Around the Sun

13th record by rock legends R.E.M., it features their first foray into hip hop, with Q-Tip providing a guest spot on “The Outsiders.” The rest of the record is forward-facing alt-rock, with lead single “Leaving New York,” a chart hit in 12 countries, featuring one of Stipe’s best and most emotional vocal performances. The record has sold over 2 million copies worldwide, but wasn’t very well received by critics.

Mike Mills spoke retrospectively on the record in 2011 with Spin:

hen we were making that record, we were thrilled. We had great songs. But it was one time we let outside forces turn us towards doing something we shouldn’t have done — which is to do two songs for a greatest hits [In Time: The Best of R.E.M., 1988-2003], put out a greatest hits, tour on a greatest hits, and then go back and then try to finish the record. That was totally unfair to Around the Sun. Had we not done that, had we stuck with it, finished it as we should have, it would have been a really great record. Trouble was, by the time we got back to it, we weren’t really sure what it was, we didn’t know which way to go with it. We ended up pulling in different directions, there was no focus, there was no cohesion, and the record reflects it. If you listen to the live record from Dublin [2007’s R.E.M. Live], that has a lot of those songs, I think they sound great.