Song · R.E.M.
“Leaving New York” by R.E.M.
From the album Around the Sun (2004)
“Leaving New York” by R.E.M. appears on 12 radio countdowns from 11 stations between 2004 and 2024. It was first released in 2004 on the album Around the Sun. Its best result is #26 on the 99X Essential 99 of 2004. In the combined RockLists rankings it is the #93 alternative song of 2004 and #6,922 alternative song of all time.
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"Leaving New York" opened the account for Around the Sun, R.E.M.'s 13th album, arriving as its lead single in 2004. Peter Buck, Mike Mills and Michael Stipe wrote it, and the band produced it with Pat McCarthy, who also mixed, with Jamie Candiloro engineering.
It got less of a push than earlier singles, and America shrugged: it missed the Hot 100 entirely, only the second lead single from an R.E.M. studio album to do so, after "Can't Get There from Here" in 1985. Britain was kinder, sending it to 5, their 11th and last top-10 hit there. On stage, the first shows leaned on Stipe's own recorded backing vocal in the chorus; by February 2005 Mills, Scott McCaughey and Ken Stringfellow were singing those parts live.
Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.
RockLists rankings
Alternative & Modern Rock
Indie & Adult Alternative
Hard Rock & Metal
All Rock Formats
Year-end countdowns
| Year | # | Station | Countdown | of |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | 59 | CD101 Columbus, OH | CD101 Top 101 Songs of 2004 | 101 |
| 2004 | 46 | The Bear Ottawa, ON | The Bear Top 107 Songs of 2004 | 107 |
| 2004 | 39 | WBER Rochester, NY | WBER Listener Countdown 2004 | 227 |
| 2004 | 58 | 88.3 The Sting Cleveland, OH | 88.3 The Sting WBWC Top 88 Songs of 2004 | 88 |
| 2004 | 89 | 102.7 WEQX Southern Vermont and the Capital District of New York (Albany) | WEQX Top 102.7 of 2004 | 103 |
| 2004 | 53 | WHTG Monmouth-Ocean, NJ | G106.3 Top 106 Songs of 2004 | 106 |
| 2004 | 26 | 99X Atlanta, GA | 99X Essential 99 of 2004 | 99 |
All-time and decade countdowns
| Year | # | Station | Countdown | of |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | 436 | Virgin Radio | Virgin Radio Top 500 Songs of All-Time (December 2004) | 500 |
| 2009 | 820 | WYEP | WYEP 913 Songs That Matter from the Last Decade | 913 |
| 2022 | 653 | 90.9 The Bridge | 90.9 The Bridge Top 909 Songs of the 2000s | 907 |
| 2023 | 211 | The Colorado Sound | The Colorado Sound Top 800 Songs About Places | 800 |
| 2024 | 538 | The Colorado Sound | The Colorado Sound Top 1055 Songs of the 21st Century | 1055 |
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