In Time: The Best of R.E.M. 1988-2003

That said, a review should turn on what's there more so than what's not, and what's here is really quite good. Kicking off with their twin Andy Kaufman tributes ("Man on the Moon" and "Great Beyond"), "In Time" maintains a high-level of quality all the way through, making a strong case for R.E.M.'s already secured place in the rock pantheon.

Is it a perfect collection? This reviewer would say, no. This is not just because of missing personal favorites ("Half a World Away" and "World Leader Pretend") but also for the aforementioned lack of balance between how albums are represented here. It's hard to argue that "Up" or even "Automatic for the People" are really that much better than "Monster" or "Out of Time."

Then again, any compilation reflects the bias of its makers, just as a listener's reaction to it reflects theirs. By any objective standard, though, "In Time" is a good attempt to give a feel of what post-IRS Records R.E.M. is about. Plus, it sounds really good with the volume up.


Great retro disc, don't complain about lack of early hits!   October 29, 2003
Eric Edelin (Baltimore, Maryland USA)
19 out of 22 found this review helpful

Despite a couple of expensive imports, this is the only domestic disc to cover any post-Document material and is a great overview of R.E.M.'s 90s years. The remastering is crisp and superb, and the liner notes are entertaining and informative, written by Peter Buck of the group. This set puts together the big radio hits that everybody knows, with the lesser-known singles, and a few rarities and new songs (the obligatory new songs put on there to get hardcore fans to buy music they already own). So far, the consensus is that 'Drive' should have been included, and I more than agree, since it's my favorite song from 'Automatic For The People', but that's what owning the albums is for as well. Also, despite its uneven quality, their smash album 'Out Of Time' is represented only with 'Losing My Religion', and seems under-represented.

Aside from small complaints about the tracklisting (which is outstanding, but not perfect, if there is such thing as a perfect greatest hits album), this is a wonderful pickup for fans and novices alike (I'm somewhere in-between, owning a few R.E.M. albums, but not any 90s after 'Automatic For The People',). As for the reviews regarding the lack of early hits, there is already a compilation covering that time period called 'Eponymous' and it has the songs you're looking for from their 1982-1987 period.


Cherry Mash and Tinfoil Tiaras   November 5, 2003
Scott Smith (Pittsburgh, PA)
16 out of 16 found this review helpful

Quite a number of interesting selections on this BEST OF (read: NOT Greatest Hits) album. As the band has said, these songs represent their favorites since the release of their previous best of cd, Eponymous. Although I do suspect that their label had something to do with adding 2 previously unreleased tracks. I was most surprised at the addition of Nightswimming, just because it happens to be my favorite REM tune. All the Way to Reno, Sidewinder and Electrolite are also surprises. I like the fact that these are the songs that the composers enjoy. Any fan of this band will be sure to enjoy this album. There's not a bad song in the bunch.


REM's Consistency and Variety   February 1, 2004
doomsdayer520 (Pennsylvania)
14 out of 17 found this review helpful

As usual when it comes to compilations, fans of the band (whose true love for the music could probably be called into question) are gonna gripe about the song selection. For an album-based band like REM who doesn't release that many singles, a truly "representative" collection is impossible. Sure I would like to see more selections from my favorite albums *Monster* and the criminally neglected *New Adventures* but if I feel like complaining about that, I might as well just listen to those albums. Therefore this collection is useful if you're looking for a mix of classic REM tracks in one place, and if you're in the mood for listening to songs from several different albums in one sitting - in fact the seven different albums from the Warner Brothers years plus a few soundtrack items. A fun bonus is the so-called new song "Bad Day" which is actually a new recording of an old song from the mid-80's, which was probably rejected in favor of the very similar "It's the End of the World...". Also, these tracks are not presented in chronological order, which may be confusing for the historically-minded, but I feel that the sequencing allows you to appreciate both the consistency and variety of REM's work over the years. A winning compilation, regardless of the quibbles every single person will have about the song selection. [~doomsdayer520~]


R.E.M.: The Warner Brothers Years   January 30, 2004
Thomas Magnum (NJ, USA)
13 out of 18 found this review helpful

R.E.M. were the kings of college radio and the independent record scene in the mid 80's. When the band left the independent label IRS for the corporate giant Warner Brothers in 1988, cries of sell-out abounded. Fans of the band need not of worried about R.E.M. losing their credibility. Their first effort for Warners was the blistering Green which level attacks against the establishment for things like the environment and the arms race. For their next fifteen years of recording, R.E.M. followed their own muse and came up with seven diverse albums, two of which are bona fide classics, Out Of Time and Automatic For The People. In Time represents some of the best the band had to offer during that time including the brilliant "Losing My Religion", the haunting "E-Bow The Letter" featuring one of Michael Stipe's idols Patti Smith, the heartbreaking "Everybody Hurts", the rocking and crunching "Orange Crush", "What's The Frequency, Kenneth?", the fun "Man In The Moon", "The Sidewinder Sleeps Tonight" and the lilting "Nightswimming". Drummer Bill Berry left the band in 1998 for health reasons and Mr. Stipe, Mike Mills and Peter Buck carried on as trio and while their first effort Up suffered a bit, they came back strong with Reveal and the California pop shine of "Imitation Of Life" stands among their best. The album also includes two new songs, the excellent "Bad Day" which goes back to the Green era and "Animal". The set also includes their best song of their trio era, "The Great Beyond" previously only available on the Man In The Moon soundtrack. While it is always impossible to please everyone with a greatest hits compilation (the brilliant Out Of Time is only represented by one song while the far inferior Up gets two is a curious example), R.E.M. is one of the most important bands of the past twenty years and this collection shows why.