It's the End of the World as We Know It (And I Feel Fine)


"It's the End of the World as We Know It " is a song by American rock band R.E.M., which first appeared on their 1987 album Document. It was released as a single in November 1987, reaching No. 69 in the US Billboard Hot 100 and later reaching No. 39 on the UK Singles Chart on its re-release in December 1991.

Lyrics

The track is known for its quick flying, seemingly stream of consciousness rant with a number of diverse references, such as a quartet of individuals with the initials "L.B.": Leonard Bernstein, Leonid Brezhnev, Lenny Bruce, and Lester Bangs. In a 1990s interview with Musician magazine, R.E.M.'s lead singer Michael Stipe claimed that the "L.B." references came from a dream he had in which he found himself at a party surrounded by famous people who all shared those initials. "The words come from everywhere." Stipe explained to Q Magazine in 1992. "I'm extremely aware of everything around me, whether I am in a sleeping state, awake, dream-state or just in day to day life, so that ended up in the song along with a lot of stuff I'd seen when I was flipping TV channels. It's a collection of streams of consciousness."
The song originated from a previously unreleased song called "PSA" ; the two are very similar in melody and tempo. "PSA" was itself later reworked and released as a single in 2003, under the title "Bad Day". In an interview with Guitar World magazine published in November 1996, R.E.M. guitarist Peter Buck agreed that "End of the World" was in the tradition of Bob Dylan's "Subterranean Homesick Blues".
The song was included on the 2001 Clear Channel memorandum of songs thought to be "lyrically questionable" after the September 11 terrorist attacks.

Chart performance

The song was played repeatedly for a 24-hour period to introduce the new format for WENZ 107.9 FM "The End", a radio station in Cleveland, Ohio in 1992. When the station underwent a new format change in 1996, they again played the song in 24-hour loop. There was a documentary film made about the station entitled The End of the World As We Knew It, released in 2009 which featured many of the former staffers and jocks.
The song was featured in several satirical videos on YouTube, in connection with the prediction of radio pastor Harold Camping of Family Radio, that the world would end on May 21, 2011 Also, before the supposed Mayan apocalypse on December 21, 2012, sales for the song jumped from 3,000 to 19,000 copies for the week. Alternative radio station CFEX-FM in Calgary, Alberta, Canada stunted by playing the song all day on December 21, 2012, interspersed with "Get to Know a Mayan" and "Apocalypse Survival Tips" segments.
Amid the global coronavirus pandemic, the song received an increase in downloads and streaming in March 2020 alongside other apocalypse and sickness themed songs. Online downloads of the song rose 184 percent and streams rose 48 percent.

Music video

The music video was directed by James Herbert, who worked with the band on several other videos in the late 1980s. It depicts a teenage skateboarder, Noah Ray, in a cluttered room of an abandoned, half-collapsed farmhouse. As he rummages through the junk, which includes several band pictures and flyers, he shows off various toys and items to the camera and plays with a dog that wanders into the house. As the video ends, he goes shirtless and starts performing skateboard tricks while still inside the room.

Track listing

Initial release

  1. "It's the End of the World as We Know It " – 4:04
  2. "This One Goes Out" – 4:19
  1. "It's the End of the World as We Know It " – 4:04
  2. "Last Date" – 2:13
  1. "It's the End of the World as We Know It " – 4:04
  2. "This One Goes Out" – 4:19
  3. "Maps and Legends"
  1. "It's the End of the World as We Know It " – 4:04
  2. "Disturbance at the Heron House " – 3:41

    Re-issue

  1. "It's the End of the World as We Know It " – 4:04
  2. "Radio Free Europe" – 4:03
  3. "The One I Love" – 4:19
  1. "It's the End of the World as We Know It " – 4:04
  2. "Radio Free Europe" – 3:46
  3. "White Tornado" – 1:59
  4. "Last Date" – 2:13
  1. "It's the End of the World as We Know It " – 4:04
  2. "Radio Free Europe" – 4:03

    Personnel

R.E.M.
Chart Peak position
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Certifications

Cover versions

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