Automatic for the People is R.E.M.'s eighth album, and their third major label release for Warner Bros., released in 1992.

Mostly acoustic and typified by its dark lyrics (many of which ruminate on mortality, death and those departed), Automatic for the People is generally considered to be among R.E.M.'s best albums, and one of the finest releases of the 1990's. The album name refers to the motto of Athens, Georgia eatery "Weaver D's Delicious Fine Foods." The photograph on the front cover is not related to the restaurant: it shows a sign on a motel in Miami, where part of the album was recorded.

Arriving on the heels of the previous year's breakthrough album Out of Time, Automatic for the People entered the United States charts at #2, selling over four million copies there, and spent several weeks at #1 in the United Kingdom. As a consequence, R.E.M. were marketed alongside new acts such as Nirvana and Pearl Jam as purveyors of the "alternative" scene, despite obvious differences in outlook, style and musical influences between the older band and the newer ones.

(From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)