Up is the eleventh album by R.E.M. It was their first album without their original drummer Bill Berry, who amicably left the group in October 1997 to pursue his own interests.
With Berry's departure, the sessions for Up were indeed strained, with R.E.M. subsequently admitting that they came close to breaking up during its recording. Not surprisingly, the album is considered to have a laboured and melancholic feel to it. In spite of the tension, "Daysleeper", which recalled Automatic for the People's "Try Not to Breathe" somewhat, became a Top 10 UK hit, and was followed by "Lotus", The Beach Boys-influenced "At My Most Beautiful" and "Suspicion", which is reminiscent of the song "Tongue" from their Monster album.
With Berry's departure, the sessions for Up were indeed strained, with R.E.M. subsequently admitting that they came close to breaking up during its recording. Not surprisingly, the album is considered to have a laboured and melancholic feel to it. In spite of the tension, "Daysleeper", which recalled Automatic for the People's "Try Not to Breathe" somewhat, became a Top 10 UK hit, and was followed by "Lotus", The Beach Boys-influenced "At My Most Beautiful" and "Suspicion", which is reminiscent of the song "Tongue" from their Monster album.
Track List:
All songs by Peter Buck, Mike Mills and Michael Stipe unless otherwise stated.
1. "Airportman" – 4:12
2. "Lotus" – 4:30
3. "Suspicion" – 5:36
4. "Hope" (Leonard Cohen, Buck, Mills, Stipe)1 – 5:02
5. "At My Most Beautiful" – 3:35
6. "The Apologist" – 4:30
7. "Sad Professor" – 4:01
8. "You're in the Air" – 5:22
9. "Walk Unafraid" – 4:31
10. "Why Not Smile" – 4:03
11. "Daysleeper" – 3:40
12. "Diminished"² – 6:01
13. "Parakeet" – 4:09
14. "Falls to Climb" – 5:06
