Crush with Eyeliner

"Crush with Eyeliner"
Single by R.E.M.
from the album Monster
B-side	"Crush With Eyeliner (Instrumental Version)"
Released	August 15, 1995 (1995-08-15)
Format	CD single, 7" single, 12" single
Recorded	1994
Genre	Alternative rock
Length	4:39
Label	Warner Bros.
Writer(s)	Berry, Buck, Mills, Stipe[1]
Producer	Scott Litt & R.E.M.
R.E.M. singles chronology
"Strange Currencies" (1995) "Crush with Eyeliner" (1995) "Tongue" (1995)

"Crush with Eyeliner" is a song by R.E.M., released as the third single from their ninth studio album Monster. 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. ^[2]

The single's video, directed by Spike Jonze, shows a group of Japanese youths dancing and miming to the track at a party, whilst the band are shown briefly, looking on. It is available on the music video compilation Parallel.

Track listing

All songs written by Bill Berry, Peter Buck, Mike Mills, and Michael Stipe.

12" and CD Maxi-Single

1. "Crush with Eyeliner" – 4:39
2. "Fall on Me" (live)¹ – 3:23
3. "Me in Honey" (live)¹ – 4:18
4. "Finest Worksong" (live)¹ – 4:18

7" Single

1. "Crush with Eyeliner" (album version) – 4:39
2. "Crush with Eyeliner" (instrumental version) – 4:39

Notes

¹ Recorded at the 40 Watt Club, Athens, Georgia; November 19, 1992. The performance, a benefit for Greenpeace, was recorded on a solar-powered mobile studio.

Charts

Chart (1995)	Peak position
Canadian Hot 100	28
Irish Singles Chart	21
UK Singles Chart	23
U.S. Billboard Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles	13
U.S. Billboard Modern Rock Tracks	20
U.S. Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks	33

References

1. ^ http://remhq.com/albums.php
2. ^ Black, Johnny (2004). Reveal: The Story of R.E.M.. London: Backbeat Books. ISBN 0-87930-776-5.