[Ammi]

Originally Posted by Dogeatdog

Yh there’s lots of articles about it. REM didn’t give them the rights to use the song so we got The Rembrandts instead. There was a video of the original opening theme with the REM song and different titles of the show on YouTube somewhere. Not sure if it’s still about tho?

…Michael Stripe didn’t give the rights because he didn’t see the ‘fit’ with the vibe of the series as it was a serious political song…the lyrics were more ironic of those ‘shiny happy people’ that were seen in propaganda posters…depicting something that wasn’t a reality of lives …REM lyrics/songs do tend to often be quite political in meaning and quite deep….I think the catchiness on the tune of Shiny Happy People was more meant as an ironic contrast…?..but that’s the very thing that made it so popular, wasn’t it…so there was an irony……I wounder if Michael Stripe ever regretted his decision with the multiple million dollars earned in Royalties of the Friends theme tune….

https://faroutmagazine.co.uk/rem-shi...nanmen-square/