<P> Much of the song was written by drummer Bill Berry, although as R.E.M. shares songwriting credits among its members, it is unknown how much he actually wrote . Berry's drums are largely absent from the song--a Univox drum machine took his place--but he was responsible for the sampling of the drum pattern on the track . The string arrangement was written by Led Zeppelin bassist John Paul Jones . </P> <P> Guitarist Peter Buck commented on the making of the track saying "' Everybody Hurts' is similar to' Man on the Moon' . Bill brought it in, and it was a one - minute long country - and - western song . It didn't have a chorus or a bridge . It had the verse...it kind of went around and around, and he was strumming it . We went through about four different ideas and how to approach it and eventually came to that Stax, Otis Redding, "Pain in My Heart" kind of vibe . I'm not sure if Michael would have copped that reference, but to a lot of our fans it was a Staxxy - type thing . It took us forever to figure out the arrangement and who was going to play what, and then Bill ended up not playing on the original track . It was me and Mike and a drum machine . And then we all overdubbed ." </P> <P> In the liner notes of the album In Time: The Best of R.E.M. 1988--2003, Buck writes that "the reason the lyrics are so atypically straightforward is because it was aimed at teenagers", and "I've never watched Buffy the Vampire Slayer, but the idea that high school is a portal to hell seems pretty realistic to me ." Incidentally, the song was used in the 1992 film of the same name that preceded the show . </P> <P> In 2005, Buck told the BBC: "If you're consciously writing for someone who hasn't been to college, or is pretty young, it might be nice to be very direct . In that regard, it's tended to work for people of a lot of ages ." </P>

What is the meaning of the song everybody hurts
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