History Music / Green

* NewSoundAlbum: While the album continues the harder sound of ''Music/{{Document}}'', the songwriting style is vastly different from previous records, with Peter Buck noting in an interview that the album marked a shift from minor-key, folk rock-influenced material to more major-key and more overtly rockist songs. Reportedly, Michael Stipe even instructed the band to avoid writing any more "R.E.M.-type" songs; this shift allowed the band to reinvent themselves for their tenure on Creator/WarnerBrosRecords, instead of simply continuing what they had already been doing on Creator/IRSRecords.

* NonAppearingTitle: "Pop Song 89", "The Wrong Child" and "I Remember California" (though "I remember" is a frequently repeated phrase in the latter). Also technically true with "11." -- a title can't appear in a song if there isn't one.

** "Pop Song 89" completely takes the piss out of typical pop music tropes, tossing in as many cliche pop song subjects as possible within its three-minute runtime. The name "Pop Song 89" may additionally further this; given that the album was released in 1988, the allusion to the year 1989 in the title may be a jab at the fact that subject matter in pop music remained relatively unchanged since the 1940's and was unlikely to deviate too much from the norm in the future.

* MythologyGag:
** "Pop Song 89" reprises the lead riff of "Feeling Gravity's Pull" off of ''Music/FablesOfTheReconstruction'', albeit in a major key and faster-paced this time around.
** "Turn You Inside-Out" is more or less a remake of "Finest Worksong" off of ''Music/{{Document}}'', just with the chord progression reversed; the lyrics also act as a thematic continuation.

# "11." (3:15)[[note]]Technically has NoTitle, but is copyrighted under the title "11." Also titled "So Awake Volunteer" in a fan club-exclusive lyric sheet.[[/note]]

* AnimatedMusicVideo: "Get Up", directed by recent [=CalArts=] grad and future Dreamworks Animation film director Eric Darnell.

* NoTitle: The unnamed eleventh track, which isn't listed on the back cover but is given away via a timestamp on the disc label. The song is copyrighted under the name "11.", but only out of necessity; officially, it goes unnamed, and the "11." title is an allusion to the fact that the timestamp on the disc label is the only thing next to the otherwise blank eleventh spot on the tracklist. Fans commonly refer to it as the "11th Untitled Song", and a copy of the lyrics was sent out to members of the then-newly established fan club under the title "So Awake Volunteer".

** The "Orange Crush" single features covers of Music/{{Suicide}}'s "Ghost Rider" and Music/SydBarrett's [[Music/TheMadcapLaughs "Dark Globe"]] on the B-side.

* DoubleEntendre: The title phrase in "Orange Crush" refers both to the soda and the devastation caused by Agent Orange attacks.

** During the album's 1989 world tour, the band would typically close out shows with a cover of [[Music/TheVelvetUnderground "After Hours"]] by the Music/VelvetUnderground, as captured in ''Tourfilm''.

** The UK second issue B-side of "Stand" has a cover of "Skin Tight" by the Ohio players.

** "Stand" received a parody by Music/WeirdAlYankovic in the form of "Spam", off of ''Music/UHFOriginalMotionPictureSoundtrackAndOtherStuff''.

* InTheStyleOf: "Stand" was written as a homage to cheesy 1960's bubblegum pop in the vein of Music/TheMonkees and Series/TheBananaSplits.

** ''Green'', an album full of [[GreenAesop green aesops]].

* GreenAesop: The album isn't called ''Green'' for nothing.

* WordSaladLyrics: As per usual with R.E.M. In particular, Peter Buck stated about "Orange Crush" that "I must have played this song like 3000 times in concert and after all this time I still have no idea what the fuck it's about." For the record, Michael Stipe stated that the song was about the U.S. Air Force's use of Agent Orange during the Vietnam War.

[[caption-width-right:350:''"I've got my spine, I've got my Orange Crush."'']]

Still, the move from an independent label to a major one drew controversy among the alternative crowd, who accused R.E.M. of [[SellOut selling out]]. Combined with the band's furthering of the poppier sound they had been developing since ''Lifes Rich Pageant'', ''Green'' became something of a dividing point among fans, some of whom choose to ignore everything the band put out after this album-- sometimes lumping it in with its successors.

Despite the controversy surrounding the change in label, ''Green'' was a commercial success, peaking at No. 12 on the Billboard charts. The single "Stand" additionally became R.E.M.'s second top-10 hit, peaking at No. 6 on the Billboard 100 and receiving a parody by Music/WeirdAlYankovic in the form of [[Music/UHFOriginalMotionPictureSoundtrackAndOtherStuff "Spam"]]. The album's success was bolstered by an elaborate 11-month world tour throughout 1989, which helped build an international fanbase for R.E.M.; a ConcertFilm from the tour, aptly titled ''Tourfilm'', would release on Warner Reprise Video in 1990. The tour, in combination with Warner Bros' greater international distribution of the band's material, added fuel to the fire of growing success that "The One I Love" sparked in 1987, eventually culminating in R.E.M.'s 1991 mainstream breakthrough with their next album, ''Music/OutOfTime''.

The album was also a critical success for R.E.M. as well: among others, Music/{{Nirvana}} frontman Music/KurtCobain regarded the album as a personal favorite of his, and Magazine/{{NME}} ranked it at No. 274 in their list of the [[UsefulNotes/NME500GreatestAlbumsOfAllTime 500 Greatest Albums of All Time]]. As of 2020, it also sits at No. 890 on ''WebSite/AcclaimedMusic''[='s=] [[UsefulNotes/AcclaimedMusicAllTimeTopAlbums list of the 3000 most critically praised albums]]. Among the fans who didn't see it as the band selling out, it's also regarded as one of R.E.M.'s best albums, alongside ''Music/{{Murmur}}'', ''Document'', ''Out of Time'', ''Music/AutomaticForThePeople'', and ''Music/NewAdventuresInHiFi''.

** The "Orange Crush" single features covers of Music/{{Suicide}}'s "Ghost Rider" and Music/SydBarrett's "Dark Globe" on the B-side.

* NippleAndDimed: {{Parodied|Trope}} in the video for "Pop Song 89", which features Michael Stipe and a group of female dancers performing topless; when MTV asked that the women have {{censor box}}es placed over their chests, the band complied... but not without adding a censor box on top of Stipe to jab at the double-standard.

* RealLifeWritesThePlot: "Get Up" was written as a jab at Mike Mills' tendency to oversleep during the album's recording sessions. Mills didn't find this out until Stipe told the story about the song in a concert in the late 90's.

** "Pop Song 89" reprises the lead riff of "Feeling Gravity's Pull" off of ''Fables of the Reconstruction'', albeit in a major key and faster-paced this time around.

Regarding the album itself, the sound continues the shift to more commercially-accessible music, albeit throwing in a more self-aware and sarcastic angle towards it, and refines the harder style first developed on ''Music/{{Document}}''. The mood is overall dour and the lyrics emphasize both sociopolitical and environmental themes; fitting this, the album was released directly to coincide with Election Day 1988, with the band using their increased profile to criticize Republican candidate UsefulNotes/GeorgeHWBush while endorsing Democratic candidate Michael Dukakis (who would ultimately lose to Bush, souring the band's spirits, as later depicted on their 1992 song [[Music/AutomaticForThePeople "Ignoreland"]]).

* CensorBox: The video for "Pop Song 89" has Michael Stipe and a few female dancers. All are topless... and all have bars covering their nipples.

The album was also a critical success for R.E.M. as well: among others, Music/{{Nirvana}} frontman Music/KurtCobain regarded the album as a personal favorite of his, and Magazine/{{NME}} ranked it at No. 274 in their list of the [[UsefulNotes/NME500GreatestAlbumsOfAllTime 500 Greatest Albums of All Time]]. Among the fans who didn't see it as the band selling out, it's also regarded as one of R.E.M.'s best albums, alongside ''Music/{{Murmur}}'', ''Document'', ''Out of Time'', ''Music/AutomaticForThePeople'', and ''Music/NewAdventuresInHiFi''.

* TruckDriversGearChange: Done twice on "Stand".

** "Pop Song 89" reprises the lead riff of "Feeling Gravity's Pull" off of ''Fables of the Reconstructions'', albeit in a major key and faster-paced this time around.

* TalkAboutTheWeather: The chorus of "Pop Song 89" asks "Should we talk about the weather?/Should we talk about the government?". The song itself is a mockery of pop music's banality, and its verses similarly throw jabs at pop music clichés (LoveAtFirstSight, SillyLoveSongs) in the band's typical WordSaladLyrics manner.

* MythologyGag: "Turn You Inside-Out" is more or less a remake of "Finest Worksong" off of ''Music/{{Document}}'', just with the chord progression reversed; the lyrics also act as a thematic continuation.

** During the album's 1989 world tour, the band would typically close out tours with a cover of [[Music/TheVelvetUnderground "After Hours"]] by the Music/VelvetUnderground, as captured in ''Tourfilm''.

Despite the controversy surrounding the change in label, ''Green'' was a commercial success, peaking at No. 12 on the Billboard charts. The single "Stand" additionally became R.E.M.'s second top-10 hit, peaking at No. 6 on the Billboard 100 and receiving a parody by Music/WeirdAlYankovic in the form of [[Music/UHFOriginalMotionPictureSoundtrackAndOtherStuff "Spam"]]. The album's success was bolstered by an elaborate 11-month world tour throughout 1989, which helped build an international fanbase for R.E.M.; a ConcertMovie from the tour, aptly titled ''Tourfilm'', would release on Warner Reprise Video in 1990. The tour, in combination with Warner Bros' greater international distribution of the band's material, added fuel to the fire of growing success that "The One I Love" sparked in 1987, eventually culminating in R.E.M.'s 1991 mainstream breakthrough with their next album, ''Music/OutOfTime''.

Despite the controversy surrounding the change in label, ''Green'' was a commercial success, peaking at No. 12 on the Billboard charts. The single "Stand" additionally became R.E.M.'s second top-10 hit, peaking at No. 6 on the Billboard 100 and receiving a parody by Music/WeirdAlYankovic in the form of [[Music/UHFOriginalMotionPictureSoundtrackAndOtherStuff "Spam"]]. The album's success was bolstered by an elaborate 11-month world tour throughout 1989, which helped build an international fanbase for R.E.M. This, in combination with Warner Bros' greater international distribution of the band's material, added fuel to the fire of growing success that "The One I Love" sparked in 1987, eventually culminating in R.E.M.'s 1991 mainstream breakthrough with their next album, ''Music/OutOfTime''.

* CoverVersion: