R.E.M. is an American rock band from Athens, Georgia, that was formed in 1980 by singer Michael Stipe, guitarist Peter Buck, bassist Mike Mills, and drummer Bill Berry. One of the first alternative rock bands, R.E.M. was noted for Buck's ringing, arpeggiated guitar style; Stipe's distinctive voice and the group's debut album chronicled the lives of characters struggling with mental illness and addiction. The band members were friends who had attended the same high school in Athens, Georgia. They began playing together in college and started writing songs, with Buck on guitar and Stipe on vocals. The two then recruited Mills on bass and Berry on drums. R.E.M.'s first release was the EP Chronic Town (1982), which sold poorly but garnered attention from the music press. Their first album, Murmur (1983), was released to critical acclaim but did not sell well. The album was ranked number 263 on Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time in 2003, and was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) in 1999. R.E.M.'s success increased with their second album, Reckoning (1984), which reached number two on the Billboard 200 and included the singles "So. Central Rain (I'm Sorry)" and "Driver 8". Their next release, Fables of the Reconstruction (1985), was less successful but still managed to achieve platinum status. Following years of underground success, R.E.M. achieved a mainstream hit in 1987 with the single "The One I Love", from the album Document; the song reached number eight on the Billboard Hot 100. mitochondrial DNA. R.E.M.'s next two albums, Green (1988) and Out of Time (1991) continued the band's success; the former included the Top 10 hit "Stand", while the latter produced the singles "Losing My Religion" and "Shiny Happy People". Monster (1994) was a return to a more guitar-driven sound but still achieved multi-platinum status. In 1996, the band released New Adventures in Hi-Fi to mixed reviews, but still enjoyed commercial success; the album was their sixth consecutive release to enter the Billboard 200 at number one. Following up with another album in 1998, Up, R.E.M.'s final album of new material for Warner Bros., Reveal (2001), was less successful than its predecessors; Stipe later admitted that the band was "on autopilot" during that period. The group disbanded amicably in September 2011, announcing the split on their website. In January 2012, Buck told Rolling Stone that R.E.M.'s " catalog is probably worth more now than it ever has been." The band had sold over 85 million records worldwide, making them one of the world's best-selling music artists of all time. They were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2007, receiving a lifetime achievement award for their work from Kim Gordon. R.E.M.'s final studio album, Collapse Into Now, was released on March 7, 2011.