Out of Time combines elements of pop, folk and classical music heard on their previous album Green, with a new concentration on country elements that would continue on 1992's Automatic for the People.
Preceded by the release of "Losing My Religion," which became R.E.M.'s biggest U.S. hit, Out of Time gave them their first U.S. and UK #1 album. The band did not tour to support the release.
Radio Song
R.E.M. Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning | Line by Line Meaning
Ah, yo turn to that station
The world is collapsing
Around our ears
I turned up the radio
But I can't hear it
When I got to the house
And I called you out
I could tell that you had been crying, crying
It's that same sing-song on the radio
Makes me sad
I meant to turn it off
To say goodbye
To leave in quiet, that radio song (see ya)
Hey, hey, hey (ha-ha)
(Hup, hup) I've everything to show (everything to show)
I've everything to hide (everything to hide)
Look into my eyes
Listen
When I got to the show
Yo, ho, ho
I could tell that you had been crying, crying
It's that same sing-song and the DJ sucks
It makes me sad
I tried to turn it off (turn it off)
To say goodbye, my love
That radio song
Hey, hey, hey
The world is collapsing
Around our ears
I turned up the radio
But I can't hear it
Yeah
(Yeah)
(Baby, baby, baby, baby)
(Hup, hup)
I tried to sing along
But damn that radio song (man) hey, hey, hey
Hey, hey, hey
I've everything to show (everything to show)
I've everything to hide (everything to hide)
Look into my eyes, listen to the radio
I turned up the radio
But I can't hear it
No, I can't hear it
Hey, hey, hey
(Say what?) hey, hey, hey
(Lemme hear that bass first)
Hey, hey, hey
Hey, hey, hey (yeah, hup)
Hey, hey, hey (say what, say what, say what?)
Hey, hey, hey
Check it out
What are you saying, what are you playing?
Who are you obeying, day-out, day-in, huh?
Baby, baby, baby, baby
That stuff is driving me crazy
DJs communicate to the masses
Sex and violent classes
Now our children grow up prisoners
All their life, radio listeners
The lyrics of R.E.M.'s song "Radio Song" depict the frustration of the speaker towards the lack of meaningful content on the radio. The song begins with the speaker expressing his inability to find anything worthy on the radio and asks someone to change the station. He then goes on to describe how the world is falling apart, and he turns up the volume to find comfort in the radio, but he can't hear it. When he reaches his destination, he recognizes that someone has been crying and tries to console them, but the radio playing in the background makes him sadder because of its repetitive and meaningless tune. He wishes to turn it off to say goodbye quietly.
The song's lyrics highlight the speaker's feelings of helplessness and frustration towards the repercussions of the music industry's commercialization. The constant repetition of songs on the radio, regardless of their quality or content, drives people away from something that could have a more meaningful impact on their lives. The lyrics are a critique of how DJs and the music industry cater to popular tastes, which leads to an endless cycle of radio listeners who are doomed to never find meaningful content on the radio.
Line by Line Meaning
Hey, I can't find nothing on the radio
I'm having trouble enjoying the music on the radio
Ah, yo turn to that station
Please, change the channel to another station
The world is collapsing
Around our ears
I turned up the radio
But I can't hear it
Yeah
Despite increasing the volume, the world's chaos is overwhelming and I can't listen to the radio properly
When I got to the house
And I called you out
I could tell that you had been crying, crying
It's that same sing-song on the radio
Makes me sad
I meant to turn it off
To say goodbye
To leave in quiet, that radio song (see ya)
Hey, hey, hey (ha-ha)
When I arrived home and saw that you were crying, I wanted to leave quietly while turning off the radio. The same song, at that moment, only makes me sadder.
(Hup, hup) I've everything to show (everything to show)
I've everything to hide (everything to hide)
Look into my eyes
Listen
I have some things that I want to reveal and some that I want to keep hidden, please look into my eyes and listen
When I got to the show
Yo, ho, ho
I could tell that you had been crying, crying
It's that same sing-song and the DJ sucks
It makes me sad
I tried to turn it off (turn it off)
To say goodbye, my love
That radio song
Hey, hey, hey
When I got to the live show and saw that you were crying, I wanted to turn off the same song that was playing on the radio that made me feel sad and leave. The DJ is terrible and the song only adds to my misery.
The world is collapsing
Around our ears
I turned up the radio
But I can't hear it
Yeah
The world feels like it's collapsing around us, but even though I tried to increase the volume on the radio, I couldn't listen to it properly.
I tried to sing along
But damn that radio song (man) hey, hey, hey
Hey, hey, hey
I tried to sing along, but that radio song is so frustrating and annoying.
I've everything to show (everything to show)
I've everything to hide (everything to hide)
Look into my eyes, listen to the radio
I turned up the radio
But I can't hear it
No, I can't hear it
Hey, hey, hey
I have different things that I want to reveal and keep hidden. Please, look into my eyes while I listen to the radio, even though I can't hear it properly.
(Say what?) hey, hey, hey
(Lemme hear that bass first)
Hey, hey, hey
Hey, hey, hey (yeah, hup)
Hey, hey, hey (say what, say what, say what?)
Hey, hey, hey
The bass sounds great, but that's all for now. Say what you want, I'm still frustrated with that radio song.
Check it out
What are you saying, what are you playing?
Who are you obeying, day-out, day-in, huh?
Baby, baby, baby, baby
That stuff is driving me crazy
DJs communicate to the masses
Sex and violent classes
Now our children grow up prisoners
All their life, radio listeners
What kind of message is this song sending, who is it for, and who controls it? It's driving me crazy. DJs promote sex and violence for the masses without any positive change. Now children grow up listening to these songs, and it shapes their life.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: Bill Berry, Peter Buck, Michael Mills, Michael Stipe
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Forrest George
Hey, I can't find nothing on the radio
Yo! turn to that station
The world is collapsing
Around our ears
I turned up the radio
But I can't hear it
When I got to the house
And I called you out
I could tell that you had been crying, crying
It's that same sing song on the radio
It makes me sad
I meant to turn it off
To say goodbye
To leave in quiet, that radio song
Hey, hey, hey (ha ha)
I've everything to show (everything to show)
I've everything to hide (everything to hide)
Look into my eyes
Listen
When I got to the show
Yo ho ho
I could tell that you had been crying, crying
It's that same sing song, and the DJ sucks
It makes me sad
I tried to turn it off (turn it off)
To say goodbye my love
That radio song
Hey, hey, hey
The world is collapsing
Around our ears
I turned up the radio
But I can't hear it
Yeah, baby, baby, baby
I tried to sing along
But damn that radio song
Hey hey hey
I've everything to show (everything to show)
I've everything to hide (everything to hide)
Look into my eyes
Listen to the radio
I turned up the radio
But I can't hear it
No, I can't hear it
Hey, hey, hey
Say what?
Hey, hey, hey
Hey, hey, hey
Hey, hey, hey
Hey, hey, hey
Say what?
Hey, hey, hey
Check it out
What are you saying?
What are you playing?
Who are you obeying?
Day out, day in, huh?
Baby, baby, baby
That stuff is driving me crazy
DJs communicate to the masses
Sex and violent classes
Now our children grow up prisoners
All their life- radio listeners
Kianmur
My cousin done away with himself in 2002. He never knew how loved he actually was 🥲🥲
I love him
REM was his favourite band , we used to travel around and listen to REM
I loved this song in his car
GM - love u xxx
Jacob Floyd
A band that achieved great success without ever selling out.
Jim26D
@Panda Nurseyup, they were famous by not selling out. Everyone expected another out of time or automatic but we got monster instead which was the opposite of selling out, and one of my favorite of their albums
Jeff Gregory
@Billy Beetroot these dudes live in my hometown... u can tell they've been rich & famous for the last 40 years
Billy Beetroot
When you achieve success, you have to sell out
Jeff Gregory
@Panda Nurse I see
Panda Nurse
@Jeff Gregory i'm definitely down to criticize the useless accumilation of wealth by the upper class, but in order for them to be "sell outs" spesifically, they had to have compromised their integrity for money. I don't think they did that. They kept their integrity and made a ton of money
Keith
This song has one of REM’s most beautiful choruses. I can only imagine how exciting this album must have been upon its release in spring 1991.
Joelma Silva
Não dá pra explicar a sensação que esta música me traz hehe. Energia mto boa!
Terbie36
I can't express how well this song is arranged.
flynod
Masterpiece! sounds, arrangements, all... great song, underrater, what a groove the bass