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Executive Producer
Brandon Fugal
Honorary Producers
Frank Kuna, zachery perry, Shayne Smith, Tom Stokes, Walter O. Wright II
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Hey music junkies, Professor of Rock, always here to celebrate the greatest artists and the greatest songs of all time. If you ever sang along to The Love Boat when it came on, you’ll dig this channel of deep musical nostalgia. Subscribe below right now. I promise that you are going to love this channel.
We’re gonna fire up the time machine and head back to the 80s to celebrate a great year in music. Reagan was our president, it was a turning point in the Cold War between the superpowers of the U.S.A. and the U.S.S.R., a worldwide effort to feed the world through a musical event called Live Aid, and some of the greatest albums of the Rock Era. The year was 1985. So as we got through these iconic albums, I’m going to give you the big hit from each one, my pick for the best song, and the best hidden gem…
Today, as we count down the 10 best albums of that year, we begin with R.E.M.’s Fables of the Reconstruction at #10: Fables of the Reconstruction has the deep substance that attracted me to R.E.M. in the first place, but that album was a little more focused on social roots and honest introspection than the previous R.E.M. material. The songwriting on Fables is particularly poetic and evocative. Michael Stipe’s lyrics delve into themes of Southern identity, history, and spirituality, often using imagery centered in the American South.
For me, the best song on Fables is the 2nd single from the record, “Driver 8.” Michael Stipe has mentioned that he was fascinated by the idea of trains as symbols of movement, connection, and sometimes escape. He was specifically singing about the Southern Crescent passenger train operated by the Southern Railroad. I definitely feel that freedom and sense of adventure when I listen to “Driver 8:” The Hidden Gem off Fables of the Reconstruction is "Life and How to Live It." That song is based on the true story of Brev Mekis, a schizophrenic man from Athens who went to extraordinary lengths to split his world into two separate realities.
He literally divided his home into two sides, each filled with its own distinct furniture, books, clothing, and even pets, creating a life where two completely different worlds existed side by side. The song captures the surreal, fragmented experience of mental illness, exploring themes of perception, reality, and the human desire for order amidst chaos. It’s a haunting reflection on the complexity of the mind and the lengths we go to find stability when everything feels… fractured.