Everybody Hurts

R.E.M. recorded “Everybody Hurts” during the 1991–1992 Automatic for the People sessions, with work carried out at Bearsville Studio in New York, Criteria Studios in Miami, John Keane Studio in Athens, Kingsway Studio in New Orleans and Bosstown Recording Studios in Atlanta. Bill Berry’s drum-machine pattern anchored the track, John Paul Jones arranged the strings, and Scott Litt produced the recording with the band. Released by Warner Bros. in 1993 as a single from Automatic for the People, it reached number 29 on the Billboard Hot 100 and number 7 on the UK Official Singles Chart. Its direct lyric, slow orchestral build and Jake Scott video made it one of R.E.M.’s most widely recognised mainstream ballads. The track remains one of R.E.M.’s most enduring songs and a prominent example of the band’s early-1990s crossover from alternative rock into global pop culture. Its use in charity campaigns, public-service contexts and later cover versions reinforced its reputation as a modern standard of consolation.