| "Star 69" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 Spain promotional release | ||||
| Promotional single by R.E.M. | ||||
| from the album Monster | ||||
| Released | 1994 | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 3:07 | |||
| Label | Warner Bros. | |||
| Songwriter(s) | ||||
| Producer(s) |
| |||
| R.E.M. singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
"Star 69" is a song from the R.E.M. album Monster . It was not released as an official single but still reached No. 74 on the US Billboard Hot 100 Airplay chart. [5]
Chuck Campbell from Knoxville News Sentinel felt that Michael Stipe's "echoing vocals swarm out of the churning punk vivacity" of "Star 69". [6] Rob Jones called the track a "return-to-roots glam punk anthem". [2]
The song is named after the access number for the last-call return feature of telephones in North America, as indicated by its chorus:
"I know you called
I know you called
I know you hung up my lineStar 69"
Of all of the songs on Monster, "Star 69" is the one that evolved most from its initial demo. It started out at six minutes long before having its bridge excised and its original chorus discarded. [7]
"Star 69" was frequently played live throughout the tours in support of Monster and their 1998 release Up but from 2003 to 2008 was only ever sporadically performed.
| Chart (1995) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Canadian RPM 100 [8] [9] | 73 |
| US Billboard Hot 100 Airplay [5] | 74 |
| US Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks [10] | 15 |
| US Billboard Modern Rock Tracks [11] | 8 |
Monster is the ninth studio album by American rock band R.E.M., released on September 27, 1994, by Warner Bros. Records. Produced by the band and Scott Litt and recorded at four studios, the album was an intentional stylistic shift from R.E.M.'s previous two albums, Out of Time (1991) and Automatic for the People (1992), with loud, distorted guitar tones and simple arrangements. Michael Stipe's lyrics at times deal with the nature of celebrity, and some are sung from the viewpoint of a character.
"What's the Frequency, Kenneth?" is a song by American alternative rock band R.E.M. from their ninth studio album, Monster (1994). The song's title refers to an incident in New York City in 1986, when two then-unknown assailants attacked journalist Dan Rather, while repeating "Kenneth, what is the frequency?"
"Crush with Eyeliner" is a song by American rock band R.E.M., released as the fourth single from their ninth studio album, Monster (1994). Sonic Youth's Thurston Moore provides background vocals. Michael Stipe claims the song was inspired by the band New York Dolls, who, in his opinion, "knew how to exaggerate a song, to make it sound really sleazy and over the top." This was also one of the first songs that surfaced from Stipe after the writer's block that hounded him after the death of his friend, actor River Phoenix.
"Strange Currencies" is a song by American rock band R.E.M. It was included on their ninth studio album, Monster (1994), and was released as the album's third single on April 18, 1995. The single reached number nine on the UK Singles Chart and peaked at number 47 in the United States. Like "Everybody Hurts" on R.E.M.'s previous album, it has a time signature of 6
8.
"Tongue" is a song by American rock band R.E.M., released on July 17, 1995 as the fifth and final single from their ninth studio album, Monster (1994). It was only released in the US, UK, and Ireland. In the song, lead singer Michael Stipe performs in falsetto; he has stated on several occasions that the narrator of the song is female. Stipe has also said the track is "all about cunnilingus".
"Sleeping in My Car" is a song by Swedish pop music duo Roxette, released on 7 March 1994 as the lead single from their fifth studio album, Crash! Boom! Bang! (1994). The song was composed by Per Gessle in under an hour, and was the final song the band recorded for the album. It is a pop rock song containing elements drawn from pop punk. Marie Fredriksson's vocal range on the track spans over three octaves. The band performed the song at the inaugural 1994 MTV Europe Music Awards.
"Girls & Boys" is a song by British rock band Blur, released in March 1994 as the lead single from the group's third album, Parklife (1994). Charting at number five on the UK Singles Chart, "Girls & Boys" was Blur's first top 5 hit and their most successful single until "Country House" reached number one the following year. The single surpassed their previous commercial peak "There's No Other Way" by three spots on the UK Singles Chart, and saw the group achieve greater worldwide success. In the US, the track reached number 59 on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart, becoming the band's second single to hit the chart after "There's No Other Way". It also reached number four on the Billboard Modern Rock songs chart.
"Space" is a song by American musician Prince from his fifteenth album, Come (1994). The B-side of the single is actually the album track. The A-side is the Universal Love Radio Remix of "Space", with completely new lyrics.
"👁 Hate U" is a song by American musician Prince, released on September 12, 1995, as the lead single from his seventeenth studio album, The Gold Experience (1995).
"Sabotage" is a song by American rap rock group Beastie Boys, released in January 1994 as the first single from their fourth studio album, Ill Communication (1994). The song features traditional rock instrumentation, turntable scratches, heavily distorted bass guitar riffs and lead vocals by Ad-Rock. A moderate commercial success, the song was notable as well for its video, directed by Spike Jonze and nominated in five categories at the 1994 MTV Music Video Awards.
"Mary Jane (All Night Long)" is a song by American singer-songwriter Mary J. Blige. It was written by Blige, Chucky Thompson and Sean "Puffy" Combs for her second studio album, My Life (1994), while production was helmed by Combs and Thompson. The song is built around a sample of “All Night Long” (1983) by American girl group Mary Jane Girls and "Close the Door" (1978) by American singer Teddy Pendergrass. Due to the inclusion of the sample, Rick James is also credited as songwriter.
Push Comes to Shove is the second album by the American hard rock band Jackyl, released in 1994. It peaked at No. 46 on the Billboard 200. The title track peaked at No. 7 on Billboard's Album Rock Tracks chart and No. 90 on the UK Singles Chart. The band supported the album by playing Woodstock '94 and touring with ZZ Top and Aerosmith.
"Grapevyne" is a song by American R&B vocal group Brownstone, released on April 11, 1995 as the second single from their debut album, From the Bottom Up (1995). The song reached #49 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and #6 on the Billboard Hot R&B Singles chart. It also charted at #16 on the UK Singles Chart.
"Protection" is a collaboration between English trip hop collective Massive Attack and Tracey Thorn from English duo Everything but the Girl, that appears on Massive Attack's second studio album, Protection (1994). Released as a single on 9 January 1995, the song reached number 14 on the UK Singles Chart, staying in the chart for four weeks, and also peaked at number 27 in New Zealand. The song was also included on Everything but the Girl's compilation The Best of and Like the Deserts Miss the Rain.
"Be Happy" is a song by American singer Mary J. Blige. It was written by Blige, Sean "Puffy" Combs, Arlene DeValle, and Jean-Claude Olivier from duo Poke & Tone for her second studio album, My Life (1994), while production was helmed by Combs and Olivier. "Be Happy" contains an instrumental sample of the song "You're So Good to Me" (1979) by musician Curtis Mayfield and a re-sung vocal portion of the record "I Want You" (1976) by Marvin Gaye.
"Body and Soul" is a song by American recording artist Anita Baker, released in 1994 as the lead single in support of her fifth album, Rhythm of Love (1994). The song received critical acclaim, peaking at number four on the US Billboard Hot Black Singles chart and number 36 on the Billboard Hot 100. It earned Baker another top 40 pop hit following 1988's "Just Because", which peaked to number 14 on the same chart. In Europe, "Body and Soul" charted in the UK, reaching number 48 on the UK Singles Chart.
"I Apologize" is a song by American recording artist Anita Baker, released in 1994 as the second single from her fifth album, Rhythm of Love (1994). The song peaked at number eight on the US Billboard Hot R&B Singles chart and number 74 on the Billboard Hot 100. It won her a Grammy Award for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance.
"Dream On Dreamer" is a song by British acid jazz and funk group the Brand New Heavies, released in March 1994 as the lead single from their third album, Brother Sister (1994). The song is also featured on the group's remix album, Excursions: Remixes & Rare Grooves (1995), that was released in the US. It remains one of their most successful hits, peaking at number 15 in the UK and number 19 in Scotland. In the US, it reached number 51 on the Billboard Hot 100, while in Canada, it hit number 47 on the RPM Top Singles chart.
"Relax" is a song by American singer-songwriter Crystal Waters from her second studio album, Storyteller (1994). It was released in 1995 as the fourth and last single from the album, and peaked at number-one on the Billboard Dance Club Songs chart in the US. It was also classified the Billboard Hot Dance Breakouts number-one for the category of Club Play Singles on July 1, 1995. In the UK, it reached number 37. A black-and-white music video was also produced to promote the single, directed by German director Marcus Nispel.
"Heal It Up" is a song from American alternative rock band Concrete Blonde, which was released in 1993 as the second single from their fifth studio album Mexican Moon. The song was written by Johnette Napolitano, and produced by Concrete Blonde and Sean Freehill.
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