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R.E.M. to Release ’80s-Era Set

R.E.M. is getting ready to release a two-CD and DVD anthology set on Sept. 12 that spans their time on IRS Records in the 1980s. The CD portion, And I Feel Fine: The Best of the IRS Years, 1982-1987, features tracks like “It’s the End of the World As We Know It (And I Feel Fine),” “The One I Love,” and “Radio Free Europe.” A two-disc collectors edition also includes a 21-track rarities disc with previously unreleased songs, live recordings, alternate takes, and mixes. The DVD portion, When the Light Is Mine: The Best of the IRS Years, 1982-1987, contains TV performances, interviews, and outtakes, as well as all 11 videos the band made for IRS.

Here is the track listing for And I Feel Fine: The Best of the I.R.S. Years, 1982-1987:

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)”

Here is the track listing for the rarities disc that comes with the collectors edition:

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)

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