Losing My Religion

R.E.M. recorded “Losing My Religion” in September 1990 at Bearsville Studio in Woodstock, New York, during the Out of Time sessions. Peter Buck built the song from a mandolin riff, Michael Stipe wrote the lyric and sang the lead vocal, and Scott Litt produced the recording with the band. Released by Warner Bros. in 1991 as the lead single from Out of Time, it reached number 4 on the Billboard Hot 100 and became R.E.M.’s commercial breakthrough. Its mandolin-led arrangement and Tarsem Singh video brought the band from college-rock prominence into global mainstream visibility. The track remains R.E.M.’s signature hit and one of the defining alternative-rock singles of the early 1990s. Its Grammy-winning video, enduring radio presence and influence on acoustic-led alternative pop secured its place as the band’s most widely recognised recording.