| studio = Livingston (London)

| genre = *Jangle pop

  • folk rock
  • alternative country
  • psychedelic folk
  • Southern rock

| length = 39:44

| label = I.R.S.

| producer = Joe Boyd

| prev_title = Reckoning

| prev_year = 1984

| year = 1985

| next_title = Lifes Rich Pageant

| next_year = 1986

| misc =

Fables of the Reconstruction (or Reconstruction of the Fables) is the third studio album by American alternative rock band R.E.M. It was released on June 10, 1985, through I.R.S. Records. It was the band's first album recorded outside of the U.S., with sessions taking place at Livingston Studios in London with producer Joe Boyd. The record displays a darker, murkier sound than its predecessors, with lyrics drawing from Southern Gothic themes and characters. The album also utilizes more varied instrumentation, including string and brass arrangements and banjo.

Critical reception to Fables of the Reconstruction was positive, with many reviews noting its folk elements and murky tone. Retrospectively, it has also been viewed as a transitional album, retaining the sound and obscure themes of the band's early work while hinting at the experimentation with acoustic instrumentation that would be present on their later albums. The album's sales reflected R.E.M.'s growing popularity, with it becoming their second album to reach the top 30 in the US and first to make the top 40 in the UK. It was later certified Gold by the RIAA in 1991. While none of its singles achieved mainstream chart success, "Driver 8" has since become one of R.E.M.'s best-known and most-covered songs from their early period.

Production

thumb|left|upright=0.7|alt=Joe Boyd at the presentation of his book "White Bicycles" in the Ancienne Belgique Café in Brussels, Belgium.|[[Joe Boyd (pictured in 2008) was hired as the album's producer thanks to his prior work with folk rock artists.]]

After working with Don Dixon and Mitch Easter on their first two albums, Murmur (1983) and Reckoning (1984), R.E.M. decided to work with a different producer for their next album. Those considered to produce the album included Van Dyke Parks, Hugh Padgham (who had been achieving great success with his work with acts such as the Police and Genesis), Elliot Mazer (known for working with Neil Young), and Elvis Costello. After having recorded their first two albums in North Carolina, the band instead flew to England to record the album at Livingston Studios in Wood Green, London. Boyd's work ethic reportedly caused tensions with the band, as his precise attention to detail contrasted with the more spontaneous approach the band had utilized on the previous two albums. He felt that R.E.M.'s approach to mixing was unique in comparison to other acts: "When you mix a record, traditionally the singer wants his voice louder, and the guitar player says, 'Turn up the guitar,' and the bass player says, 'Can’t you make the bass parts punchier?' With R.E.M., everyone wanted themselves turned down". Writers have labeled the album as jangle pop, alternative country, Described by AllMusic's Stephen Thomas Erlewine as "creepy, rustic psychedelic folk", the album introduced new instrumentation for the band, including strings, brass, and banjo. as well as an example of Southern Gothic. Many of its songs describe eccentric, unusual characters; Matthew Perpetua of Pitchfork described the album's aesthetic as "evok[ing] images of railroads, small towns, eccentric locals, oppressive humidity, and a vague sense of time slowing to a crawl." Tyler Golsen of Far Out described "Driver 8" as a "classic railroad song" and a showcase for Buck's playing as both an "intricate picker" and a "folky rock star".

"Life and How to Live It" takes inspiration from a book entitled Life: How to Live by eccentric Athens–based author Brivs Mekis. Mekis split his house into two distinct halves and alternated between living in the two until he died. After his death, copies of the book were found; despite these copies being made none had ever been sold or given away. According to Lukowski, Stipe's lyrics on this song are more personal, and associate himself with the other outcast characters on the record. The album would be certified Gold by the RIAA for sales in excess of 500,000 copies on June 24, 1991. The album reached number 35 on the UK Albums Chart, making it the band's first to reach the top 40 of that chart. It was also the band's first record to chart in Canada, reaching number 40, while in New Zealand it peaked at number 29.

"Cant Get There from Here" was released as the album's lead single. The song achieved more success on the Billboard Top Rock Tracks chart, peaking at number 14: their highest placement on that chart at the time. Both 7" and 12" versions of the single were released; the 7" was backed with the non-album track "Bandwagon", while the 12" version included both "Bandwagon" and another previously unreleased song, "Burning Hell", on its B-side.

"Driver 8", the album's second single, also charted on the Top Rock Tracks chart, reaching a peak of number 22. "Driver 8" has become one of R.E.M.'s most-covered songs, with versions being recorded by acts including Hootie & the Blowfish and Jason Isbell. "Wendell Gee" was released as the third and final single in Europe only and became the first R.E.M. song to reach the UK Singles Chart, peaking at number 91.

| rev3 = Chicago Tribune

| rev3score =

| rev4 = Entertainment Weekly

| rev4score = B−

| rev5 = Pitchfork

| rev5score = 8.5/10

| rev7 = Rolling Stone

| rev7score =

| rev9 = Uncut

| rev9score =

Contemporary critical reception for Fables of the Reconstruction was generally positive. In a review for Rolling Stone, Parke Puterbaugh awarded the album four stars out of five, referring to it as "unretouched R.E.M. in all their rough-cut glory", and felt the band sounded "surer than they did on Reckoning". In a Rolling Stone interview from 1991, Buck was dismissive of "Driver 8", saying, "I can write that kind of stuff in my sleep. We all can." However, Stipe, who once infamously compared the album's sound to "two oranges being nailed together", stated in the same 1991 interview that he believed Fables contained the band's strongest set of songs up to that point.

Track listing

All songs written by Bill Berry, Peter Buck, Mike Mills, and Michael Stipe, except "Old Man Kensey" by Berry, Buck, Mills, Stipe, and Jeremy Ayers.

A side

  1. "Feeling Gravitys Pull" – 4:48
  2. "Maps and Legends" – 3:10
  3. "Driver 8" – 3:23
  4. "Life and How to Live It" – 4:06
  5. "Old Man Kensey" – 4:08

Another side

  1. "Cant Get There from Here" – 3:39
  2. "Green Grow the Rushes" – 3:46
  3. "Kohoutek" – 3:18
  4. "Auctioneer (Another Engine)" – 2:44
  5. "Good Advices" – 3:30
  6. "Wendell Gee" – 3:01

Personnel

Personnel taken from Fables of the Reconstruction liner notes.

R.E.M.

  • Bill Berry (credited as "WT Berry – Best Boy")
  • Peter Buck (credited as "PL Buck – Ministry of Music")
  • Mike Mills (credited as "ME Mills – Consolate Mediator")
  • Michael Stipe (credited as "JM Stipe – Gaffer Interpreter")

Additional musicians

  • Camilla Brunt – violin
  • Philippa Ibbotson – violin
  • David Newby – cello
  • Pete Thomas – tenor saxophone
  • David Bitelli – tenor and baritone saxophones
  • Jim Dvorak – trumpet

Production

  • Joe Boyd – production
  • Jerry Boys – engineering
  • Berry Clempson – audio engineering
  • Tony Harris – engineering
  • M. K. Johnston – photography and art

Charts and certifications

{| class="wikitable"

|+ Weekly chart performance for Fables of the Reconstruction

!align="center"|Chart (1985)

!align="center"|Position

|-

|align="center"|US Billboard 200