Leaving New York

"Leaving New York"
Song
B-side	"(Don't Go Back) To Rockville (Live)"

"Leaving New York" is a song by the American alternative rock band R.E.M.. It was the first single from the band's 2004 album Around the Sun. Although it was not as heavily promoted as earlier singles, it reached as high as #5 on the UK Singles Chart. However, the song failed to chart on the Billboard Hot 100, becoming the only lead single from an R.E.M. studio album not to chart on the U.S. Hot 100 besides "Cant Get There From Here" from Fables of the Reconstruction in 1985.

In early live performances of the song (September 2004), the band would play Michael Stipe's "It's pulling me apart. Change." album backing vocal during the chorus and bridge of live performances. As early as February 2005, however, as evidenced on the R.E.M. Live disc, the band worked up an alternative whereby the backing vocals would be shared amongst Mike Mills, Scott McCaughey and Ken Stringfellow in order to make the song flow more smoothly.

Background to the song

As Stipe stated in interviews, the tune is a love song to the city. Stipe regards New York as his second hometown. Stipe stated that once, flying out of the city and seeing it from above, Stipe was overwhelmed by its beauty and wrote the song right there on the plane.

The music video was shot with real friends of the band members, throwing a party, and snapshots of Stipe in different places of the city, giving the video a spontaneous and private atmosphere.

Track listing

All tracks by Peter Buck, Mike Mills, and Michael Stipe unless otherwise stated.

CD1

1. "Leaving New York"
2. "(Don't Go Back To) Rockville" (Berry, Buck, Mills, Stipe) (Live, Oslo 25.10.03)

CD2

1. "Leaving New York"
2. "You Are the Everything" (Berry, Buck, Mills, Stipe) (Live, Raleigh, NC - Soundcheck, 10.10.03)
3. "These Days" (Berry, Buck, Mills, Stipe) (Live, Toronto, ON, 30.09.03)

Charts

Chart (2004)	Peak position
Irish Singles Chart	14
UK Singles Chart	5

External links

• Leaving New York at MusicBrainz