R.E.M. COMPILATIONS (AUGUST 2006)

And I Feel Fine... The Best Of The I.R.S. Years 1982-1987 presents R.E.M's I.R.S. canon in a new single CD and digital collection, with new sleevenotes by Anthony DeCurtis. Its 21 tracks start, fittingly, with Begin The Begin, followed by the band's other hits and favourites. Radio Free Europe, R.E.M's debut single, rings the alarm as it first did in 1981, signaling a new awakening in popular music. That year's CHRONIC TOWN EP and the band's 1983 I.R.S. album debut, MURMUR, lit the torch, and Bill Berry (drums, vocals), Peter Buck (guitar), Mike Mills (bass, vocals) and Michael Stipe (vocals) were poised to be its bearers.

R.E.M's early storytelling was both epic and familiar. Themes of loss and alienation as expressed in So. Central Rain (I'm Sorry) and 1987's Top 10 single The One I Love, met with the optimism and yearning of Sitting Still and I Believe, in a marriage of ideals that was at once comforting and awakening for all who discovered this new music emitting from Athens, Georgia.

Forging a scene with other Athens bands, R.E.M. spawned a movement which led to a cultural sea change in music, launching them (and others) onto the world's stage with varying degrees of success and longevity. 1987's It's The End Of the World As We Know It (And I Feel Fine), the new CD's closing track, was a tongue twisting pop culture rally cry, beckoning the tuned out masses - listless casualties of 1980s economics, politics, and general 'Me Generation' malaise.

By the end of their run with I.R.S. Records, R.E.M's success had paved the way for a new generation of alt-rock and grunge acts and Athens' finest continued to lead the charge.

The 2-CD Collectors' Edition of And I Feel Fine... The Best Of The I.R.S. Years 1982-1987 comes with a second disc of previously unreleased and rare tracks from the I.R.S. and R.E.M. vaults. The second disc's gems include various concert recordings, an acoustic performance from the 1987 documentary film Athens, GA - Inside Out and alternate studio takes and mixes. Each of R.E.M's four original members has selected a personal favourite for the rarities disc and the package includes descriptive track-by-track annotations in the band members' own words.

Track Listing

And I Feel Fine... The Best Of The I.R.S. Years 1982-1987 (CD)

1. Begin The Begin - 2. Radio Free Europe - 3. Pretty Persuasion - 4. Talk About The Passion - 5. (Don't Go Back To) Rockville - 6. Sitting Still - 7. Gardening At Night - 8. 7 Chinese Bros. - 9. So. Central Rain (I'm Sorry) - 10. Driver 8 - 11. Can't Get There From Here - 12. Finest Worksong - 13. Feeling Gravity's Pull - 14. I Believe - 15. Life And How To Live It - 16. Cuyahoga - 17. The One I Love - 18. Welcome To The Occupation - 19. Fall On Me - 20. Perfect Circle - 21. It's The End Of The World As We Know It (And I Feel Fine)

And I Feel Fine... The Best Of The I.R.S. Years 1982-1987 (2-CD Collectors' Edition)

(Contains Disc 1 + Rarities Disc)

1. Pilgrimage (Mike's pick) - 2. These Days (Bill's pick) - 3. Gardening at Night(slower electric demo; previously unreleased) - 4. Radio Free Europe (Hib-tone version) - 5. Sitting Still (Hib-tone version) - 6. Life and How to Live It (Live at the Muzik Centrum, Utrecht, Holland 9/14/87; previously unreleased) - 7. Ages of You (Live at the Paradise, Boston 7/13/83; previously unreleased) - 8. We Walk (Live at the Paradise, Boston 7/13/83; previously unreleased) - 9. 1,000,000 (Live at the Paradise, Boston 7/13/83; previously unreleased) - 10. Finest Worksong (other mix) - 11. Hyena (demo) (previously unreleased) - 12. Theme from Two Steps Onward (previously unreleased) - 13. Superman - 14. All the Right Friends (previously unreleased; later version released on Vanilla Sky soundtrack) - 15. Mystery to Me (demo; previously unreleased) - 16. Just A Touch (live in-studio version; previously unreleased) - 17. Bad Day (session outtake; previously unreleased) - 18. King of Birds (last song cut from the best of) - 19. Swan Swan H (live, acoustic from 'Athens, GA-Inside Out') - 20. Disturbance At The Heron House (Peter's pick) - 21. Time After Time (annElise) (Michael's pick)

When The Light Is Mine - The Best Of The I.R.S. Years 1982-1987 Video Collection (DVD)

1. Wolves, Lower 2. Radio Free Europe 3. Talk About The Passion 4. Radio Free Europe ['The Tube' 11.18.83] 5. Talk About The Passion ['The Tube' 11.18.83] 6. So. Central Rain (I'm Sorry) 7. Left Of Reckoning 8. Pretty Persuasion ['The Old Grey Whistle Test' 11.20.84] 9. Can't Get There From Here 10. Driver 8 11. Life And How To Live It 12. Feeling Gravity's Pull 13. Can't Get There From Here ['The Tube' 10.25.85] 14. Fall On Me 15. Swan Swan H [Athens, GA - Inside/Out] 16. The One I Love 17. It's The End Of The World As We Know It (And I Feel Fine) 18. Finest Worksong

Extras

The Cutting Edge October 1983 - Broadcast Segment Additional Interviews
The Cutting Edge June 1984 - Edited Broadcast Segment Additional Interviews
Time After Time (annElise) Pageantry