On the Camino, I looked for songs that were contemplative and inspiring – as well as some that would motivate me or make me laugh. The early catalog of R.E.M. meant a lot to me years ago, but I realized I hadn’t listened to it in quite some time. As such, my playlist was the entirety of their first four (and a half) albums and other favorites. I heard many of these songs through new ears.
I also salted in plenty of other non-R.E.M. tunes to mix it up. The resulting playlist was over 10 hours long. I will spare you that level of specificity in favor of a sampling.
While songs like “Pilgrimage,” “We Walk,” “Losing My Religion,” and “Can’t Get There from Here” may seem like obvious additions to a Camino playlist, other tunes came to have great meaning. The lyrics from “These Days” became a kind of anthem. “Underneath the Bunker” just made me laugh.
All the people gather, fly to carry each his burden
R.E.M., “These Days”
We are young despite the years
We are concern, we are hope despite the times
And then, there were always the songs that hit at just the right time. Climbing out of Grandas, feeling like my feet were about to explode while crossing yet another windmill-adorned hill, Shonen Knife entered the chat to provide perspective.
Since you’re already here
Shonen Knife, “Pop Tune”
Put away something bad
Since you’re already here
Think just happy things
Link to the playlist on Spotify
| wdt_ID | wdt_created_by | wdt_created_at | wdt_last_edited_by | wdt_last_edited_at | Song | Artist |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | foggadmin | 18/02/2026 20:40 | foggadmin | 18/02/2026 20:40 | Radio Song | R.E.M. |
| 2 | foggadmin | 18/02/2026 20:40 | foggadmin | 18/02/2026 20:40 | These Days | R.E.M. |
| 3 | foggadmin | 18/02/2026 20:40 | foggadmin | 18/02/2026 20:40 | Losing My Religion | R.E.M. |
| 4 | foggadmin | 18/02/2026 20:40 | foggadmin | 18/02/2026 20:40 | Near Wild Heaven | R.E.M. |
| 5 | foggadmin | 18/02/2026 20:40 | foggadmin | 18/02/2026 20:40 | Talk About The Passion | R.E.M. |
| 6 | foggadmin | 18/02/2026 20:40 | foggadmin | 18/02/2026 20:40 | Radio Free Europe | R.E.M. |
| 7 | foggadmin | 18/02/2026 20:40 | foggadmin | 18/02/2026 20:40 | Pilgrimage | R.E.M. |
| 8 | foggadmin | 18/02/2026 20:40 | foggadmin | 18/02/2026 20:40 | Fall On Me | R.E.M. |
| 9 | foggadmin | 18/02/2026 20:40 | foggadmin | 18/02/2026 20:40 | Texarkana | R.E.M. |
| 10 | foggadmin | 18/02/2026 20:40 | foggadmin | 18/02/2026 20:40 | Superman | R.E.M. |
| 11 | foggadmin | 18/02/2026 20:40 | foggadmin | 18/02/2026 20:40 | Begin The Begin | R.E.M. |
| 12 | foggadmin | 18/02/2026 20:40 | foggadmin | 18/02/2026 20:40 | I Believe | R.E.M. |
| 13 | foggadmin | 18/02/2026 20:40 | foggadmin | 18/02/2026 20:40 | (Don’t Go Back To) Rockville | R.E.M. |
| 14 | foggadmin | 18/02/2026 20:40 | foggadmin | 18/02/2026 20:40 | Gardening At Night | R.E.M. |
| 15 | foggadmin | 18/02/2026 20:40 | foggadmin | 18/02/2026 20:40 | Wolves, Lower | R.E.M. |
| 16 | foggadmin | 18/02/2026 20:40 | foggadmin | 18/02/2026 20:40 | Driver 8 | R.E.M. |
| 17 | foggadmin | 18/02/2026 20:40 | foggadmin | 18/02/2026 20:40 | Harborcoat | R.E.M. |
| 18 | foggadmin | 18/02/2026 20:40 | foggadmin | 18/02/2026 20:40 | So. Central Rain | R.E.M. |
| 19 | foggadmin | 18/02/2026 20:40 | foggadmin | 18/02/2026 20:40 | Exhuming McCarthy | R.E.M. |
| 20 | foggadmin | 18/02/2026 20:40 | foggadmin | 18/02/2026 20:40 | Life and How To Live It | R.E.M. |
| 21 | foggadmin | 18/02/2026 20:40 | foggadmin | 18/02/2026 20:40 | World Leader Pretend | R.E.M. |
| 22 | foggadmin | 18/02/2026 20:40 | foggadmin | 18/02/2026 20:40 | Welcome to the Occupation | R.E.M. |
| 23 | foggadmin | 18/02/2026 20:40 | foggadmin | 18/02/2026 20:40 | The Flowers Of Guatemala | R.E.M. |
| 24 | foggadmin | 18/02/2026 20:40 | foggadmin | 18/02/2026 20:40 | Ages Of You | R.E.M. |
| 25 | foggadmin | 18/02/2026 20:40 | foggadmin | 18/02/2026 20:40 | Cuyahoga | R.E.M. |
| Song | Artist |
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