After becoming a huge local success in Athens, Georgia, R.E.M. recorded their first single, "Radio Free Europe," in 1981, which became a hit. They recorded their debut EP, Chronic Town, in October 1981. It was released on I.R.S. records in August 1982, with their debut album, Murmur, dropping in 1983.
R.E.M. went on to release 15 studio albums, seeing a huge commercial success with 1991's Out of Time, featuring the hit "Losing My Religion," and 1992's Automatic for the People, which featured such classics as "Man on the Moon" and "Everybody Hurts."