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 enlarge | Artist: R.e.m.
Label: Capitol
Category: Music
Buy New: $11.98
New (41) Used (27) Collectible (5) from $4.20
Rating:  120 reviews
Sales Rank: 2009
Format: Original Recording Reissued
Media: Audio CD
Discs: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.2
Dimensions (in): 5.6 x 5 x 0.5
MPN: 93478
UPC: 724349347823
EAN: 0724349347823
ASIN: B000002UVZ
Release Date: January 27, 1998
Shipping: Eligible for Super Saver Shipping
Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
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| Customer Reviews:
 R.E.M.'s Rich Recording September 3, 2006
3 out of 4 found this review helpful
'Life's Rich Pageant' is the fourth R.E.M. full-length album, and like the predecessors, is accomplished. This album, like the others, has a trademark. Here it contains their most unconventionally conventional pop and rock songs. "...Pageant" contains propulsive anthems and some of their most pop-pleasing songs of any album. Their accomplishments were enough to propel them to the top ten next time around.
The anthems are positive pieces of power pop. "Begin the Begin," "These Days," and "I Believe" are uplifting. Some of the songwriting improved, and Michael Stipe can hardly be accused of mumbling the songs this time. "Cuyahoga" and "Fall on Me" are terrific lyrically and musically. They showcase how insightful R.E.M really is. The other songs are excellent as well, like the energetic and entertaining "Hyena" and "Superman" and the thoughtful and hypnotic "Why Don't We Give It Away" and "Swan, Swan H-". Song for song, 'Life's Rich Pageant' lives up to its title and delivers a C.D. just as worthy as most of R.E.M.'s best work.
The best of REM July 26, 2006
4 out of 7 found this review helpful
Pageant is REM's best album, in my opinion, followed by Murmur and Automatic. This album contains a unique blend of their jangle-folk-rock roots and the lyrical mainstream band they would later become. For the first time, political themes show up frequently through a number of songs (Flowers of Guatemala, These Days, Begin the Begin, even Cuyahoga). This style is fantastic, but unfortunately unique to Pageant. Sadly, they basically abandoned this style for Document and Green (their worst work), finally rising out of the ashes with Out of Time and Automatic. So buy this album, because it's your only chance to hear something this good from REM.
The album gets off to a roaring start with Begin the Begin, a great fast-paced opener, followed by These Days, both great songs, although it's not easy to glean deep meaning from them. Fall on Me, which offers Mike Mill's finest backing vocals and their catchiest chorus outside of End of the World as We Know It. Fall on Me is followed by Cuyahoga, which, although relatively unknown, is my favorite REM song. Without stating anything directly, the song captures the speaker's sadness for the demise of the red Cuyahoga river, which symbolizes the loss his passing youth,(we knee skinned it you and me, we knee skinned that river red, we gathered up our friends) and all his memories that center around the river (this is where we walked, this is where we swam, take a picture here, take a souvenir) and his anger at the beaurocracy he blames for the river's demise (we are not your allies).
With the exception of Flowers of Guatemala, the other songs don't touch the first four. Flowers of Guatemala is a slow, lyrical song that effectively evokes the Guatemalan genocide with the repetition of the line "the flowers cover everything, they cover over everything" and expresses hope for Guatemala. Despite what has happened, the flowers remain.
The other tracks are enjoyable, notably fast-paced Hyena and piano driven Just a Touch, I Believe, which contrasts ruminations on life with random lines (I believe in example, I believe my throat hurts) and Swan Swan H, a strange and relatively forgettable song that has one line (johnny reb, what's the price of heroes) that sticks with me (tell that to the captain's mother). Superman is an enjoyable pop song, and features Mills singing on another of his line of sweet, lyrical songs (check out Near Wild Heaven from Out of Time). What If We Give it Away is a relatively forgettable song which sounds like it belonged on Murmur, not Pageant.
Overall, a phenomenal recording, with no songs you have to skip over. Sometimes, trying to take some kind of meaning from these songs is not easy, but the music is really enjoyable. It really is REM's best effort, and if you have any interest in the band before they broke into the mainstream, you should buy this CD. Even if you've only heard the Automatic-era stuff, buy it anyway. It's well worth it.
Their best June 28, 2006
2 out of 4 found this review helpful
I've followed REM since their "Fables" days, and "Pageant" is my favorite of all of their albums followed closely by "Automatic for the People". I get the feeling that REM is running out of melodies as of late...or else, they don't want to repeat themselves.
"Lifes Rich Pageant" is one of a few albums that I can listen to from beginning to end, because it's consistently that good throughout. "Pageant" combines the folk rock of "Murmur", "Reckoning" and "Fables of the Reconstruction" with the punchiness of good old fashioned rock: the guitars rock harder, the drums boom louder, and Michael Stipe's vocals come front and center.
"Pageant" begins with an amazing 4 songs: "Begin the Begin", "These Days", "Fall on Me" and "Cuyahoga". "Begin" and "These Days" inspire me to go out and do something bold. "Fall on Me" and "Cuyahoga" are beautiful mid-tempo songs. Mike Mills' backing vocals on this album, and in particular "Fall on Me", are great. For as much as people focus on Michael Stipe, Mike Mills is the glue: his backing vocals and bass playing add a great dimension to the band. And of course, Mills stars with his own turn at lead vocals in "Superman", a re-make of a Clique song. Other luminaries on "Pageant" include "Flowers of Guatemala" and "I Believe". While "Fall on Me" is probably my favorite on "Pageant" for its sheer melody and lyrics, "Superman" is the funnest of the bunch - and even better to watch live as the crowd howls when Mills takes the vocals for a rare turn.
A true classic May 9, 2006
3 out of 4 found this review helpful
I hadn't listened to it in a while (a couple of years, probably) and got it out yesterday to listen to in my car.
I had forgotten just how brilliant this album is. These songs, out of all their music, are the ones that sound best live.
No, it isn't "Murmur", their first full-length and best (IMHO) album, but it's wonderful from start to finish.
Thus spake Clousseau - "It's all part of life's rich pageant, you know" October 28, 2005
5 out of 7 found this review helpful
OK, this will undoubtedly sound like a shameless Amazon plug, but AT $7.99 YOU HAVE NO EXCUSE TO NOT BUY THIS (unless you're destitute, in which case I humbly apologize). C'mon, you could have paid this much for the LP in the '80s. In fact, you have no excuse to not buy a stack of their early albums and get free shipping as well.
Little can be said about music of such sweeping grandeur, such raw force and still, such subtlety. Its production values trump the first few albums (unless you're into sonic mud - I never minded it much), and as wonderfully subdued as those records were, R.E.M. learns to rock here, and its a captivating sound. They still had all the imagination of their early records, but added muscular riffs to the picture. And, well, this was probably their finest melodically. OK, this is getting to be too long - you won't regret this purchase folks.
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