R.E.M. mark the point when post-punk turned into alternative rock. When their first single, "Radio Free Europe," was released in 1981, it sparked a back-to-the-garage movement in the American underground. While there were a number of hardcore and punk bands in the U.S. during the early '80s, R.E.M. brought guitar pop back into the underground lexicon.

Combining ringing guitar hooks with mumbled, cryptic lyrics and a D.I.Y. aesthetic borrowed from post-punk, the band simultaneously sounded traditional and modern. Though there were no overt innovations in their music, R.E.M. had an identity and sense of purpose that transformed the American underground.

"Losing My Religion" was released in 1991, from their "Out of Time" album.

The title is a Southern expression meaning "At my wit's end," as if things were going so bad you could lose your faith in God. If you were "Losing your religion" over a person, It could also mean losing faith in that person. The band claims this is not about religion, although the video is full of religious imagery. Some Catholic groups protested the video.

The video is based in part on Gabriel Garcia Marquez' A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings. The novel tells the story about an angel who falls down from heaven and how the people who make money displaying him as a "freak show."

The video was the first to show lead singer Michael Stipe dancing. The director hung out with the band to get ideas, and when he saw Stipe's spastic dance style, he thought it would look great in the video. Stipe (in Rolling Stone magazine): "I wanted to write a classic obsession song. So I did." Also, according to VH1's "True Spin" Michael Stipe wrote this song as a quasi-tribute to the Police's "Every Breath You Take." He was so inspired by the song that he wanted to create a song with a similar vibe. So it is about an obsession.

The song won the Grammy in 1991 for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal.