Murmur (studio album) by R.E.M.

Murmur by R.E.M.
Year: 1983
Overall rank: 142nd   Overall chart historyOverall chart history
Average Rating: 
83/100 (from 1,376 votes)
  Ratings distributionRatings distribution   Average rating historyAverage rating history
Accolades:
Award Best album of 1983 (1st)
Award Top 20 albums of the 1980s (19th)
Award Top 200 albums of all time (142nd)
Product Details
Availability

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R.E.M. Murmur - 1983 I.R.S. Canada. Cassette Tape. Excellent Condition! RARE!
Condition: Like New


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R.E.M. - Murmur - RARE 1984 US “B” Press Translucent Gray Color Vinyl (NM)
Condition: Used

$106.24


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R.E.M. - Murmur - RARE 1984 US “B” Press Translucent Gray Color Vinyl (EX)
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R.E.M. bestography

Murmur is ranked 2nd best out of 35 albums by R.E.M. on BestEverAlbums.com.

The best album by R.E.M. is Automatic For The People which is ranked number 49 in the list of all-time albums with a total rank score of 20,488.

R.E.M. album bestography « Higher ranked (49th) This album (142nd) Lower ranked (376th) »
Automatic For The PeopleMurmurDocument

Upcoming concerts

Apr
07
Sun
19:00
Bayside - The Worse Things Than Being Alive Tour
Brooklyn Bowl Nashville, Nashville, United States. United States
Tickets from $29.99 (Ticketmaster) Get tickets
 
Mar
22
Fri
18:30
One Hallelujah
Stifel Theatre, St. Louis, United States. United States
Tickets from $25.00 (Ticketmaster) Get tickets
 
Apr
16
Tue
19:30
SESSANTA: Primus, Puscifer, A Perfect Circle
Talking Stick Resort Amphitheatre, Phoenix, United States. United States
Tickets from $49.50 (Ticketmaster) Get tickets
 
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Murmur track list

  Track ratingsTrack ratings The tracks on this album have an average rating of 84 out of 100 (all tracks have been rated).

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2.
Rating: 86 (292 votes)Comments: 4
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3.
Rating: 84 (267 votes)Comments: 3
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5.
Rating: 84 (249 votes)Comments: 5
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6.
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Rating: 86 (320 votes)Comments: 4
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7.
Rating: 83 (252 votes)Comments: 3
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8.
Rating: 84 (245 votes)Comments: 3
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9.
Rating: 80 (230 votes)Comments: 2
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10.
Rating: 84 (239 votes)Comments: 2
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11.
Rating: 81 (239 votes)Comments: 3
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Track pick Top-rated track as rated by BestEverAlbums.com members.

Murmur rankings

Murmur collection

Murmur ratings

Average Rating: 
83/100 (from 1,376 votes)
  Ratings distributionRatings distribution 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 1,376 ratings for this album.

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RatingDate updatedMemberAlbum ratingsAvg. album rating
 
95/100
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38 hours ago jago8517  Ratings distributionRatings distribution 9862/100
 
75/100
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4 days ago RadioGraaah  Ratings distributionRatings distribution 46878/100
 
75/100
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03/07/2024 03:50 robertoveltri  Ratings distributionRatings distribution 33279/100
 
65/100
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02/28/2024 19:02 Gavin Cook  Ratings distributionRatings distribution 24965/100
 
80/100
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02/23/2024 21:55 Foxforce5  Ratings distributionRatings distribution 44275/100

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 82.8/100, a mean average of 82.1/100, and a trimmed mean (excluding outliers) of 82.9/100. The standard deviation for this album is 14.3.

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Murmur comments

Showing latest 10 comments | Show all 94 comments |
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Rating:  
80/100
From 03/26/2023 11:05
A thoroughly enjoyable R.E.M. album that might get slightly overrated but there is still a lot to love about the music on here. They have some absolute classics on this release such as Radio Free Europe, Talk About The Passion and Sitting Still which demonstrate so much potential and are so enjoyable to listen to. The best of the tracks on here is Perfect Circle and it is possibly the greatest, or is at least my favourite, R.E.M. song of all time. It is just so rewarding and satisfying to listen to this song and I always find myself replaying it straight after finishing this album. The rest of the songs I haven't mentioned so far are pretty decent with a couple going a little beyond that which makes this a consistent and cohesive listen. However, this record only has a handful outstanding tracks and it is missing a few to be considered amongst the greatest albums of all time. Also, the style, while it is unique, does get repetitive and boring by the time you reach track 9 and this can make it feel like a drag to finish this record at times. Overall, a very good R.E.M record that has its moments where it shines but it isn't an elite level album despite how enjoyable it is to listen to.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
90/100
From 10/23/2022 11:40
Generally good album that shaped indie/alt rock as we know it today, but it suffers a little bit of similar sound of every track. I love Radio Free Europe and Talk About The Passion, Moral Kiosk, Perfect Circle is probably best sequence of songs on this album.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
80/100
From 08/11/2022 19:15
I find it quite baffling this is rated the #1 album of 1983. I enjoy R.E.M. but this isn’t even close to their best album and the fact that it’s placed over Synchronicity is insane.
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Rating:  
80/100
From 01/26/2022 12:06
This album pisses me off, I should be great but is not. The overall sameness of the tracks makes this a dull listen.
Definite highlights are missing. Very listenable, generally most of the songs fade to big nowhere
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | -2 votes (0 helpful | 2 unhelpful)
Rating:  
35/100
From 01/15/2022 10:30
I don't rate this as highly as their 90s work. The album is pleasant but most of the tracks are very forgettable. Perfect Circle is excellent and is easily in my top 5 REM songs, Sitting Still is also nice, but the rest are nothing special.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | -1 votes (1 helpful | 2 unhelpful)
Rating:  
85/100
From 01/03/2022 16:45
strong throughout nice variant on classic rock sounds
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From 11/21/2021 18:57
Buen disco de REM.
Quizá un poco exagerado que sea el mejor disco de 1983.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From 11/17/2021 20:01
TBC…

Album Rating:
( / )

Side one

"Radio Free Europe" – 77
"Pilgrimage" – 77
"Laughing" – 75
"Talk About the Passion" – 74
"Moral Kiosk" – 76
"Perfect Circle" –

Side two

"Catapult" –
"Sitting Still" –
"9–9" –
"Shaking Through" –
"We Walk" –
"West of the Fields" -
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | -1 votes (0 helpful | 1 unhelpful)
Rating:  
85/100
From 11/05/2021 22:43
I still remember exactly where I was the first time I heard this album. Haunting vocals, even if I generally don’t have a clue what Stipe is saying.

REM is an interesting band because they always sound like themselves but they also reflect the era in which the album was released. Definitely a strain of early 80s New Wave tossed in with the REM DNA.

It’s hard to imagine writing a song as good as Perfect Circle this early in a band’s career.

You can definitely tell the musicians haven’t fully matured into what they would become, which might be the only downside to this record.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
75/100
From 08/19/2021 12:55
Not a bad album, but not one of their best. The high rank in 1983 is caused by a lack of good albums in the early 80s
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)

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Best Albums of 1983
1. Murmur by R.E.M.
2. Violent Femmes by Violent Femmes
3. Power, Corruption & Lies by New Order
4. War by U2
5. Synchronicity by The Police
6. Speaking In Tongues by Talking Heads
7. Swordfishtrombones by Tom Waits
8. Kill 'Em All by Metallica
9. Let's Dance by David Bowie
10. The Final Cut by Pink Floyd
11. Clics Modernos by Charly García
12. Script Of The Bridge by The Chameleons
13. Soul Mining by The The
14. Pyromania by Def Leppard
15. Script For A Jester's Tear by Marillion
16. Holy Diver by Dio
17. Piece Of Mind by Iron Maiden
18. The Hurting by Tears For Fears
19. Eliminator by ZZ Top
20. Texas Flood by Stevie Ray Vaughan & Double Trouble
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