About Flagpole. (Athens, Ga.) 1987-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 28, 2011)
• 4 Patterson Hood, frontman for Drive-By Truckers "R.E.M. has always been a class act. They have been one of my favorite bands since I was a teenager. I first discovered them while working at a record store in my hometown around the time of Chronic Town in early 1983. A few weeks later, they released their debut full-length album, Murmur, which ended up topping year-end lists the world over. R.E.M. defied all labels and in turn went on to define at least two generations of music during a run of critically acclaimed (and eventu ally best-selling) albums that ranks with the finest string of consecutive releases ever. They have been an influence on my music and on my life, as I most certainly would not have ended up moving to Athens 18 years ago were it not for them. Their early albums were the first to actually make me proud to be Southern. They reveled in the weirdness of our region without resorting to rebel flag waving, foolish pride or gui tar pyrotechnics. I'm dead serious when I rank Fables of the Reconstruction as one of the best Southern rock albums ever. Peter Buck is easily one of the most innovative and interesting guitar players of his time. They never repeated themselves and they treated their fans with intelligence. They ran their business in a progressive and innovative way that influenced a generation of bands including Sonic Youth, Nirvana, Radiohead and the bands I have played in. After an amazing run of 'indie' records on the small IRS label, they made the leap to the majors, signing with Warner Brothers in 1988. This precarious move proved the death of many bands from that era, but R.E.M. did it their way. like they had done everything else, and continued their string of great albums, only now selling millions instead of thousands of records in the process. They became a world-famous band yet retained deep roots in the little town that spawned them. They were unafraid to be political and controversial when it would have seemed easier to turn away. In later years, I have become friends with a couple of them and consider that an honor. Their lesser albums are interesting and daring, and the better ones have stood the test of time as some of the greatest of the entire rock era. I had always been a huge fan of the earlier albums (Chronic Town through Lifes Rich Pageant) and the recent remastered reissues have been some of my favorite releases of the last five years or so. Reckoning especially stands out to me and has held up better than many of 1984's more notorious releases (no cheesy synthesizers a la Born in the USA, no ridiculous '80s drums, etc.). Nearly a decade later, a very different sounding R.E.M. released Automatic for the People, and it also stands up nearly 20 years later as a masterpiece and one of the most beautiful albums ever made. I wish them all the best and owe them a lifetime of thanks." Tim Johnson, executive director of Family Connection-Communities in Schools "Thank you, R.E.M. For all the brilliant music over the last three decades, live and recorded. For supporting our work through the years. For always being such great community members—of Athens, of the nation, of the planet. For having such a great staff. For being genuinely nice people. Thank you, R.E.M." Check out our other - special offerings! • Private Parties • Bachelorette Parties • Birthday Parties • Sorority Parties • Kidz Art Camps • Bridal Events • Saturday K ; d/ Classes 3061 Atlanta Highway Suite A Athene GA 3Q6C& (m m-im Fw mm infafftvatKMv vwt us online October 5th 6:30-9pm FREE The Melting Point Celebrate Women’s Health, Power & Creativity Performances by AVPDA, Sulukule Bellydance Company, The Modern Pin-Ups And More www.avpda.com pTJIT mwm wm I «1 SEPTEMBER 28, 2011- FLAGPOLE.COM 19 RICH MERRITT
