Uncensored:
"Pop Song 89" was the third single released from R.E.M.'s sixth studio album Green. It peaked at #86 on the Hot 100, and in the UK "Stand" was re-released instead.
In the music video, MTV asked Stipe, who directed it himself, to censor the three topless women with whom he was dancing in the video. Instead, Stipe superimposed black bars on the chests of all four dancers, himself included, and stated, "a nipple is a nipple."
The acoustic version that was used as the single's b-side was also included on the bonus disc of the limited two-disc edition of In Time: The Best of R.E.M. 1988-2003 in 2003.
"Pop Song 89" was covered by Motion City Soundtrack for Punk Goes 80's and by Rockfour for their record For Fans Only!.
MTV (censored) version:
Leave a comment