Reckoning is the second album by the band R.E.M. It was released in 1984 by independent label I.R.S. Records to critical acclaim and stronger record sales than their debut.

Reckoning features some of R.E.M.'s more popular early songs, including "So. Central Rain (I'm Sorry)" and "(Don't Go Back To) Rockville." Avoiding romantic themes once again, lyricist Michael Stipe instead ruminates on cold weather, a fairy tale in which a child drowns, a flood, superficiality, and separation. The upbeat tone of the music contrast with the dark lyrics. The final song, "Little America", is written about rural America, and predates the Southern themes on the following album, Fables of the Reconstruction (1985).

'On the surface, Reckoning may not be as distinctive as Murmur, but the record's influence on underground American rock in the '80s was just as strong.'Amg