REM - e-bow the letter, 1996

"The song is about Stipe's friend, the actor and musician River Phoenix. The title refers to the EBow, an electromagnetic field-generating device that induces sustained vibration in an electric guitar string (creating a violin-like effect), and to a "letter never sent" by Michael Stipe. This device is present in the track and appears in the music video, and in live performances guitarist Peter Buck often used it. R.E.M. has also played the song live with artists including Thom Yorke singing Patti Smith's vocal part. Phoenix was going through difficult times in 1993 due to his excessive drug use, something that inspired Stipe to compose the lyrics for the song; the actor died on October 31 of that same year due to an overdose of cocaine and heroin."