Chronic Town
by R.E.M.

Chronic Town by R.E.M.
Year: 1982
Release date: 1982-08-24
Overall rank: 2,353rd   Overall chart history
Average Rating: 
78/100 (from 236 votes)
  Ratings distribution   Average rating history
Accolades:
Award Top albums of 1982 (43rd)
Award Top albums of the 1980s (351st)
Award Best albums of all time (2,353rd)

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Product Details
Availability

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R.E.M. - Chronic Town E.P. [New Vinyl LP] Extended Play, Ltd Ed SEALED RARE REM
Condition: New


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eBay
REM "Chronic Town" Vinyl EP (1982) I.R.S. Records Poster Torn 70502
Condition: Used


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REM Dead Letter Office & Chronic Town CD 1987 EX-NM- Tested Plays Fine 20 Songs
Condition: Very Good


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R.E.M. bestography

Chronic Town is ranked 12th best out of 36 albums by R.E.M. on BestEverAlbums.com.

The best album by R.E.M. is Automatic For The People which is ranked number 45 in the list of all-time albums with a total rank score of 19,167.

R.E.M. album bestography « Higher ranked (1,556th)
Up
This album (2,353rd)
Chronic Town
Lower ranked (2,896th) »
Reveal

(N.B. Bestographies include all albums by an artist (and their variations), but do not include albums ranked outside the top 100,000).

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Chronic Town track list

  Track ratings The tracks on this album have an average rating of 82 out of 100 (all tracks have been rated).

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Track pick (1000 - 100 votes) Top-rated track as rated by BestEverAlbums.com members.

Chronic Town rankings

Rankings summary
Overall rank: 2,353rd | 1980s rank: 351st | 1982 rank: 43rd

Chronic Town collection

Chronic Town ratings

Average Rating: 
78/100 (from 236 votes)
  Ratings distribution Help Average Rating = (n ÷ (n + m)) × av + (m ÷ (n + m)) × AV
where:
av = trimmed mean average rating an item has currently received.
n = number of ratings an item has currently received.
m = minimum number of ratings required for an item to appear in a 'top-rated' chart (currently 10).
AV = the site mean average rating.

Showing latest 5 ratings for this album.  | Show all 236 ratings for this album.

Sort Sort by
RatingDate updatedMemberAlbum ratingsAvg. album rating
 
80/100
 
03/13/2026 12:47 Exist-en-ciel  Ratings distribution  9,29370/100
 
100/100
 
03/02/2026 00:17 Devilwoac  Ratings distribution  1,10497/100
 
75/100
 
02/01/2026 12:54 markl73  Ratings distribution  58778/100
 
85/100
 
12/30/2025 20:06 Milhaud  Ratings distribution  1,90870/100
 
85/100
 
09/23/2025 19:52 ShenBapiro  Ratings distribution  36380/100

Rating metrics: Help Outliers can be removed when calculating a mean average to dampen the effects of ratings outside the normal distribution. This figure is provided as the trimmed mean. A high standard deviation can be legitimate, but can sometimes indicate 'gaming' is occurring. Consider a simplified example* of an item receiving ratings of 100, 50, & 0. The mean average rating would be 50. However, ratings of 55, 50 & 45 could also result in the same average. The second average might be more trusted because there is more consensus around a particular rating (a lower deviation).
(*In practice, some albums can have several thousand ratings)

This album is rated in the top 2% of all albums on BestEverAlbums.com. This album has a Bayesian average rating of 77.7/100, a mean average of 77.5/100, and a trimmed mean (excluding outliers) of 77.9/100. The standard deviation for this album is 14.1.

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Chronic Town comments

Showing latest 10 comments | Show all 11 comments |
Most Helpful First | Newest First | Positive Sentiment First | Longest Comments First
(Only showing comments with -2 votes or higher. You can alter this threshold from your profile page. Manage Profile)

Rating:  
80/100
From 10/08/2017 08:42 | #199260
‘Chronic Town’ sparkles with “Wolves Lower” , “Gardening At Night” and “1,000,000” but peaks with the amazing “Carnival Of Sorts” setting the scene for one of the great bands of our times
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From 05/26/2017 19:21 | #191460
Cool EP. Murmur does sound a lot like this.
10/10
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
70/100
From 12/26/2016 05:07 | #181002
Highlights: Gardering At Night, Wolves Lower
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | -1 votes (0 helpful | 1 unhelpful)
Rating:  
100/100
From 11/20/2016 21:24 | #178791
R.E.M.'s best release. The only weak cut is "Stumble". The rest is basically perfect. The songs are energized (even on the sections where things seem to be quiet) to the point where it all sounds psychotic. Stipe's hooks are wonderful and always unpredictable, and Peter Buck's riffs are so good they defined what Jangle Pop would sound like for the next 5+ years. "Carnival of Sorts" might be the band's best song now that I think about it.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +2 votes (2 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
60/100
From 09/29/2016 20:17 | #176039
This comment is beneath your viewing threshold.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | -4 votes (0 helpful | 4 unhelpful)
Rating:  
100/100
From 09/03/2015 11:58 | #149164
A lovely EP from REM, already producing great songs even before the release of Murmur. All five tracks are magnificent to listen to and provide the basis for REM's early sound. Undoubtedly would be listed to one of the greatest EPs of all time
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +2 votes (2 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
100/100
From 05/03/2015 14:33 | #140757
For me, this is R.E.M's finest (just shy of half an) hour. The first 4 tracks are all zingers, and whilst Stumble is a little short of high watermark set by what comes before it doesn't detract from what - along with MBV's "Sunny Sundae Smile" and Buzzcocks' "Spiral Scratch" - is one of the top 3 EPs ever.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +2 votes (2 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From 09/28/2014 03:07 | #122903
Best Track: Gardening at Night
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | -1 votes (0 helpful | 1 unhelpful)
From 06/11/2013 15:31 | #78605
Possibly the greatest EP ever
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +4 votes (4 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
100/100
From 06/23/2012 00:04 | #45038
A stunning debut from a great band. Not their best album, but this five song E.P. really is the quintessential R.E.M. album.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +2 votes (2 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
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Best Albums of 1982
1. Thriller by Michael Jackson
2. The Dreaming by Kate Bush
3. The Number Of The Beast by Iron Maiden
4. Nebraska by Bruce Springsteen
5. Pornography by The Cure
6. 1999 by Prince
7. Avalon by Roxy Music
8. Rio by Duran Duran
9. Love Over Gold by Dire Straits
10. The Nightfly by Donald Fagen
11. Combat Rock by The Clash
12. New Gold Dream (81-82-83-84) by Simple Minds
13. Imperial Bedroom by Elvis Costello And The Attractions
14. Peter Gabriel (1982) by Peter Gabriel
15. Big Science by Laurie Anderson
16. English Settlement by XTC
17. Screaming For Vengeance by Judas Priest
18. The Lexicon Of Love by ABC
19. Hex Enduction Hour by The Fall
20. Bad Brains by Bad Brains