R.E.M. | Shiny Happy People (1991)
"Shiny Happy People" is a song by the American rock band R.E.M. from their seventh studio album, Out of Time (1991). It features guest vocals by Kate Pierson of the B-52's, who also appears in the music video.
1991-05-06 19:00:00 - R.E.M.
According to the singer Michael Stipe, the lyrics are a satirical translation of the Chinese government's propaganda following the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests.
"Shiny Happy People" was released as a single in May 1991 in the United Kingdom, and four months later in the United States. It reached number 10 on the US Billboard Hot 100, the fourth and last R.E.M. single to reach the top 10. It reached on the UK Singles Chart, becoming the first R.E.M. song to reach the top 10 in the UK and the only one to reach the top 10 in both countries. It is R.E.M.'s most successful song in Ireland, where it reached number two, and in Germany, where it reached number 10.
R.E.M. performed the song with Pierson on Saturday Night Live on April 13, 1991. It was used as the theme song to the unaired pilot for the sitcom Friends, before it was replaced by the Rembrandts' "I'll Be There for You", and was briefly used in the first season's tenth episode, "The One with the Monkey".
R.E.M. was ambivalent about being known for a pop song that lacked gravitas. Stipe said in 2016: "It's a fruity pop song written for children ... If there was one song that was sent into outer space to represent R.E.M. for the rest of time, I would not want it to be 'Shiny Happy People'".