Man on the Moon (song)

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"Man on the Moon"
"Man on the Moon" cover
Single by R.E.M.
from the album Automatic for the People
Released November 1992 (UK)/(DE)
January 1993 (US)
Format CD single, 7" single, 12" single, Cassette
Recorded 1992
Genre Rock
Length 5:12
Label Warner Bros. Records
Producer(s) Scott Litt & R.E.M.
Chart positions
R.E.M. singles chronology
"Drive"
(1992)		 "Man on the Moon"
(1992)		 "The Sidewinder Sleeps Tonite"
(1993)
UK Single Cover
UK Single Cover

"Man on the Moon" is a song by the band R.E.M. from their 1992 album Automatic for the People. The song makes numerous references to the comedian Andy Kaufman, including his Elvis impersonation and work with wrestlers Fred Blassie and Jerry Lawler. The song was released as a single in 1993.

The song gave its name to a 1999 film (Man on the Moon), and was used in the film's soundtrack.

The song was placed on R.E.M.'s Warner Bros. Records "best of" album In Time - The Best of R.E.M. 1988-2003 in 2003. It was one of four songs from Automatic for the People to make the compilation, more than from any other album.

The song was performed on December 11, 1999 on Saturday Night Live. The song was performed in July 2, 2005 at Live 8's London concert, along with "Everybody Hurts" and "Imitation of Life".

Contents

[edit] Video

The song's video, directed by Peter Care, was shot over three days in the desert, at Lancaster in the Antelope Valley area of California, in October 1992. Care kept a journal of the unusually long planning, filming, and editing process, which was published by Raygun magazine and reprinted in the R.E.M. fanclub newsletter. It gave a clear idea of the amount of work, money, and attention-to-detail involved.[1]

In the video, Stipe, attired in a cowboy hat, walks along a desert road while lip-synching. He leaps onto a passing truck, driven by Bill Berry, and hitches a ride to a truck stop where Peter Buck is tending bar and Mike Mills is shooting pool. Berry trades his truck seat for a bar stool, and along with a few of the other customers, sings along during the choruses. After finishing his order of fries, Stipe ups and leaves and walks off into the dusk. In the background on a small television set in the truck stop, various footage of Andy Kaufman can be seen showing.

[edit] Track Listing

All songs written by Bill Berry, Peter Buck, Mike Mills and Michael Stipe unless otherwise indicated.

[edit] US 7", Cassette and CD Single

  1. "Man on the Moon" – 5:12
  2. "New Orleans Instrumental #2" – 3:48

[edit] UK "Collector's Edition" CD Single

  1. "Man on the Moon" – 5:12
  2. "Fruity Organ" – 3:26
  3. "New Orleans Instrumental #2" – 3:48
  4. "Arms of Love" (Robyn Hitchcock) – 3:35

[edit] DE 12" and CD Maxi-Single

  1. "Man on the Moon" – 5:12
  2. "Turn You Inside-Out" – 4:15
  3. "Arms of Love" (Hitchcock) – 3:35

[edit] UK and DE 7" and Cassette Single

  1. "Man on the Moon" (edit) – 4:39
  2. "Turn You Inside-Out" – 4:15

[edit] Notes

  1. ^ Gray, M: "It Crawled from the South"

[edit] External links

R.E.M.
Peter Buck  ·  Mike Mills  ·  Michael Stipe
Bill Berry
Other musicians: Scott McCaughey  ·  Bill Rieflin  ·  Ken Stringfellow  ·  Nathan December  ·  Buren Fowler  ·  Peter Holsapple  ·  Barrett Martin  ·  Joey Waronker
Management and producers: Bertis Downs, IV  ·  Pat McCarthy  ·  Jefferson Holt  ·  Scott Litt
Joe Boyd  ·  Don Dixon  ·  Mitch Easter  ·  Don Gehman
Discography
Albums and EPs: Chronic Town  ·  Murmur  ·  Reckoning  ·  Fables of the Reconstruction  ·  Lifes Rich Pageant  ·  Document  ·  Green  ·  Out of Time  ·  Automatic for the People  ·  Monster  ·  New Adventures in Hi-Fi  ·  Up  ·  Reveal  ·  Around the Sun
Singles: See here
Compilations: Dead Letter Office  ·  Eponymous  ·  The Best of R.E.M.  ·  Singles Collected  ·  In the Attic  ·  In Time: The Best of R.E.M. 1988-2003  ·  And I Feel Fine... The Best of the I.R.S. Years 1982-1987
Remix album: R.E.M.IX
Soundtrack: Man on the Moon
Videos: Succumbs  ·  Tourfilm  ·  Pop Screen  ·  This Film Is On  ·  Parallel  ·  Road Movie  ·  In View: The Best of R.E.M. 1988-2003  ·  Perfect Square  ·  When the Light Is Mine: The Best of the I.R.S. Years 1982-1987
Related articles
Alternative rock  ·  Hindu Love Gods  ·  I.R.S. Records  ·  Warner Bros. Records  ·  Homer the Moe
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