Bad Day (R.E.M. song)
Encyclopedia
"Bad Day" is one of two previously unreleased songs on and the lead single
from R.E.M.
's 2003
compilation In Time: The Best of R.E.M. 1988–2003.
The song first appeared in 1985, when Michael Stipe
sang a few words of it during a concert in Albany, New York
, as part of the Reconstruction tour
. Then, around the time of Lifes Rich Pageant
, the song emerged in a more polished version with the title "PSA"—an abbreviation for "public service announcement
". An anti-media rant inspired by a day Stipe found a camcorder lens in his face when he answered the front door, the song was never released but did serve as a sort of forerunner to "It's the End of the World as We Know It (And I Feel Fine)
", a song with a similar cadence and delivery. In 2003
, Stipe saw that the song still had contemporary resonance, and the band finally recorded it for In Time, with only slightly updated lyrics and under the new title "Bad Day".
An outtake version of the song originally recorded for Lifes Rich Pageant finally appeared on EMI
's 2006 compilation, And I Feel Fine... The Best of the I.R.S. Years 1982-1987
.
The song's music video
http://www.passion-pictures.com/flash.html#page=d16&video=v27, directed by Tim Hope and shot in Vancouver
, is a spoof of media news and was produced by Passion Pictures
. It appears on In View, the DVD companion of In Time, and is also found on the main CD of In Time. In the video, Stipe appears as the Morning Team's news anchor Cliff Harris; Mills doubles as roving reporter Ed Colbert and meteorologist Rick Jennings; and Buck as climate expert Geoff Sayers and the reporter Eric Nelson. News stories shown include a monsoon contained within an apartment, a senator's office flooding, and a tornado inside a boy's bedroom.
The song can be heard in a third-season episode of Alias
and in the Scrubs
episode "My Advice To You".
The song is included on R.E.M. Live
.
Lead single
A lead single is usually the first single released by a musician or a band before the release of its home album.During the era of the grammophone record, all music arrived in the marketplace as what is now termed a single, one potential hit song backed by an additional song of generally less...
from R.E.M.
R.E.M.
R.E.M. was an American rock band formed in Athens, Georgia, in 1980 by singer Michael Stipe, guitarist Peter Buck, bassist Mike Mills and drummer Bill Berry. One of the first popular alternative rock bands, R.E.M. gained early attention due to Buck's ringing, arpeggiated guitar style and Stipe's...
's 2003
2003 in music
-January:* January – following an investigation by The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry and London detectives, police raids in England and the Netherlands recover nearly 500 original Beatles studio tapes, recorded during the Let It Be sessions. Five people are arrested...
compilation In Time: The Best of R.E.M. 1988–2003.
The song first appeared in 1985, when Michael Stipe
Michael Stipe
John Michael Stipe is an American singer and lyricist. He was the lead vocalist of the alternative rock band R.E.M.Stipe is noted and occasionally parodied for the "mumbling" style of his early career as well as his social and political activism. He was in charge of R.E.M.'s visual image; often...
sang a few words of it during a concert in Albany, New York
Albany, New York
Albany is the capital city of the U.S. state of New York, the seat of Albany County, and the central city of New York's Capital District. Roughly north of New York City, Albany sits on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River...
, as part of the Reconstruction tour
Fables of the Reconstruction
Fables of the Reconstruction, also known as Reconstruction of the Fables, is the third studio album by the American alternative rock band R.E.M., released on the I.R.S...
. Then, around the time of Lifes Rich Pageant
Lifes Rich Pageant
Lifes Rich Pageant is the fourth album by the American band R.E.M., released in 1986. Intended as an upbeat reaction to the sobering and historical Fables of the Reconstruction, R.E.M...
, the song emerged in a more polished version with the title "PSA"—an abbreviation for "public service announcement
Public service announcement
A public service announcement or public service ad is a type of advertisement featured on television, radio, print or other media...
". An anti-media rant inspired by a day Stipe found a camcorder lens in his face when he answered the front door, the song was never released but did serve as a sort of forerunner to "It's the End of the World as We Know It (And I Feel Fine)
It's the End of the World as We Know It (And I Feel Fine)
"It's the End of the World as We Know It " is a song by the rock band R.E.M., which appeared on their 1987 album Document, the 1988 compilation Eponymous, and the 2006 compilation And I Feel Fine... The Best of the I.R.S Years 1982–1987...
", a song with a similar cadence and delivery. In 2003
2003 in music
-January:* January – following an investigation by The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry and London detectives, police raids in England and the Netherlands recover nearly 500 original Beatles studio tapes, recorded during the Let It Be sessions. Five people are arrested...
, Stipe saw that the song still had contemporary resonance, and the band finally recorded it for In Time, with only slightly updated lyrics and under the new title "Bad Day".
An outtake version of the song originally recorded for Lifes Rich Pageant finally appeared on EMI
EMI
The EMI Group, also known as EMI Music or simply EMI, is a multinational music company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the fourth-largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry and one of the "big four" record companies. EMI Group also has a major...
's 2006 compilation, And I Feel Fine... The Best of the I.R.S. Years 1982-1987
And I Feel Fine... The Best of the I.R.S. Years 1982-1987
And I Feel Fine... The Best of the I.R.S. Years 1982–1987 is a compilation album by R.E.M. that features songs from the band's years at I.R.S. Records. All tracks have been remastered, and the set was released 12 September 2006...
.
The song's music video
Music video
A music video or song video is a short film integrating a song and imagery, produced for promotional or artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a marketing device intended to promote the sale of music recordings...
http://www.passion-pictures.com/flash.html#page=d16&video=v27, directed by Tim Hope and shot in Vancouver
Vancouver
Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...
, is a spoof of media news and was produced by Passion Pictures
Passion Pictures
Passion Pictures is a film and animation production company based in Rathbone Place, off Oxford Street in London's West End. They have been responsible for much of the production of the visual element of the animated rock band Gorillaz....
. It appears on In View, the DVD companion of In Time, and is also found on the main CD of In Time. In the video, Stipe appears as the Morning Team's news anchor Cliff Harris; Mills doubles as roving reporter Ed Colbert and meteorologist Rick Jennings; and Buck as climate expert Geoff Sayers and the reporter Eric Nelson. News stories shown include a monsoon contained within an apartment, a senator's office flooding, and a tornado inside a boy's bedroom.
The song can be heard in a third-season episode of Alias
Alias (TV series)
Alias is an American action television series created by J. J. Abrams which was broadcast on ABC for five seasons, from September 30, 2001 to May 22, 2006...
and in the Scrubs
Scrubs (TV series)
Scrubs is an American medical comedy-drama television series created in 2001 by Bill Lawrence and produced by ABC Studios. The show follows the lives of several employees of the fictional Sacred Heart, a teaching hospital. It features fast-paced screenplay, slapstick, and surreal vignettes...
episode "My Advice To You".
The song is included on R.E.M. Live
R.E.M. Live
R.E.M. Live is a live album from R.E.M., recorded at the Point Theatre, Dublin, on February 26 and 27, 2005, the closing nights of the winter European leg of the Around the World Tour in support of their thirteenth studio album Around the Sun released in late 2004...
.
Track listing
- CD (Warner W624CD1) (UK)
- "Bad Day" (BerryBill BerryWilliam "Bill" Thomas Berry is a retired American musician, multi-instrumentalist, best known as the drummer for the alternative rock band R.E.M. In addition to his drumming duties, Berry played many other instruments including guitar, bass guitar, and piano, both for songwriting and on R.E.M....
, BuckPeter BuckPeter Lawrence Buck , is an American rock guitarist who is best known for playing in and co-founding alternative rock band R.E.M....
, MillsMike MillsMichael Edward "Mike" Mills is an American multi-instrumentalist and composer who was a founding member of the alternative rock group R.E.M.. Though known primarily as a bass guitarist, backing vocalist, and pianist, his musical repertoire includes also keyboards, guitar, and percussion instruments...
, StipeMichael StipeJohn Michael Stipe is an American singer and lyricist. He was the lead vocalist of the alternative rock band R.E.M.Stipe is noted and occasionally parodied for the "mumbling" style of his early career as well as his social and political activism. He was in charge of R.E.M.'s visual image; often...
) - "Favorite WriterMagnapop (album)Magnapop is the debut album by Magnapop, released in 1992 and re-released with bonus tracks on July 29, 1997.-Recording and release:Four of the tracks—"Favorite Writer", "Chemical", "Complicated", and "Merry"—were recorded in John Keane Studio, Athens, Georgia in December 1990 with Linda Hopper's...
" (Linda HopperLinda HopperLinda Elizabeth Hopper is the vocalist for the Atlanta, Georgia-based rock group Magnapop. Her pop punk/power pop vocal style helped to define the band's sound and she has co-written their minor hit singles "Slowly, Slowly" and "Open the Door"...
, Ruthie MorrisRuthie MorrisRuth Mary "Ruthie" Morris is the guitarist for the Atlanta, Georgia-based rock group Magnapop. Her pop punk/power pop guitar style helped to define the band's sound and she has co-written their minor hit singles "Slowly, Slowly" and "Open the Door".-History:Morris is originally from West Palm...
) - "Bad Day" (Video)
- "Bad Day" (Berry
- CD (Warner W624CD2) (UK)
- "Bad Day"
- "Out in the Country" (WilliamsPaul Williams (songwriter)Paul Hamilton Williams, Jr. is an Academy Award-winning American composer, musician, songwriter, and actor. He is perhaps best known for popular songs performed by a number of acts in the 1970s including Three Dog Night's "An Old Fashioned Love Song", Helen Reddy's "You and Me Against the World",...
/NicholsRoger Nichols (songwriter)Roger Nichols Roger Nichols Roger Nichols (born in Missoula, Montana, is an American composer and songwriter. He is a multi-instrumentalist who plays violin, guitar, bass, and piano.-Biography:...
) - "Adagio" (Buck, Mills, Stipe)
- CD (Warner 16533-2) (US)
- "Bad Day"
- "Favorite Writer"
- "Out in the Country"
- "Adagio"
Sales chart performance
| Chart (2003) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australian ARIA Singles Chart ARIA Charts The ARIA charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling singles and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA commenced compiling its own charts in-house from the week ending 26 June... |
22 |
| Irish Singles Chart | 11 |
| UK Singles Chart UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ... |
8 |