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Marigold
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3 out of 5 - R.E.M. Life's Rich Pageant

Posted about 1 year ago
R.E.M.Life's Rich Pageant.1986.Cuyahoga.Life's Rich Pageant is a record that really opened my eyes to music outside of strict Christian music only listening. You need to understand that this was a big deal for this late 1980's high school kid to be listening to. I had been told since I was 10 that non-Christian music is bad. I don't know that it was ever really enforced. But I remember overall that it was not right to listen to "secular" music. R.E.M was the band that shook my soul and let me know that there was something better in the pop-rock music format then Michael W. Smith or Petra. I fondly remember the summer I heard this record. A good friend of mine from high school showed it to me. We were your typical nerdy RPG (Roll Playing Game) kids. D&D and Battletech would consume our weekends. Music was important to have in the background of any hang out session. If memory serves it would have been the years of 87/88. Life's Rich Pageant and Document will always hold very special memories for me.
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Comments (27)

  1. Beetlebum16
    Beetlebum16 says I love Life's Rich Pageant. its a really great record. you should also check out Automatic for The People, thats another great record by R.E.M. their coming out with a new album next year, i can't wait!
    Permalink posted 12/14/2007
  2. Augusts1
    Augusts1 says I miss the days of old REM. I have all their albums up to "Out Of Time" & then I lost interest. I p/u "Monster" in this decade since I found it used for $2.00 or something just to see what they were doing but also cause I heard "Crush W/Eyeliner" & loved it. Life's Rich Pageant" is an awesome cd but I think my fave of theirs is "Fables of The Reconstruction". I too was a victim of the xian music line of thinking. I even recall going through a phase of throwing away some of my "secular" albums cause there was some speaker that talked at our church about the evils of "satanic" rock music. Loved Petra & Resurrection Band, Michael W. Smith not so much. I was really into Steve Taylor & Daniel Amos who were more on the cutting edge of xian music at the time, or so I thought. I realized that most xian music is just aping the current trends & isn't so 'cutting edge' at all. But I've since left all xian music behind.
    Permalink posted 12/14/2007
  3. Groon
    Groon says mid to late 80's REM is some of the best music of the modern era, IMO. I have a somehwat similar music background, as you know, and didn't really know much about music until the end of high school and college. My roommate freshman year had Document on cassette, and the first time I heard it I was completely blown away. I echo August with their downturn after Out of Time, although they still put out a good song now and then.
    Permalink posted 12/14/2007
  4. Marigold
    Marigold says Beetlebum. I love everything before Green. But for whatever reason after Green I kind of lost it with R.E.M. I did buy Green and Out of Time. However, Out of Time pretty much sealed their fate with me. If I never hear the song Shinny Happy People I will be good. That is not to say Automatic for the People and Monster as well as other newer ones are not good. It is just they did not touch me like Document and earlier stuff. I will check out their new one when it comes out. Thanks for stopping by. August. Fables is an awesome record. I also liked Dead Letter Office a lot. It is too bad that You, Chuck and I all had to go through that. It sure has made and interesting music journey so far for me. Its one thing to be into indie music but being into indie christian music is even that much more crazy. lol. I am not completly devoid of any christian music anymore. I do still have a few that linger around and are not going anywhere. SF59 being a great example. Chuck. I can't argue with that. R.E.M. is the catalyst for where I am musically today. They are pretty much soley responsible for me discovering all kinds of bands that mean so much to me today. Thanks for chucking in. :P
    Permalink posted 12/14/2007
  5. Groon
    Groon says It doesn't sound like I got it quite as much as you guys, though. My parents were against non Christian music in general, but I think it was more out of trying to protect us than anything else, even if it was done very naively (I can remember my mom having objections to Phil Collins' No Jacket Required because he was SWEATING on the cover, and she was sure that had to mean something!). Once I started getting into music I would basically play it all the time, and I think once they heard it wasn't all about sex and drugs they opened up a bit. My dad, especially, started to listen to some of the stuff, and I think to this day he secretly likes the Talking Heads. Of course, I only made sure to play songs around them that weren't about sex and drugs!
    Permalink posted 12/14/2007
  6. Groon
    Groon says woops! forgot to unitalicize that!
    Permalink posted 12/14/2007
  7. poebegone
    poebegone says how come i never knew you did much churching?!? this means it's time for me to come out and say that, not only did i attend an all-girls Catholic high school, i was a Sunday choirgirl all four years. i love the song up there. i especially love the masterlist of 44.
    Permalink posted 12/15/2007
  8. Marigold
    Marigold says Chuck. Thanks for sharing. I know of what you speak. I do not have a lot of music memories in the sense of specific bands I was not able to listen to. It was more of a overall no no to listen to secular music. One thing that really hurt me as a kid was throwing away my Marvel Star Wars comic book collection. I had almost all 107 of them. You know, because the force is bad. It is demonic. I should send my parents the bill for all of the Star Wars comics I had to rebuy about 5 years ago. That was not cheap. :P Ilay. Thanks for checking out my weird list. I am glad you like it. Oh, one other thing......"Catholic, School Girls Rule! Catholic School Girls Rule!" :)
    Permalink posted 12/15/2007
  9. Groon
    Groon says . . . And my parents not only loved Star Wars as much as I did, they bought me nearly every toy out at the time. That sucks she made you throw them out. I've always kind of wondered why my parents, so strict and evangelical on some things, had no problems with things like Star Wars and Halloween, things that made other holy rollers cringe.
    Permalink posted 12/15/2007
  10. bloodtea
    bloodtea says Lovely... now here's a band I haven't listened in years - thanks for bringing this tune! Thank goodness, they didn't tell you non-Christian music would make you bleed for the ears - luckly for me, my dad's musical taste was wacky enough to make me believe there wasn't something dark out there waiting for me, hah.
    Permalink posted 12/15/2007
  11. Marigold
    Marigold says Chuck. Same here. BUT!... after my parents found Jesus they would not allow it any longer and then made me get rid of all my Star Wars stuff. They are not nearly that strict any longer. They eventually lightened up. I do not think they are nearly as "holy roller" any longer. LOL . Andrea. Glad I got to bring them back to your attention. This was a great era for REM . As for things in the dark, you might be what my parents were concerned about. ;)
    Permalink posted 12/15/2007
  12. Augusts1
    Augusts1 says Lol, good one there Mike to Andrea! hehe Yes I like Dead Letter Office as well, some great rarities, covers & b-sides. My parents were extremely strict, we were goddamn baptists fer chrissakes! My mom came into my room & saw the back cover of my Elton John "Capt. Fantastic & the Brown Dirt Cowboy" lp which has alot of weird & freaky artwork on it. But she freaked cause there was a naked woman w/a bug's head on the back & confiscated it, throwing it away! I was SO pissed off since I was a huge Elton fan & loved that album. They then wanted to go through my record collection to see if there was anything more that they should confiscate. Thank goddess they didn't listen to any of the songs or really cared about the music, I would've been up shit creek. I ended up buying an 8 track cassette of "Capt. Fantastic" awhile later so I could listen to it & prove to them(w/o their knowledge of course)& myself that I could listen to what I wanted, hehe. I even had tried to get them to pay for the lp they threw away since it was my hard earned money that paid for it, goddamn it, but they wouldn't hear it! Good times, good times, lol! But yea, it is too bad all of us had to go through the religion thing. As far as I'm concerned organized religion is more evil & has caused more death, destruction, etc. than the things they target combined!
    Permalink posted 12/15/2007
  13. Marigold
    Marigold says I kind of lucked out for music when I was a kid. I was young enough (about 9 or 10) that I had not really discovered music just yet when my parents became *holy rollers*. (Chuck reminded me of that term and just had to use it. lol) I love how you re-bought Capt. Fantastic again on 8 Track. You showed them! LOL. I wonder what my parents would say if I asked them to pay for my Marvel Star Wars comic collection I had to rebuy? I would not ask because I really do not care anymore, but it would be funny to see their reactions. lol. Hope your weekend is going well sir!
    Permalink posted 12/16/2007
  14. bloodtea
    bloodtea says HEY! I bet they would love to meet me (and my jesus fan club gang as well)!
    Permalink posted 12/16/2007
  15. Marigold
    Marigold says ha. Jesus fan club aye?
    Permalink posted 12/16/2007
  16. bloodtea
    bloodtea says I'm not a religious person, therefore I was kidding. But you can joing the gang, I won't mind ;-)
    Permalink posted 12/16/2007
  17. Marigold
    Marigold says Praise the Lord. Count me in.
    Permalink posted 12/16/2007
  18. Augusts1
    Augusts1 says Hallelujah, I'm in! hehe
    Permalink posted 12/16/2007
  19. ZenPop
    ZenPop says I LOVE this album... it's on my top 3 R.E.M. albums of all time... The others: Murmur and... surprisingly... "Automatic For The People"... (definitely give this one another chance... great from beginning to end...) followed closely by "Document," "Fables Of The Reconstruction" (or "Reconstruction of the Fables"... I always loved how it could be read either way...) "Chronic Town" and "Reckoning"... I lost interest in them after "Automatic"... but for about ten years they were completely on top of their game... one of the great American bands off all-time. ...and by the way, Augusts... "Captain Fantastic" is a great album... I'm glad you got it back...
    Permalink posted 12/16/2007
  20. Marigold
    Marigold says I will have to load AFTP up on the ZUNE again. It has been a while since I have heard that one. I think my wife still has a copy. I will get hers. Document is my first then Life's and then it is really tough for me. Pretty much everything before the those two are third. Thanks for stopping in.
    Permalink posted 12/16/2007
  21. ketut
    ketut says Chronic Town and Murmer for my tastes. Oh okay and Document and Life's Rich Dead Letter Office, Reckoning, Fables... and even Green.
    Permalink posted 12/18/2007
  22. Marigold
    Marigold says Keith we are like R.E.M. twins.
    Permalink posted 12/18/2007
  23. ketut
    ketut says Twin sons of different mothers. Okay, so Dan Fogleberg died yesterday, okay? And he was young. 50 something okay, so I made a Dan fogelberg joke so sue me.
    Permalink posted 12/18/2007
  24. Marigold
    Marigold says It is a good thing you explained your joke because I am Dan Fogleberg eliterate.
    Permalink posted 12/18/2007
  25. Doomsayer2001
    Doomsayer2001 says If I had to listen to Petra or MWS... God help me. It proves there is hell on earth and it's called ccm... (gag's then blows chunks)
    Permalink posted 12/23/2007
  26. Marigold
    Marigold says I like you Doom. You never hold back how you feel. That is important to me. Keep it up. If you don't, I will send you "The Big Picture" on vinyl for you to listen to over and over....forever. muhahahahahahahahahahahahah muhahahahahahahahaahaha
    Permalink posted 12/24/2007
  27. Doomsayer2001
    Doomsayer2001 says Heh... sounds like that ccm comment I left ya!
    Permalink posted 12/24/2007

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