Patti Smith Celebrates 'Raucous and Sublime' R.E.M. on Their Anniversary: 'Spinning Art from Chaos'

Patti Smith is celebrating the decades-long legacy of rock band R.E.M.

The "Because the Night" singer-songwriter expressed admiration on Instagram Thursday for the Athens, Georgia-formed group, made up of lead vocalist Michael Stipe, drummer Bill Berry, guitarist Peter Buck, and bassist Mike Mills, in honor of the 42-year anniversary of the "Losing My Religion" performers' first concert as R.E.M.

"This is the 42nd anniversary of the incomparable REM. I fell in love with my first listen, still in love today," wrote Smith, 75, alongside a photo of the band's four members. "Thank you REM, for spinning art from chaos, forever raucous and sublime."

The band's official Instagram account reshared Smith's heartfelt post, calling the punk-rocker's words "beautiful." Earlier that day, R.E.M. posted its own celebratory anniversary post, which featured photos of the band members performing their first show at St. Mary's Episcopal Church.

"42 years ago on April 5, 1980, the band played their first show," read the post's caption. "@slphipps took these photos that historic night in Athens at St. Mary's Episcopal Church on Oconee Street."

Since the first R.E.M. concert in 1980, the band has released 15 studio albums, scored four top-10 hits on the Billboard Hot 100, and earned three Grammy Awards — best pop performance by a duo or group with vocals and best music video for "Losing My Religion" as well as best alternative music album for Out of Time, all in 1991 — out of 15 total nominations.

Smith's association with the members of R.E.M. goes back even further than the band's existence. Speaking to Rolling Stone for a 2004 interview, Stipe, 62, said hearing the Just Kids author's work inspired him to start making music.

"I bought Patti Smith's Horses the day it came out, stayed up all night listening to it on headphones, ate a bowl of cherries and threw up," Stipe recalled. "I decided then that I was going to start a band."

The two musicians' admiration for one another not only led to a friendship, but a collaborative artistic relationship, as they've worked on songs including R.E.M.'s "E-Bow the Letter" and "Blue" as well as Smith's Peace and Noise and Gung Ho albums.

In September 2020, both singers came together — along with Joan Baez, Cyndi Lauper, Stella McCartney, Tony Hawk, and other high-profile figures — to virtually perform Smith's 1988 song "People Have the Power" for the sixth anniversary of the climate change-focused non-profit organization Pathway to Paris, co-founded by Smith's daughter Jesse Paris Smith and cellist Rebecca Foon.