REM: Man on the Moon Meaning

Song Released: 1992

Man on the Moon Lyrics

Mott the hoople and the game of life. yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Andy Kaufman in the wrestling match. yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Monopoly, twenty one, checkers, and chess. yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Mister fred blassie in a breakfast mess. yeah, yeah,...

1. REMareback

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   Sep 6th 2008 !⃝

   Before I read it was about Andy Kaufman, I just believed this song was about being gullible, believing they put a man on the moon was the ultimate sign of being so.
   In the verses other than the chorus, he is sort of checking things out, ie saying them, to try and see whether or not they are true.
   Example:
   Moses went walking with a staff of wood, ie do you believe the Bible?
   
   I also always thought it was telling people not to believe everything they are told, eg don't believe there was a man on the moon, ie don't take people's words for things.
   If you believe, there's nothing up my sleeve, then nothing it cool.
   I thought he was playing a trick, and someone fell for it, and that's no cool.
   
   Just my opinions, please rate my interpretation.
2. anonymous

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   Mar 24th 2008 !⃝

   We must think good and hard about the middle chorus: "Moses went walking with a staff of wood, Newton got beamed by the apple good, Egypt was troubled by the horrible asp, Mr. Charles Darwin had the gall to ask." What does this list imply? I believe it speaks of men of genius, like Andy Kaufman. These are truths that defied established orthodoxy; were as the man on the moon may be a conspiracy, an illusion, much like Kaufman's belief that life is an illusion (see movie). If you believe there's nothing up their sleeve than nothing is cool! Do you believe? Are you a believer?
3. anonymous

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   Sep 16th 2007 !⃝

   The song is referring to the belief by some people that Andy Kaufman is still alive and his death was just another one of his crazy comedic stunts. This relates to the belief that the moon landing was fake which is the reason behind the title.
4. anonymous

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   Jul 17th 2007 !⃝

   The Warner Brothers press release for "Automatic for the People," the album off of which this song comes, said that this song was Michael Stipe's answer to the Divine Comedy. In other words, Andy Kaufman is Virgil to Stipe's Dante, and is leading him around the afterlife, showing him what (and who) is to be found there.
   
   I think that Warner Brothers' PR hacks were oversimplifying for the sake of making it easier for press flunkies like me to understand what is (I think) a very complex (and somewhat indecipherable) meditation on spirituality and the afterlife, but it's given me something to think about for 15 years. :)
5. anonymous

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   Nov 1st 2005 !⃝

   This song is about Andy Kuafman; an American comedian and entertainer, a British Tommy Cooper, who was really popular. There was a film made about his life, starring jim Carrey. When Micheal Stipe was a young lad, he turned the TV on one day and saw Kaufman at work. Stipe didn't know what Kuafman was doing but he knew he'd never seen anything like it before and even played with idea that Kaufamn was from the moon. That's were the title comes from.

   This interpretation has been marked as poor. view anyway
6. bernardo

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   Aug 4th 2004 !⃝

   This song is about comedian Andy Kaufman, who used to play the innocently complex immigrant Latka Gravas on the hit TV Show "Taxi". Kaufman often went on "Saturday Night Live" to do Elvis Presley immitations. He also, at one point, became a comedic wrestler and directed a short film about wrestker Fred Blassie called "My Breakfast with Blassie". The title of the song refers to a belief by some people that the moon landings were staged by the government.

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