because it’s all lame right-wing dog-whistle songs like “Try That In A Small Town” and “Rich Men North Of Richmond.”

But yeah, seeing R. E. M. still alive was nice.

The R. E. M. songs I still hear in public are “It’s The End Of The World As We Know It (And I Feel Fine),” “Everybody Hurts,” “Man On The Moon,” “Shiny Happy People,” “Stand” and maybe “What’s The Frequency Kenneth?” or “Imitation Of Life” on a good day. MAYBE. These choices aren’t surprising, and I guess maybe I should be grateful that R. E. M. have been winnowed down to a few hits instead of ONE hit, but all the same, I can’t remember the last time I heard “Losing My Religion” in public, which used to be an almost stratospherically-acclaimed piece of music.