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34 Years Ago Today, R.E.M. Released ‘Pretty F**kin’ Weird’ Album With Connection to Ex-Led Zeppelin Member

R.E.M.’s ‘Automatic for the People’ featured some ‘weird’ experimentation and string arrangements by John Paul Jones.

By Stephen Andrew Galiher

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It’s been 34 years to the day since R.E.M. released Automatic for the People, their groundbreaking eighth studio album. Fascinatingly, the record—which frontman Michael Stipe called “pretty f**kin’ weird”—has an interesting connection to an ex Led Zeppelin member.

Back in March 1992, months before the record was released, Stipe sat down with Rolling Stone for an extensive interview. During the conversation, he hinted at what their next project would sound like. “Very mid-tempo, pretty f***king weird,” he said. “More acoustic, more organ-based, less drums.”

That music, the world would come to learn, was collected as Automatic for the People.

Led Zeppelin bassist John Paul Jones did........

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