Document
by R.E.M.
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R.E.M. bestography
Document is ranked 3rd 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 18,628.
(N.B. Bestographies include all albums by an artist (and their variations), but do not include albums ranked outside the top 100,000).
Listen to Document on YouTube
Document track list
The tracks on this album have an average rating of 82 out of 100 (all tracks have been rated).
Top-rated track as rated by BestEverAlbums.com members.
Document rankings
Calculated from aggregate positions across 60,000 charts (2 million album rankings). Click to see how the rankings are calculated (Last updated: 2 hours ago)
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LiedzeitDocument collection
Showing latest 20 members who have this album in their collection | Show all 521 members
Document ratings
Average Rating = (n ÷ (n + m)) × av + (m ÷ (n + m)) × AVwhere:
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 937 ratings for this album.
| Rating | Date updated | Member | Album ratings | Avg. album rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ! | 22 hours ago | JamesMowbray | 5,621 | 69/100 |
| ! | 08/11/2026 06:54 | oliver63 | 9 | 93/100 |
| ! | 07/28/2026 02:11 | xhitmanx | 1,572 | 74/100 |
| ! | 07/23/2026 02:18 | stryker700 | 295 | 90/100 |
| ! | 07/09/2026 15:08 | ecocruzr | 144 | 68/100 |
Rating metrics:
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 1% of all albums on BestEverAlbums.com. This album has a Bayesian average rating of 80.3/100, a mean average of 79.4/100, and a trimmed mean (excluding outliers) of 80.4/100. The standard deviation for this album is 13.1.
Document favourites
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Document comments
Most Helpful First | Newest First | Positive Sentiment First | Longest Comments First
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I've been a huge R.E.M. fan since I bought my first album of theirs, Murmur, Back in 1983 from the fantastic Rough Trade West in Notting Hill. Loved them then, love them now,
Document is their finest achievement amongst so many phenomenal albums that they have produced over such a long career, One of the true great bands of all tim (Edited)
HoldenM 03/24/2025 01:19 | #308168
A really good album if not quite a great one like their previous four. Solid from top to bottom without ever being revelatory. (Edited)
One of the best albums of the 80s. (Edited)
Solid, but far from their best. The One I Love is my favourite track. (Edited)
Brings REM's unique and beautiful sound into it's most interesting and listenable package.
Another solid album, imo the best since Murmur, I like how they push further with sound from previous record and add a lot of political themes. Lyrics are thought-provoking and leave a lot for interpretation, some of the best tracks are: Finest Worksong, It's The End Of The World As We Know It, The One I Love and very underrated, dark Fireplace.
Jboy56 02/11/2022 12:38 | #281111
Hmm, One great song the others are not bad but not too memorable or getting airplay after 35 years after their release.
sszwalbenest 02/03/2022 16:37 | #280581
I've been a democrat my whole life, but my god, this album has taught me what Fox News means by 'smug liberal'. Hard to appreciate the music when bumper sticker messages are being shoved down my throat.
I like this album, the first seven tracks are excellent and then the standard drops slight bit. It is the start to their commercial success.
teague 06/23/2020 18:30 | #254313
Lifes Rich Pageant is where they decided to strip back their sound, and Document is where it pays off. The songs are catchy, contrasting with the angry lyrics with grace and finesse. It's the End of the World as We Know It (And I Feel Fine) will always be a fun song to listen to, and The One I Love is still one of their best songs.
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