A previously unreleased studio version of a solo song from former R.E.M. frontman Michael Stipe, “Give Me a Hand,” is featured on the 63-track compilation EarthPercent x Earth Day ’23, which is out today (April 20) in honor of Earth Day. Proceeds will benefit EarthPercent’s efforts to support organizations battling climate change.
The compilation is available through Bandcamp, as are its individual tracks. They include live collaborations between Chrvches and the Cure’s Robert Smith (“How Not To Drown”) and Coldplay and H.E.R. (“Let Somebody Go”), and songs from Brian Eno, Dry Cleaning, Anna Calvi, Bring Me the Horizon, Julia Holter, and Mystery Jets.
Although he has rarely performed live in the 12 years since R.E.M.’s split, Stipe did play “Give Me a Hand,” which features vocalist Gaelynn Lea, at least once during a May 2019 opening set for Patti Smith at New York’s Webster Hall. He’s released a handful of one-off tracks over the past few years, and was at one point working on his first proper solo album with Fischerspooner’s Casey Spooner. That project has yet to be released.
Stipe’s most recent recorded guest appearance came last month on “Oh Me, Oh My,” the title track from Lonnie Holley’s new Jagjaguwar album of the same name. He also appeared on the 2020 track “No Time for Love Like Now” by Big Red Machine, the side project from his longtime friend Aaron Dessner and Bon Iver’s Justin Vernon.
