Document (Remastered) - REM > Reviews > Life's Rich Pageant or Document?

Author's product rating:   

Originality	Definitely a cut above the rest
Lyrics	Thought-provoking
Quality and consistency of tracks	A couple of weak links
How does it compare to the artist's other releases	Outstanding
Value for Money	Good

Advantages:	The sound of a band on the edge of stardom
Disadvantages:	rough edges and a lack of singles

Recommend to potential buyers:

yes

Full review

Strange one this - the album cover is that of Life's Rich Pageant and the track listing given is for that album but the title given is Document, the album after. Which should I review? Well, like a good little Ciao reviewer I'll do both!

First off let's delve into Life's Rich Pageant. This was a crucial album for the band coming after "Murmur" and "Reckoning" had showcased their guitar driven college rock and the recording of the famously difficult third album, "Fables of The Reconstruction" in London had nearly torn the band apart. REM were also reconsidering their sound - should Michael Stipe's vocals, barely distinguishable on the first records, come further to the fore in the mix, were the trademark jangly guitars all they wanted to be known for?
Some answers can be found as soon as you start playing LIfe's Rich Pageant. The tempo is much quicker, the tone rockier and Stipe's lyrics, although still oblique, can be heard. Some of the themes that still follow the band today begin to blossom on this album as politics (name checks of Martin Luther King and a song about Guatemala) and the environment (Cuyahoga was written about a terrible pollution incident in a river in the US). This remastered album also gathers up some rarities (Superman is a cover version that gave the band a hit while Toys in the Attic is an Aerosmith classic - REM often name checked Aerosmith and Pylon as influences in their early career but this was the first album where that seemed to make any sense!).
As an album, I think it's a cracker - probably my joint favourite REM moment along with Automatic for the People - with consistently great songs and no fillers. However, what it did lack was the killer single, the memorable hook that would have catapulted the band into the big time. However, the album served notice that fame, and stadium rock, was just round the corner.

Document followed this high point with a further attempt to streamline their sound and to address the lack of hits. The album's much more like a collection of songs rather than a consistent body of work. The darker side to Stipe's song writing continued to come to the fore but ironically the two big hits from the record were interpreted more lightly by the masses. It's The End Of The World As We Know It (And I Feel Fine) is a jaunty list song, despite it's depressing title, while The One I Love was seen as a love song by many although the lyrics speak of the death of a relationship. For me, this was a disappointing album for the band although it was still superior to most alternatives. The trademark jangly guitar of Peter Buck was getting replaced by more standard guitar riffs and Mike Mills' melodic bass was being overpowered. Thye weren't going all out for commercialism - Stipe's lyrics remained oblique and strange obsessions recur throughout the songs. However it did again show that the band was ready to play to big audiences and it was no surprise when this album proved to be their last on the independent American label IRS and the band signed a multi-album deal with Warners and went on to become one of the biggest bands of the 90s.

So two good albums but Life's Rich Pageant would be my pick every time.