R.E.M. released its first single—"Radio Free Europe"—in 1981 on the independent record label Hib-Tone. The single was followed by the Chronic Town EP in 1982, the band's first release on I.R.S. Records. In 1983, the group released its critically acclaimed debut album, Murmur, and built its reputation over the next few years through subsequent releases, constant touring, and the support of college radio. Following years of underground success, R.E.M. achieved a mainstream hit in 1987 with the single "The One I Love". The group signed to Warner Bros. Records in 1988, and began to espouse political and environmental concerns while playing large arenas worldwide.
By the early 1990s, when alternative rock began to enter the mainstream, R.E.M. was viewed by subsequent acts such as Nirvana and Pavement as a pioneer of the genre. The band released its two most commercially successful albums, Out of Time (1991) and Automatic for the People (1992), which veered from the band's established sound and catapulted it to international fame. R.E.M.'s 1994 release, Monster, was a return to a more rock-oriented sound, but still continued its run of success. The band began its first tour in six years to support the album; the tour was marred by medical emergencies suffered by three of the band members.
In 1996, R.E.M. re-signed with Warner Bros. for a reported US$80 million, at the time the most expensive recording contract in history. Its 1996 release, New Adventures in Hi-Fi, though critically acclaimed, fared worse commercially than its predecessors. The following year, Bill Berry left the band, while Stipe, Buck, and Mills continued the group as a trio. Through some changes in musical style, the band continued its career into the next decade with mixed critical and commercial success, despite having sold more than 85 million records worldwide and becoming one of the world's best-selling music artists. In 2007, the band was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, in their first year of eligibility. R.E.M. disbanded amicably in September 2011, announcing the split on its website.
In January 1980, Michael Stipe met Peter Buck in Wuxtry Records, the Athens record store where Buck worked. The pair discovered that they shared similar tastes in music, particularly in punk rock and protopunk artists like Patti Smith, Television, and the Velvet Underground. Stipe said, "It turns out that I was buying all the records that [Buck] was saving for himself." Through mutual friend Kathleen O'Brien, Stipe and Buck then met fellow University of Georgia students Mike Mills and Bill Berry, who had played music together since high school and lived together in Georgia. The quartet agreed to collaborate on several songs; Stipe later commented that "there was never any grand plan behind any of it". Their still-unnamed band spent a few months rehearsing in a deconsecrated Episcopal church in Athens, and played its first show on April 5, 1980, supporting the Side Effects at O'Brien's birthday party held in the same church, performing a mix of originals and 1960s and 1970s covers. After considering Twisted Kites, Cans of Piss, and Negro Eyes, the band settled on "R.E.M." (which is an initialism for rapid eye movement, the dream stage of sleep), which Stipe selected at random from a dictionary.
The band members eventually dropped out of school to focus on their developing group. They found a manager in Jefferson Holt, a record store clerk who was so impressed by an R.E.M. performance in his hometown of Chapel Hill, North Carolina, that he moved to Athens. R.E.M.'s success was almost immediate in Athens and surrounding areas; the band drew progressively larger crowds for shows, which caused some resentment in the Athens music scene. Over the next year and a half, R.E.M. toured throughout the Southern United States. Touring was arduous because a touring circuit for alternative rock bands did not then exist. The group toured in an old blue van driven by Holt, and lived on a food allowance of $2 each per day.
R.E.M. was pivotal in the creation and development of the alternative rock genre. AllMusic stated, "R.E.M. mark the point when post-punk turned into alternative rock." In the early 1980s, the musical style of R.E.M. stood in contrast to the post-punk and new wave genres that had preceded it. Music journalist Simon Reynolds noted that the post-punk movement of the late 1970s and early 1980s "had taken whole swaths of music off the menu", particularly that of the 1960s, and that "After postpunk's demystification and New Pop's schematics, it felt liberating to listen to music rooted in mystical awe and blissed-out surrender." Reynolds declared R.E.M., a band that recalled the music of the 1960s with its "plangent guitar chimes and folk-styled vocals" and who "wistfully and abstractly conjured visions and new frontiers for America", one of "the two most important alt-rock bands of the day." With the release of Murmur, R.E.M. had the most impact musically and commercially of the developing alternative genre's early groups, leaving in its wake a number of jangle pop followers.
R.E.M.'s early breakthrough success served as an inspiration for other alternative bands. Spin referred to the "R.E.M. model"—career decisions that R.E.M. made which set guidelines for other underground artists to follow in their own careers. Spin's Charles Aaron wrote that by 1985, "They'd shown how far an underground, punk-inspired rock band could go within the industry without whoring out its artistic integrity in any obvious way. They'd figured out how to buy in, not sellout-in other words, they'd achieved the American Bohemian Dream." Steve Wynn of Dream Syndicate said, "They invented a whole new ballgame for all of the other bands to follow whether it was Sonic Youth or the Replacements or Nirvana or Butthole Surfers. R.E.M. staked the claim. Musically, the bands did different things, but R.E.M. was first to show us you can be big and still be cool." Biographer David Buckley stated that between 1991 and 1994, a period that saw the band sell an estimated 30 million albums, R.E.M. "asserted themselves as rivals to U2 for the title of biggest rock band in the world." Over the course of its career, the band has sold over 85 million records worldwide.
Alternative bands such as Nirvana, Pavement, Radiohead, Coldplay, Pearl Jam (the band's vocalist Eddie Vedder inducted R.E.M. into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame), and Live, have drawn inspiration from R.E.M.'s music. "When I was 15 years old in Richmond, Virginia, they were a very important part of my life," Pavement's Bob Nastanovich said, "as they were for all the members of our band." Pavement's contribution to the No Alternative compilation (1993) was "Unseen Power of the Picket Fence", a song about R.E.M.'s early days. Local H, according to the band's Twitter account, created their name by combining two R.E.M. songs: "Oddfellows Local 151" and "Swan Swan H". Kurt Cobain of Nirvana was a fan of R.E.M., and had unfulfilled plans to collaborate on a musical project with Stipe. Cobain told Rolling Stone in an interview earlier that year, "I don’t know how that band does what they do. God, they’re the greatest. They've dealt with their success like saints, and they keep delivering great music."
During his show at the 40 Watt Club in October 2018, Johnny Marr said: "As a British musician coming out of the indie scene in the early '80s, which I definitely am and am proud to have been, I can't miss this opportunity to acknowledge and pay my respects and honor the guys who put this town on the map for us in England. I'm talking about my comrades in guitar music, R.E.M. The Smiths really respected R.E.M. We had to keep an eye on what those guys were up to. It's an interesting thing for me, as a British musician, and all those guys as British musicians, to come to this place and play for you guys, knowing that it's the roots of Mike Mills and Bill Berry and Michael Stipe and my good friend Peter Buck."
#9 Dream
R.E.M. Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Was it in a dream, was it just a dream?
I know, yes I know
Seemed so very real, it seemed so real to me
Took a walk down the street
Through the heat whispered trees
I thought I could hear
Somebody call out my name as it started to rain
Two spirits dancing so strange
Ah! bwakawa pouss, pouss
Ah! bwakawa pouss, pouss
Ah! bwakawa pouss, pouss
Dream, dream away
Magic in the air, was magic in the air?
I believe, I believe
More I cannot say, what more can I say?
On a river of sound
Through the mirror go round
I thought I could feel
Feel, feel
Music touching my soul, something warm, sudden cold
The spirit dance was unfolding
Ah! bwakawa pouss, pouss
Ah! bwakawa pouss, pouss
Ah! bwakawa pouss, pouss
Ah! bwakawa pouss, pouss
Ah! bwakawa pouss, pouss
Ah! bwakawa pouss, pouss
Ah! bwakawa pouss, pouss
Ah! bwakawa pouss, pouss
Ah! bwakawa pouss, pouss
Ah! bwakawa pouss, pouss
Ah! bwakawa pouss, pouss
Ah! bwakawa pouss, pouss
Ah! bwakawa pouss, pouss
Ah! bwakawa pouss, pouss
In “#9 Dream,” R.E.M. sings about a dream that feels so real that it's hard to tell if it actually happened or not. The singer of the song finds himself walking down a street, listening to the trees whisper as it starts to rain. Suddenly, he hears someone call out his name. When he turns around, he sees two spirits dancing together in a strange and mesmerizing way. They begin to chant "Ah! bwakawa pouss, pouss" repeatedly, which the singer believes is some kind of magic spell.
As the dream continues, the singer finds himself transported to a river of sound, where he feels music touching his soul. He experiences sudden urges of warmth and cold as the spirits continue to dance around him. Throughout the song, the singer is presented with a mystical experience that blurs the line between fantasy and reality.
The song has been interpreted in different ways, with some fans speculating that it is about John Lennon's "bed-in" protests and others suggesting that it's simply a celebration of the power of dreams.
Line by Line Meaning
So long ago
It has been a long time since the event being referred to in the song.
Was it in a dream, was it just a dream?
The singer is uncertain if the event actually happened or if it was just a dream.
I know, yes I know
Despite the uncertainty, the singer is sure that the event felt real to them.
Seemed so very real, it seemed so real to me
The event felt extremely vivid to the artist, almost as if it was real.
Took a walk down the street
The artist went for a walk.
Through the heat whispered trees
The singer walked through an area with trees and it was quite hot outside.
I thought I could hear
The singer believed they could hear something.
Hear, hear
The artist is attempting to listen closely or urging others to listen closely as well.
Somebody call out my name as it started to rain
The artist heard someone call their name as it began to rain.
Two spirits dancing so strange
The artist saw two spirits that were behaving in an unusual manner.
Ah! bwakawa pouss, pouss
This is likely a nonsense phrase with no direct translation or meaning.
Dream, dream away
The artist is urging listeners to let themselves dream and escape reality for a little while.
Magic in the air, was magic in the air?
The singer felt that there was a magical feeling in the atmosphere.
I believe, I believe
The singer truly believes in the magic and otherworldliness of the situation.
More I cannot say, what more can I say?
There are no other words to describe the feelings and experiences the singer is having.
On a river of sound
The artist feels as though they are moving on a river made of soundwaves.
Through the mirror go round
The artist is possibly seeing a reflection of themselves and the spirits they saw.
I thought I could feel
The singer believed they could physically feel something.
Feel, feel
The singer is once again urging listeners to focus on their physical and emotional feelings.
Music touching my soul, something warm, sudden cold
The artist feels as though the music has a strong emotional effect on them, transitioning from a comforting warmth to a sudden chill.
The spirit dance was unfolding
The artist is witnessing the spirits' dance and feels as though it is a significant moment.
Ah! bwakawa pouss, pouss
This phrase is repeated multiple times to reinforce the idea that it has no clear meaning.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: John Winston Lennon
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind