Songfacts®:

• R.E.M. was opening for the Human League at the Palace Theater in Los Angeles on June 11, 1983, when they got word of downpours in the South Central region of Georgia. The band is from Athens, Georgia, which is located in this area, so they tried to call their families and friends to make sure they were OK, but the phones were out because of the torrential rain. The band wrote "So. Central Rain (I'm Sorry)" in response to this incident.
• R.E.M. performed it on the television show Late Night with David Letterman in 1983 before it even had a title in what was the band's first national television appearance. The spot also inadvertently shaped the frontman's persona. Michael Stipe remembered in Part Lies, Part Heart, Part Truth, Part Garbage 1982-2011: "They were all really nice to us, we were so green. The producers told us before the show that Dave would come over and talk to one band member after the song, and so Peter was chosen to represent us all. We made it through the song fine, but when Dave came over to talk I sat down on the floor monitor, and from that moment on, forever and ever, I was dubbed 'enigmatic.' What a crackup. Meh!"
• It became the second R.E.M. single to chart on the Billboard Hot 100, peaking at #85. "Radio Free Europe" was their first song to chart. >>>

  Suggestion credit:
  Muammar - Richmond, VA, for all above
• Stipe refused to lip-sync for the 1984 music video, directed by Howard Libov, which impressed bandmate Mike Mills. "I really like that Michael sang a live track when we made the video. I don't think that had been done up until that point," he said.