“Sometimes I think, 'What would John McVie do?' That’s how I wrote the bassline to Losing My Religion”: The secrets of R.E.M.’s Mike Mills

Mike Mills, left, and singer Michael Stipe of REM perform on stage at the Carver Hawkeye Arena in Ames, Iowa, March 10, 1989

It is 1991. For the last 11 years, four regular guys from Athens, Georgia, have been pumping out rough-edged songs with honest, earthy lyrics; after 14 albums, endless touring, and a steady rise in popularity, they're finally savoring success with the chart-topping Out Of Time. 

Bassist Mike Mills is crucial to R.E.M's organic sound: in addition to laying down a smooth, melodic bottom, he writes, plays keyboards, and sings – and he's done so throughout the band's tortuous trip to the top.