If you are not familiar with R.E.M. (which . . . come on!) or the songs that I am focusing on below, I encourage you to take a few moments from your football-free Saturday and watch the videos. You will notice similarities in the songs but definitely NOT in the video presentation.
The similarities in these two songs--which appear to be separated by almost two decades of band history are--I have learned--not accidental.
An earlier version of "Bad Day" was written in the 1980s . . . when "It's The End of the World . . . " were also written and recorded.
"Bad Day" also references 1980s President extraordinaire Ronald Reagan. (It's the blink-and-you'll-miss-it Teflon whitewashed presidency lyric in the first stanza.)
The video of ITEotW is strikingly different than BD of course. The more modern song and video reflects the media of the early 2000s. The original '80s song much more closely reflects the sleepier, less chaotic (and less public lifestyle) of the band before it became nationally and globally famous.
Wait . . . did I type sleepier and less chaotic? That wasn't correct.
My memory of the video was tricking me because when I started watching it just now (in your past), I was immediately struck by the clear evidence of hectic chaos. This is reflected in the song of course by the staccato song delivery by Stipe, the word salad lyrics themselves, and the hand-held camcorder POV imagery in the video. The camera's field of view swings this way and that, consistently point at the floor full of junk and whatever else happens to be in the ramshackle hideout.
(Am I right to note that the black torso figurine that is held up . . . twice . . . at the 1:27 mark is a representation of the I.R.S. logo (the old record company of "Document"? I've always though so.)
So, I was wrong. Sleepy it ain't.
And that forgotten quality of the video makes the connection between ITEotW and BD even more obvious.
"Bad Day"--released on September 15, 2003. Located on the Warner Brothers label compilation album "In Time: The Best of R.E.M., 1988-2003."
This song was the inspiration for this post when I learned that this week in 2026 is the twenty-third debut day of the video (October 14, 2003).
I really like "Bad Day." To me it has that electronic quality that defines the second half or last third of R.E.M.'s discography. This sonic quality certainly separates it from ". . . End of the World . . ." But both songs have a propulsive and percussive quality that make them both very catchy.
(Does anyone else besides me really want Michael to pantomime the church/steeple finger motions when those words comes up in the lyrics at 1:47?)
And while none of the trio are great actors or anything, there is something very affecting by Michael's facial expressions throughout the video. It makes me think that he was actually singing while filming, judging by the way his mouth and eyebrows and face are presenting.
Both songs also have similar structures. Besides the obvious fast delivery of many different things that define both songs, they both end on a constant repeating of the main song theme/title:
". . . It's the end of the world as we know it
It's the end of the world as we know itIt's the end of the world as we know itAnd I feel fine
It's the end of the world as we know itIt's the end of the world as we know itIt's the end of the world as we know itAnd I feel fine
It's the end of the world as we know itIt's the end of the world as we know itIt's the end of the world as we know itAnd I feel fine
It's the end of the world as we know itIt's the end of the world as we know itIt's the end of the world as we know itAnd I feel fine"
". . . It's been a bad day, please don't take a picture
It's been a bad day, pleaseIt's been a bad day, please don't take a pictureIt's been a bad day, please
Broadcast me a joyful noise unto the times, Lord
Count your blessingsWe're sick of being jerked aroundWe all fall downIt's been a bad day, please don't take a pictureIt's been a bad day, pleaseIt's been a bad day, please don't take a pictureIt's been a bad day, please
It's been a bad day, please don't take a pictureIt's been a bad day, pleaseIt's been a bad day, please don't take a pictureIt's been a bad day, please"
Anyway . . . listen to music. Take a walk.
Don't watch college football.
That is all . . . for this week.
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