R.E.M.’s First Top 10 Hit Was Quite Misunderstood and ‘Incredibly Violent,’ Says Michael Stipe

Back in the late 80s, R.E.M. landed their very first top 10 hit. The song was “The One I Love”, and even now, that chorus hook is starting to echo through your brain. Interestingly, the track is actually more misunderstood than how you remember. In fact, frontman Michael Stipe once called it an “incredibly violent” song.

Landing on the radio waves in 1987, “The One I Love” was the first single from R.E.M.’s fifth full-length studio album, Document. While the song might seem like a sweet sentiment on the surface, Stipe previously told Musician magazine that the song’s real meaning was “incredibly violent.”

“It’s very clear that it’s about using people over and over again,” he said, per All Music reviewer Denise Sullivan. In her review of the tune, Sullivan noted that the chorus repeating