It was released as a promotional single and reached number 44 on Billboard's Rock Tracks chart.

[4] They eventually agreed to a multi-track studio recording for Reckoning due to the popularity of the song live with fans.

guitarist Peter Buck has stated that the song was originally inspired by a dream Stipe had.

[7] However, the vocals on "Pretty Persuasion" are not precisely enunciated, making the lyrics difficult to decipher at times.

[3][7] Spin critics Eric Weisbard and Craig Marks described "Pretty Persuasion" as "a great rocker.

[7] This song, and others from the album, is part of a short film called "Left of Reckoning", directed by James Herbert.

The four-minute clip has the band wandering around folk artist R.A. Miller's Whirligig Farm in Rabbittown, Georgia.