers In Time Bend Towards The Sun by Jeff Buckley and Liz Fraser

16. Are You Lookin' by The Tymes

17. A Real Hero by College & Electric Youth

18. Feelings Gone by Callum Easter

19. Sunday Morning by The Velvet Underground

20. Did I Say by Teenage Fanclub

21. Don't Look Back by Teenage Fanclub

22. Your Love Is The Place Where I Come From by Teenage Fanclub

23. Belfast by Orbital

24. Clouds by The Jayhawks

25. Dreaming Of You by The Coral

26. Everlasting Love by Love Affair

27. Walk Away Renee by The Left Banke

28. Teenage Kicks by The Undertones

29. Shaky Ground by Sneeze

29. Rill Rill by Sleigh Bells

30. I Can Feel Your Love by Felice Taylor

31. The State We're In by The Chemical Brothers w/ Beth Orton

32. Sunshine After The Rain by Ellie Greenwich

33. Losing My Edge by LCD Soundsystem

34. Mondo 77 by Looper

35. Les Fleurs by Minnie Riperton

36. Rat Trap by The Boomtown Rats

37. How High by The Charlatans

38. I Can't Let Go by Evie Sands

39. Pop Song 89 by R.E.M.

40. Summertime Clothes by Animal Collective

41. There She Goes by The Las

42. We're Going To Be Friends by White Stripes

43. Autumn Sweater by Yo La Tengo

44. Sister Rena by Lomond Campbell

45. Revolution by The Beatles

46. Lazarus by The Boo Radleys

47. Wrote For Luck by Happy Mondays

48. American Trilogy by The Delgados

49. Loser by Beck 

50. Silent Sigh by Badly Drawn Boy

51. Comedy by Shack

52. Take The Skinheads Bowling by Camper Van Beethoven

53. Freakscene by Dinosaur Jr

54. Thank You For Being You by The Pastels

55. I Think I'm In Love by Spiritualized

56. Chestnut Mare by The Byrds

57. Cannonball by The Breeders

58. Like A Rolling Stone by Bob Dylan

59. You Make Me Weak At The Knees by Electrelane

60. Lucky by Radiohead

Pop Song 89

Trust Me #39 - Pop Song 89 by R.E.M.

Should we talk about the weather?

Should we talk about the government?

So asks Michael Stipe on Pop Song 89, from R.E.M.'s seminal Green album, a song that still sounds fresh and vital all these years down the line. And after revisiting it lately I had to laugh at the two genius questions asked in the hook. 

I was fortunate enough to spend 2-weeks in Portugal recently. I phoned my Mum back in Scotland regularly and she was always moaning about the weather - more so than the government!

And then ... chaos ... what a f**king mess the country is in. Should we talk about the government? Yeah we should because they are a shambles, an embarrassment and something has to change.

Hopefully that change will come in the form of independence for Scotland. We're sick of Westminster, sick of the Tories who just don't give a f**k about people, they don't care and that was sadly evidenced right at the top and very prominently by Boris Johnson.

It's not just our government. The world is overheating and there seems to be no urgency from governments across the globe in relation to the climate crisis. Action could be too late. We need to talk about both - seriously!

Back to music, my saviour, my escapism. Probably yours too if you're reading this.

Pop Song 89 bursts into life with an urgent rhythm guitar over Motown-esque beats, before Peter Buck starts what sounds like a complicated but playful guitar riff. Then Michael Stipe is in with a verse that sounds like it could be a chorus. 

Hello, I saw you, I know you, I knew you

I think I can remember you name, name

Hello, I'm sorry I lost myself

I think I thought you were someone else

And then it's into the aforementioned chorus, the 1st verse is repeated and then the chorus. So, very quickly, you find yourself singing the song. The repetition, the hello intro, the catchy chorus, the guitar riff ... it works so well. 

This all happens within 90-seconds, there is then an instrumental that leads back to Buck's riff, then a verse, chorus and 30-second outro.

R.E.M were remarkably prolific through the 80's and 90's. 6 albums in the 80's, starting with their debut Murmur in 1983, bookended by Green. And then they smashed the 90's with Automatic For The People in 1991 through to Up in 1998.

Anyway, I'm pretty fed up talking about the government. Lets talk about the weather!

REM Pop Song 89 official video

REM Pop Song 89 live on The Late Show 1989

A list of all previous songs I've blogged about in my Trust Me feature are listed below, along with links to each blog.

I've also collated them all into a playlist on Spotify that you can find by searching for Everything Flows - Trust Me , or you can CLICK HERE

Previous Trust Me blogs

1. Something On Your Mind by Karen Dalton

1A. Crimson and Clover by Tommy James and the Shondells

2. I Am, I Said  by Neil Diamond

3. Where's The Playground Susie?   by Glen Campbell

4. If You Could Read My Mind by Gordon Lighfoot

5. Gimme Some Truth by John Lennon

6. Gone With The Wind Is My Love by Rita and the Tiaras

7. In The Year 2525 by Zager and Evans

8. The Music Box by Ruth Copeland

9. The Ship Song by Nick Cave

10. Sometimes by James

11. I Walk The Earth by King Biscuit Time

12. Didn't Know What I Was In For by Better Oblivion Community Centre

13. When My Boy Walks Down The Street by The Magnetic Fields

14. The Man Don't Give A F**k by Super Furry Animals

15. All Flowers In Time Bend Towards The Sun by Jeff Buckley and Liz Fraser

16. Are You Lookin' by The Tymes

17. A Real Hero by College & Electric Youth

18. Feelings Gone by Callum Easter

19. Sunday Morning by The Velvet Underground

20. Did I Say by Teenage Fanclub

21. Don't Look Back by Teenage Fanclub

22. Your Love Is The Place Where I Come From by Teenage Fanclub

23. Belfast by Orbital

24. Clouds by The Jayhawks

25. Dreaming Of You by The Coral

26. Everlasting Love by Love Affair

27. Walk Away Renee by The Left Banke

28. Teenage Kicks by The Undertones

29. Shaky Ground by Sneeze

29. Rill Rill by Sleigh Bells

30. I Can Feel Your Love by Felice Taylor

31. The State We're In by The Chemical Brothers w/ Beth Orton

32. Sunshine After The Rain by Ellie Greenwich

33. Losing My Edge by LCD Soundsystem

34. Mondo 77 by Looper

35. Les Fleurs by Minnie Riperton

36. Rat Trap by The Boomtown Rats

37. How High by The Charlatans

38. I Can't Let Go by Evie Sands