#AlternateFridayMusic
April 11 2025
The prompt is Horrible
R.E.M. “Man on the Moon” from Automatic For The People, 1992
Lyrics:
Moses went walking with the staff of wood
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Newton got beaned by the apple good
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Egypt was troubled by the horrible asp
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Mister Charles Darwin had the gall to ask
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
On Automatic for the People, #REM continued with acoustic artistry rivaling that achieved on their masterpiece “Losing My Religion" paired with offbeat subject matter - here, the late actor/performance artist #AndyKaufman, embracing the question raised by Kaufman's performance, and his very life: What is real?
Throughout the song #MichaelStipe sketches vignettes from Kaufman’s professional life, but in the lyrics quoted above, Stipe invokes biblical and historical scientific figures; is he elevating Kaufman to their stature, or just demonstrating his signature non sequitur technique?