R.E.M. is a great band. I am 43 years old now and started listening to them in the early 80's. Michael. Stipe is a great frontman, and Mike Mills is a great bass player and backup singer. Peter Buck is a very good lead guitar player. This band is awesome, simply. Oh and yeah BILL BERRY is a great drummer. Too bad he had to leave the band .
Man I wish Letterman still took the time to talk the bands he has on. I haven't seen him do that in years. Now it's just a flash performance and they're offstage. Lame.
i disagree, letterman obviously put many of the greatest bands on the earth on his show, kept his personality and the bands made it big if they were great-like rem - ill bet rem never regretted being on letterman-
Does anybody else think it's funny that whenever Letterman has a new band on the show, he treats them like crap and makes fun of them? Then twenty years down the line they are some of the greatest bands ever and he looks like a complete fool.
Oh, grow up!!!! So what if doesn't like recent R.E.M. stuff, I don't either. I like the classics. When did YouTube become a board that only allows butt kissing posts that praise a video or band? I happen to agree with him that Stipe is an ego driven guy. He's not the one with talent in the band, the others are.
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@RosePetalTeaPot grow up? I called someone out on a lie. There were no opinions stated. Nobody even mentioned "REM's recent stuff". Reading comprehension seems like the least of your problems. What is "an ego driven guy"? Have you ever read Freud? Try learning the meaning of "ego" first, you dolt. Then try to AVOID posting your unqualified, muddled, and nonsensical "opinions" on the internet. Bring SOMETHING to a conversation before challenging others. Essentially, grow up.
@foilseal You seem like a real ... well ... jerk and a bit of a pathetic loser if you are that offended because people don't agree with you. Good luck with life with your pissy attitude.
By the way, R.E.M. sucked after 1990. If you don't like my opinion - who the hell cares.
@RosePetalTeaPot Don't feed the troll. Let him wallow in his pathetic life. It's hilarious to me that whenever two people disagree with him, we must "know" each other and be conspiring against him.
Psychologically imbalanced people like that are a bit sad, and unfortunately, a dime a dozen. It doesn't change the far that Michael Stipe's massive ego really overtook the band and that of the four (then three) members, he was the one with the least bit of talent.
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@Hunterhikes jesus! you still won't quit with the whiny bitch "stipe's massive ego" crap. you know nothing about the guy except that he's talented and you're not. you'll probably grow up to manage a taco bell if you're lucky, you miserable half-wit troll.
@RosePetalTeaPot R.E.M. most certainly did NOT suck after 1990, because Automatic for the People was released in '92, and, by any standard, it is a landmark. Yes, they were less quirky and organic, a little more deep and polished, but the jangle was still there.
He's STILL obsessing about this and has started messaging me privately with his insane rants, as well as posting harassing message on my comments board. What a freak. How is it that mentally ill people like @foilseal aren't heavily medicated?
I agree with you completely, he's really a freaking creepy. What kind of person obsesses over something for a month just because you like a band's early years of music and think their lead singer developed an ego problem. ???
@Foilseal, what is your problem? Are you simply simply so insecure that someone can't critique a band you like. How old are you? 11? 12?
Get over it and move on with your life. That you keep being so defensive and can't move on really says that you're obsessive. Move on with your life, it's pathetic.
Back to the original subject. R.E.M. Was a great band back in the early 80's, but haven't been great in a while. Michael Stipe's ego grew too large for a lot of the original fans.
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@Hunterhikes You haven't "critiqued" the band at all. You attacked Michael Stipe's character. Then I responded. Then you attacked me. When you bullshit people, whether it be with peers, at work, or on the internet, you may be called out. "REM was (sic) great in the early 80's" is not a critique. Do you have anything of substance deep down in that confused adolescent brain that you care to share with us? Could you possibly compare a couple pieces...say....So. Central Rain and Nightswimming?
Get a grip, weirdo. If you are so bothered because someone else critiques a band you happen to like, then you need to get a life, but quite possibly a psychiatrist.
@foilseal Dude, get a life. My life is just fine, I'm sorry that YOU have such a hard time getting over the fact someone won't' agree with you or doesn't like the same things as you. YOU are the one who is going to have a hard life.
I would recommend that you seek some mental health therapy, but something tells me that I'm not the first - nor would I be the last - to recommend that for you. Now knock it off knucklehead.
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@Hunterhikes I'm another guy. And everybody would benefit from a sit-down in the doctor's office. But some things are universal like this song. Unless you're an idiot or on a psychotic spree. I wonder what that would be like ? Enjoy as long as you can, it may all be gone in the blink of an eye
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@Hunterhikes I don't read anything in foilseal's comments that are particularly indicative of any need to undergo treatment of any mental illness...
Perhaps some comments might have been deleted, but as far as I can see from this thread, someone simply disagreed with you and so you decided to respond with animosity - which makes your comment about maturity in regard to respecting others' opinions somewhat ironic.
@flame0154 I can't speak for Hunter, but you apparently haven't read all of Foilseal's incredibly insane comments. I think you have it the other way around. Hunterhikes, I and a few others disagreed with Foilsoil and he went absolutely off the wall apesh*t, posting nasty private messages to people and really psycho things on my page and I think on Hunterhikes if I remember right, but this was how long ago? Months. MONTHS!
@RosePetalTeaPot I have no idea who he is, I was just enjoying some REM videos and was trying to work out the cause of the shitstorm in this thread. I only saw this video for the first time a fortnight ago.
@flame0154 Are you kidding???? Too bad you missed some of the things Foilsealduchebag said. Looks like a lot of his creepy as hell comments were deleted. You must be good friends with him if you are stirring up this stuff months later.
Always one of my favorite REM songs. Thank you Bill, Mike, Mike and Peter. Will always miss you and thank you for all the great music, memories, hopes and dreams. Stay well and remember always.
Always one of my favorite REM songs. Thank you Bill, Mike, Mike and Peter. Will always miss you and thank you for all the great music, memories, hopes and dreams. Stay well and remember always.
Thanks for all the great music you have provided to us. Truly grateful and most appreciative. Best of luck to all of you. Stay well, take care and remember always.
I watched this when it first aired. I had just finished my first year at college and as a college radio DJ. I use t play REM quite a bit on my radio show but it was WNEW FM in NYC where I first heard the band.
Ah, the old Mike Stipe, painfully shy. He's morphed into a tragically hip scenester, with actor friends, hanging with the beautiful people. Tends to happen with success, you move up in tax brackets and the friends change........Miss this old version of him :(
@heyrubes007 Many people in Athens started referring to R.E.M. as "Michael Stipe and R.E.M." to appropriately describe the size of Stipe's massive ego.
Though it wasn't even about you, I'm so terribly sorry you seem so wounded by what others might say about Michael Stipe's massive ego, Pete.
In reality, Pete, the closest you've probably gotten to Michael Stipe is watching him a at a show. No one cares where you do or don't life, stop name dropping (or in your case, "neighbor dropping"). It's pathetic.
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@RosePetalTeaPot actually not bs...additionally, despite his wealth and fame, Stipe, lives in a modest home (worth no more that 300k) in an older neighborhood in town. He frequents local businesses, including a small grocer, and gets about town in a rusted 80s model volvo or a worn-down 60s cadillac or a bicycle. A huge percentage of his earnings have gone to charities. Comments from heyrubes007 and hunterhicks are the BS, and come from their low self-worth.
i saw this live and thought it was the coolest thing when i was in high school. i was just watching letterman right now in the middle of the night remembering this and was curious to see him back then and here we are! thanks for posting. technology is a blessing but frightening as well!
this is so sad . This band was talking about Athens Ga. "A fine college town" not anymore ,sorry, over development, city/county govt. corruption. I am a native, and I say sorry too, but i am the working poor of this Georgia community, so i don't have the resources to fight. i am of Irish descent, so I will find a way not to starve to death.
@elleJify dude, don't even sweat it. I live in a college town too part of the "working poor" of Madison, WI. Our working poor are taking to the capital in droves because the governor here likes to slap around the working man for some fucking reason. Go, Wisconsin Unions!
@magua4 uh, no they don't. Unions are what keep ordinary people from getting screwed royally by those with more money and clout. SInce I am sure you don't know dick about what I am curently talking about, you can take your opinions back to high school where they belong. Familiarize yourself with what is going on in Wisconsin currently and then come back to me and tell me that the unions who are fighting in Madison are int he wrong. Until then, fuck off.
@thutton67 If you are not aware, REM is very political. They would enoy this kind of thing themselves, I am sure. Michael Stipe is a very political person. Maybe if you knew something about the band you would know this and we don't have to waste our time going back and forth about crap ilke this.
@subsamadhi maybe in the short term situations where injustice is imminent, unions are worthwhile. that said, unions should definitely be phased out. unions set wage demands which end up working against the economy as well as workers. they encourage price floors too which causes more disharmony; i'm as progressive as you can get, but I do not think that (most) unions do any good. economic freedom can exist with worker's rights in a much more efficient manner.
@magua4 Unions are the reason you enjoy a 5 day, 40 hour week. They still protect their members in matters of health, safety, and wages. Unions formed to give workers collective bargaining- so we don't get screwed over. Many of the companies make far more off the products then the union workers cost
@magua4 go tell that to all the teachers, fire fighters, cops, and god knows who else in Wisconsin who are losing everything imaginable because the governor thinks that good hard-working people in this state deserve to get screwed because the State is in turmoil. I'm sure that the unions they belong to might not be the best choice in the world for them but what the fuck is the alternative? You tell me.
@elleJify All you white people screwed yourselves into the ground by being so greedy and now everybody's house is under water, and it serves you right that you have lost your job and you daughter is having a black man's child.
As Stipe said, they are taking the artist's journey (Paul Clay's teachings) about starting in a place of naivety, and going from there, working, and mastering the technical until you know everything you could know (you are educated).then you can begin t experiment and explore the art side, until eventually you land in a place where you find that you have come full circle, back to that place of naivety and innocence. I think they've done that, which is rare these days, and I applaud them for it
As Stipe said, they are taking the artist's journey (Paul Clay's teachings) about starting in a place of naivety, and going from there, working, and mastering the technical until you know everything you could know (you are educated).then you can begin t experiment and explore the art side, until eventually you land in a place where you find that you have come full circle, back to that place of naivety and innocence. I think they've done that, which is rare these days, and I applaud them for it.
R.E.M. were influenced by The Byrds & The 1960's Bee Gees. I Love The 1960's like The Beatles, The Beach Boys, The Byrds,The Mamas & The Papas & The Bee Gees.
Early on in 82 and 83 he would sing with his arm over the mic, like Johnny Rotten, to hide his face behind his arm and elbow.
.
Met them in 88 in Largo and Stipe just stood quietly by the door, speaking to no one at the pre-show industry meet and greet. Mike Mills and Bill Berry were great guys and Peter was on stage with Drivin' and Cryin'
.
If you ever meet a famous, or nearly-so, rock band, hang out with the rhythm section. Great guys, down to earth, lots of fun. John Entwhistle was the same.
the early days of letteman were great. he didn't have big stars yet so he would have to interview small bands (at the time) like REM and X. there was something so anti hollywood those days...but not now :(
People saying the IRS days were the best are nuts. REM evolved creatively and Automatic for the People can stand up to the greatest pop albums ever created.
Good grief, bands often start off on inferior record labels beccause they are so unknown, then sigh with a major label because they can then get access to superior recording studios and have better distribution. And has anyone ever wanted to live life as a broke college student???? Give them a break. they are one of the best alternative bands ever.
Well, Reveal got me into the band, but my favorite stuff is the older songs. For me new adventures and up were the best albums they made. I didn't buy around the sun (remember Stipe saying that if he ever began to wrote simple love songs, he would stop and the lyrics to leaving new york?), but accelerate was good enough to buy.
It realiy pisses me off these bandwagon jumpers saying the IRS years were the best. Yes they were good and Good Advices is up there. However there is more to life than the 80s. REM are getting old and we are getting old. There is nothing wrong with artistic development, and I think there latest stuff is strong. Didn't like Monstor though. New Adventures and Fables....Yes.
Really impressive. REM took the best elements of 60's folk rock and turned into something else altogether. Obscure lyrics that really work with the music, lots of energy. Only a few bands in the past 40 years have come even close to REM.
@LuckySaturn Yet when I first saw them in 1985 (Portland ME) it was one of the most amazing lead singer performances I've ever seen. It was like seeing Jim Morrison or Iggy Pop - just an unreal performance by Stipe.
R.E.M. have always been one of my favorite bands. The IRS years are the only albums worth listening to in my opinion, back before Michael Stipe began to take himself wayyyyyyyyy to seriously. I saw the band in New Haven CT, in Worcester and in Portland back in the mid 80's Peter Buck is why i play a Rickenbacker 360 today
GREEN represented the point where Stipe had lost his shyness and began to become a bit more political. The "message" replaced "the music" in importance. Ironically though, "World Leader Pretend" from GREEN is my favorite REM song. After GREEN they became too corporate.
So. Central Rain is a great song. Their 1st five albums were masterpieces of Rock music in the 1980's. Murmur, Reckoning, Fables of the Reconstruction, LIFE'S RICH PAGEANT (Freakin AWESOME Album, "I Believe" & "Flowers of Guatemala" rule) and Document. Green was ok.
I was the biggest R.E.M. fan, back when they were with the record lable I.R.S., with albums like: Murmur, Reconing, Document # 5, but then they left I.R.S. and went to Warner. It was then that they put out Green, a FAILED album if you ask me. They gave up their controlling rights for the all mighty dollar, However there were some all right albums under warners controll, like Automatic For The People, and Out Of Time. I just dont think their music is all that it could have been.
@CollectorOfMusic They became much more successful when they left I.R.S. and many people liked the change in music. I certainly did, though their early albums were great.
@boomoutahere ive seen them twice, the first time i saw them, they were promoting the fables album. the second time, they were promoting the green album. both were great-great shows. i just prefer their early stuff by far
@CollectorOfMusic I don't think they have compromised their music when they went to Warner. There's nothing wrong with making a buck with your art anyway. And if you ask me Green is a brilliant record. Of course they've made some not-so-great records but that's expected from a band whose output counts fifteen or so records
@CollectorOfMusic Did you see them on "Austin City Limits" last year? Pathetic! My memory tells me they sucked after Bill Berry left, however I think you are really right about the W/B vampires. Same thing happened to U2, saddness - utter saddness! IRS days were the best!!
Green was a great album...had many amazing songs...Automatic was a lull, and Monster gave them new life...stopped following them after that though....so I disagree.
@CollectorOfMusic I was a huge fan during the IRS years too and pretty much quit listening to them after that. But to be fair, they insisted on complete artistic control in their contract with Warner--according to their biographer. They decided when they recorded and whether or not they toured, as well as having freedom over the music itself. But despite all this, they managed to become pretty commercial sounding anyway.
@CollectorOfMusic Some bands/artists set such a high bar w/their early genius that they can never again reach those heights. After his motorcycle accident in '66, Dylan never came close to the towering greatness of his early work.
@ArlithCake ..his lips right? I'm a 41 y/odivorced woman, in college I had a big crush on him. I wanted to make that short drive to Athens, GA in hopes of us meeting... <- that is just par for the course on how great my choice in men have been thus far (yes, later I found out he is gay)
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I stand by my comments that Letterman is a left wing tool.... besmirching a 14 year old and screwing his interns......what a creep. Liberals suck big time we all that.....I like what I like to listen to that's all.
R.E.M. has certainly never "sold out." The greatness of their work has diminished, to be sure, but 27 years will do that in the pop music game, and they are better live now than they have ever been (if you can say that with Bill Berry gone). Anyway, for my money, R.E.M.'s catalog is so deep that few other bands compare. They are The Beatles of "alternative" rock. Bless them.
Letterman is great. Get your own opinion, not fox news's...So that must make you a conservative, and if so what are you doing listening to liberal songs with liberal lyrics by a liberal band like REM. Oohh no you're going to hell.
Long live America. Ever ask yourself what the The statue of Liberty stands for? Man those founding fathers were a bunch of liberals...
Ah the ever intelligent Fox News comment. You know you're dealing with a true retard when that nonsense comes up. I'd love to hear your theories on 9-11. lol
Seems unheard-of today, an unknown band getting to play a yet-to-be-released song on national TV. Not all was for the better then, but at least there was some spontaneity and risk-taking.
One of the greatest Rock bands ever. Stunning even rough and unpolished in this early career performance. So Central Rain awesome.
TheFoolFunnel 1 week ago
Michael, you're such a freak. We love you.
jablonsky67 1 week ago
R.E.M. is a great band. I am 43 years old now and started listening to them in the early 80's. Michael. Stipe is a great frontman, and Mike Mills is a great bass player and backup singer. Peter Buck is a very good lead guitar player. This band is awesome, simply. Oh and yeah BILL BERRY is a great drummer. Too bad he had to leave the band .
robtuohy1 3 weeks ago
Man I wish Letterman still took the time to talk the bands he has on. I haven't seen him do that in years. Now it's just a flash performance and they're offstage. Lame.
MrPelicanPants 2 months ago
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ericbreedlove 2 months ago
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ericbreedlove 2 months ago
I think its cute how Michael hides behind Peter so he doesn't have to speak to Dave lol
jimcarreyonline 3 months ago
god I hate Letterman.....
rocalocko 3 months ago
i disagree, letterman obviously put many of the greatest bands on the earth on his show, kept his personality and the bands made it big if they were great-like rem - ill bet rem never regretted being on letterman-
diamonddhk222 3 months ago
Does anybody else think it's funny that whenever Letterman has a new band on the show, he treats them like crap and makes fun of them? Then twenty years down the line they are some of the greatest bands ever and he looks like a complete fool.
160ofthe90s 3 months ago
Jesus, Mike Mills looks like he's 15.
yohei72 3 months ago 3
@Foilseal
Oh, grow up!!!! So what if doesn't like recent R.E.M. stuff, I don't either. I like the classics. When did YouTube become a board that only allows butt kissing posts that praise a video or band? I happen to agree with him that Stipe is an ego driven guy. He's not the one with talent in the band, the others are.
If you don't like MY opinion, bite me.
RosePetalTeaPot 3 months ago 19
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@RosePetalTeaPot grow up? I called someone out on a lie. There were no opinions stated. Nobody even mentioned "REM's recent stuff". Reading comprehension seems like the least of your problems. What is "an ego driven guy"? Have you ever read Freud? Try learning the meaning of "ego" first, you dolt. Then try to AVOID posting your unqualified, muddled, and nonsensical "opinions" on the internet. Bring SOMETHING to a conversation before challenging others. Essentially, grow up.
foilseal 3 months ago
@foilseal You seem like a real ... well ... jerk and a bit of a pathetic loser if you are that offended because people don't agree with you. Good luck with life with your pissy attitude.
By the way, R.E.M. sucked after 1990. If you don't like my opinion - who the hell cares.
RosePetalTeaPot 3 months ago 21
@RosePetalTeaPot Don't feed the troll. Let him wallow in his pathetic life. It's hilarious to me that whenever two people disagree with him, we must "know" each other and be conspiring against him.
Psychologically imbalanced people like that are a bit sad, and unfortunately, a dime a dozen. It doesn't change the far that Michael Stipe's massive ego really overtook the band and that of the four (then three) members, he was the one with the least bit of talent.
Hunterhikes 3 months ago 19
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@Hunterhikes jesus! you still won't quit with the whiny bitch "stipe's massive ego" crap. you know nothing about the guy except that he's talented and you're not. you'll probably grow up to manage a taco bell if you're lucky, you miserable half-wit troll.
foilseal 3 months ago
@foilseal Wow, you came back to this after how long? Weeks? Get a life.
Hunterhikes 3 months ago 17
@RosePetalTeaPot R.E.M. most certainly did NOT suck after 1990, because Automatic for the People was released in '92, and, by any standard, it is a landmark. Yes, they were less quirky and organic, a little more deep and polished, but the jangle was still there.
markfyt1 1 week ago
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Hunterhikes 3 months ago 14
@RosePetalTeaPot
He's STILL obsessing about this and has started messaging me privately with his insane rants, as well as posting harassing message on my comments board. What a freak. How is it that mentally ill people like @foilseal aren't heavily medicated?
I agree with you completely, he's really a freaking creepy. What kind of person obsesses over something for a month just because you like a band's early years of music and think their lead singer developed an ego problem. ???
Hunterhikes 3 months ago 16
@Foilseal, what is your problem? Are you simply simply so insecure that someone can't critique a band you like. How old are you? 11? 12?
Get over it and move on with your life. That you keep being so defensive and can't move on really says that you're obsessive. Move on with your life, it's pathetic.
Back to the original subject. R.E.M. Was a great band back in the early 80's, but haven't been great in a while. Michael Stipe's ego grew too large for a lot of the original fans.
Hunterhikes 3 months ago 19
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@Hunterhikes You haven't "critiqued" the band at all. You attacked Michael Stipe's character. Then I responded. Then you attacked me. When you bullshit people, whether it be with peers, at work, or on the internet, you may be called out. "REM was (sic) great in the early 80's" is not a critique. Do you have anything of substance deep down in that confused adolescent brain that you care to share with us? Could you possibly compare a couple pieces...say....So. Central Rain and Nightswimming?
foilseal 3 months ago
@foilseal
Get a grip, weirdo. If you are so bothered because someone else critiques a band you happen to like, then you need to get a life, but quite possibly a psychiatrist.
Hunterhikes 3 months ago 19
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@Hunterhikes you're going to have a hard life...good luck
foilseal 3 months ago
@foilseal Dude, get a life. My life is just fine, I'm sorry that YOU have such a hard time getting over the fact someone won't' agree with you or doesn't like the same things as you. YOU are the one who is going to have a hard life.
I would recommend that you seek some mental health therapy, but something tells me that I'm not the first - nor would I be the last - to recommend that for you. Now knock it off knucklehead.
Hunterhikes 3 months ago 19
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@Hunterhikes I'm another guy. And everybody would benefit from a sit-down in the doctor's office. But some things are universal like this song. Unless you're an idiot or on a psychotic spree. I wonder what that would be like ? Enjoy as long as you can, it may all be gone in the blink of an eye
ElNicco1 2 months ago
@ElNicco1 Maybe a little less dope smoking would help if you want to make a comment.
RosePetalTeaPot 1 month ago 11
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@Hunterhikes I don't read anything in foilseal's comments that are particularly indicative of any need to undergo treatment of any mental illness...
Perhaps some comments might have been deleted, but as far as I can see from this thread, someone simply disagreed with you and so you decided to respond with animosity - which makes your comment about maturity in regard to respecting others' opinions somewhat ironic.
flame0154 1 month ago
@flame0154 I can't speak for Hunter, but you apparently haven't read all of Foilseal's incredibly insane comments. I think you have it the other way around. Hunterhikes, I and a few others disagreed with Foilsoil and he went absolutely off the wall apesh*t, posting nasty private messages to people and really psycho things on my page and I think on Hunterhikes if I remember right, but this was how long ago? Months. MONTHS!
Sunflowerllyra 1 month ago 8
@Sunflowerllyra Oh. Ok then... that is odd :/
@RosePetalTeaPot I have no idea who he is, I was just enjoying some REM videos and was trying to work out the cause of the shitstorm in this thread. I only saw this video for the first time a fortnight ago.
flame0154 3 weeks ago
@flame0154 Are you kidding???? Too bad you missed some of the things Foilsealduchebag said. Looks like a lot of his creepy as hell comments were deleted. You must be good friends with him if you are stirring up this stuff months later.
RosePetalTeaPot 1 month ago 11
Always one of my favorite REM songs. Thank you Bill, Mike, Mike and Peter. Will always miss you and thank you for all the great music, memories, hopes and dreams. Stay well and remember always.
alumfpc1 4 months ago in playlist R E M
Always one of my favorite REM songs. Thank you Bill, Mike, Mike and Peter. Will always miss you and thank you for all the great music, memories, hopes and dreams. Stay well and remember always.
alumfpc1 4 months ago in playlist R E M
REM:
Thanks for all the great music you have provided to us. Truly grateful and most appreciative. Best of luck to all of you. Stay well, take care and remember always.
alumfpc1 4 months ago in playlist R E M
In 1982 Athens, GA had R.E.M., the football team had Herschel Walker, and the basketball team had Dominique Wilkins. Good times in the Classic City.
shelleyinthecity 4 months ago
Aw, what a bunch of modest youngsters. Nice catch.
Wazabooz 4 months ago
thank you for your wonderful music!
mirrencorin 4 months ago
Check out how shy Stipe was back then.
MrUncleLewis 4 months ago 4
Gonna miss u R.E.M! Such a special band, that continued releasing great music all the way till the last one. Really!
One of the very rare occasions that a band actually finished out of choice in good time - not too early not too late.
Clever, as always.
tomy7 4 months ago in playlist R E M 3
Great Song, Great band. bravo
TheWheels777 4 months ago 2
thanks for the memories!!!
landrigan17 4 months ago 3
I watched this when it first aired. I had just finished my first year at college and as a college radio DJ. I use t play REM quite a bit on my radio show but it was WNEW FM in NYC where I first heard the band.
lsachs07 4 months ago
God, I remember this when it aired. Loved R.E.M. ever since. Always will :)
lavenderk5 4 months ago
What great TV. No laugh track, it just feels real.
babiesmakinbabies 4 months ago
The band has officially split. This is the first video I search for to remember the great memories of one of my favorite bands
Crede06 4 months ago
I miss the days when college kids wasted time creatively. Now they just play video games :(
oophelia46 4 months ago 2
I feel like I would've been great friends with theses guys if I knew them in college.
MEYERS3000 4 months ago
HOLY COW! Was Stipe sitting back there all along?
tjsbigidea 5 months ago
sounds great but his guitar is for sure slightly out of tune. At least I can hear it
spicecrop 6 months ago
I STILL HAVE MY 1995 TIX STUB THAT HE SIGNED AT THE FOX THEATER OF COURSE HE JUST SIGNED IT MICHAEL
Nvrx2xlate 6 months ago
@Nvrx2xlate In Detroit right? The Mats opened for them and something like the 3 o'clock?
uhurtmybacon 5 months ago
Love this song and this version of REM but yes these days and for the past 10 years Stipe has come accross as such a jerk.
TheMillerJA 6 months ago
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WorkSucksMedia 7 months ago
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WorkSucksMedia 7 months ago
Ah, the old Mike Stipe, painfully shy. He's morphed into a tragically hip scenester, with actor friends, hanging with the beautiful people. Tends to happen with success, you move up in tax brackets and the friends change........Miss this old version of him :(
heyrubes007 8 months ago 2
@heyrubes007 Many people in Athens started referring to R.E.M. as "Michael Stipe and R.E.M." to appropriately describe the size of Stipe's massive ego.
Hunterhikes 8 months ago 16
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@Hunterhikes i've been mr stipe's neighbor since 1993. i've never heard anyone speak of him that way here. you're probably misinformed or jealous.
foilseal 4 months ago
@foilseal Right. That's it exactly.
Though it wasn't even about you, I'm so terribly sorry you seem so wounded by what others might say about Michael Stipe's massive ego, Pete.
In reality, Pete, the closest you've probably gotten to Michael Stipe is watching him a at a show. No one cares where you do or don't life, stop name dropping (or in your case, "neighbor dropping"). It's pathetic.
Hunterhikes 4 months ago 13
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@foilseal you seem to be the one who is wounded. there just isn't any truth to what you wrote.
foilseal 4 months ago
@foilseal If you say so. LOL
Hunterhikes 3 months ago 14
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@Hunterhikes i do say. was that all, troll?
foilseal 3 months ago
@foilseal : :::cough::: bulls&#t.
RosePetalTeaPot 3 months ago 13
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@RosePetalTeaPot actually not bs...additionally, despite his wealth and fame, Stipe, lives in a modest home (worth no more that 300k) in an older neighborhood in town. He frequents local businesses, including a small grocer, and gets about town in a rusted 80s model volvo or a worn-down 60s cadillac or a bicycle. A huge percentage of his earnings have gone to charities. Comments from heyrubes007 and hunterhicks are the BS, and come from their low self-worth.
foilseal 3 months ago
how about i just smash your ugly fucking face in, dave?
zazfilm 8 months ago
i saw this live and thought it was the coolest thing when i was in high school. i was just watching letterman right now in the middle of the night remembering this and was curious to see him back then and here we are! thanks for posting. technology is a blessing but frightening as well!
bobbyrice 8 months ago 5
Nice!
2003fxstbi 8 months ago
such nice kids weren;t they?
12inchvertical 8 months ago
I think all of Stipe's talent was in his hair... once he lost it, they turned to crap!
mizzjanky 9 months ago
@mizzjanky once he lost it is when he turned gay. Before that, he had any girl he wanted. Life's a bitch, and if you can't some, you turn gay.
top20modernrock 9 months ago
They look so young!!
whpriol1 9 months ago
@whpriol1 they were u dick
ivorbigonee 5 months ago
lol.. was Stipe actually HIDING off camera during the interview?
Atleast its better than pulling a David Byrne
MrRandomname010101 10 months ago
Pleased to see this clip as it's new to me.
chambta 10 months ago
@ elle............LOOOOL....your pathetic
LLB61959 10 months ago
As they said ...creatively wasting time. not carrying the of everyones expectations.enjoy or go elsewhere
LLB61959 10 months ago
one of my favorite basslines ever
Ih8craplikethis 10 months ago
woah! i didn't even see Michael hiding back there! hahaha what a oddly shy and cute young man he was back then :)
mauryposa 10 months ago
rock n roll coochie coo
bklyntigr 11 months ago
this is so sad . This band was talking about Athens Ga. "A fine college town" not anymore ,sorry, over development, city/county govt. corruption. I am a native, and I say sorry too, but i am the working poor of this Georgia community, so i don't have the resources to fight. i am of Irish descent, so I will find a way not to starve to death.
elleJify 11 months ago
@elleJify dude, don't even sweat it. I live in a college town too part of the "working poor" of Madison, WI. Our working poor are taking to the capital in droves because the governor here likes to slap around the working man for some fucking reason. Go, Wisconsin Unions!
subsamadhi 11 months ago
@subsamadhi unions suck dude, buy a high school economics book
magua4 11 months ago
@magua4 uh, no they don't. Unions are what keep ordinary people from getting screwed royally by those with more money and clout. SInce I am sure you don't know dick about what I am curently talking about, you can take your opinions back to high school where they belong. Familiarize yourself with what is going on in Wisconsin currently and then come back to me and tell me that the unions who are fighting in Madison are int he wrong. Until then, fuck off.
subsamadhi 11 months ago 2
@subsamadhi Hey dude, go post your politics somewhere else. This is a MUSICAL PERFORMANCE.
thutton67 11 months ago
@thutton67 If you are not aware, REM is very political. They would enoy this kind of thing themselves, I am sure. Michael Stipe is a very political person. Maybe if you knew something about the band you would know this and we don't have to waste our time going back and forth about crap ilke this.
subsamadhi 11 months ago
@subsamadhi maybe in the short term situations where injustice is imminent, unions are worthwhile. that said, unions should definitely be phased out. unions set wage demands which end up working against the economy as well as workers. they encourage price floors too which causes more disharmony; i'm as progressive as you can get, but I do not think that (most) unions do any good. economic freedom can exist with worker's rights in a much more efficient manner.
magua4 11 months ago
@magua4 Unions are the reason you enjoy a 5 day, 40 hour week. They still protect their members in matters of health, safety, and wages. Unions formed to give workers collective bargaining- so we don't get screwed over. Many of the companies make far more off the products then the union workers cost
GMRC2 6 months ago
@magua4 go tell that to all the teachers, fire fighters, cops, and god knows who else in Wisconsin who are losing everything imaginable because the governor thinks that good hard-working people in this state deserve to get screwed because the State is in turmoil. I'm sure that the unions they belong to might not be the best choice in the world for them but what the fuck is the alternative? You tell me.
subsamadhi 11 months ago 2
@subsamadhi I like Turtles
Politics4Dummies 11 months ago
@elleJify All you white people screwed yourselves into the ground by being so greedy and now everybody's house is under water, and it serves you right that you have lost your job and you daughter is having a black man's child.
Politics4Dummies 11 months ago
After watching this a few times, I now sincerely believe that Peter Buck wanted to smash his guitar over Letterman's head.
Politics4Dummies 11 months ago
@Politics4Dummies Yeah, whatever, moron.
thutton67 11 months ago
@thutton67 uhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh, ok
Politics4Dummies 11 months ago
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As Stipe said, they are taking the artist's journey (Paul Clay's teachings) about starting in a place of naivety, and going from there, working, and mastering the technical until you know everything you could know (you are educated).then you can begin t experiment and explore the art side, until eventually you land in a place where you find that you have come full circle, back to that place of naivety and innocence. I think they've done that, which is rare these days, and I applaud them for it
AGLightner 11 months ago
As Stipe said, they are taking the artist's journey (Paul Clay's teachings) about starting in a place of naivety, and going from there, working, and mastering the technical until you know everything you could know (you are educated).then you can begin t experiment and explore the art side, until eventually you land in a place where you find that you have come full circle, back to that place of naivety and innocence. I think they've done that, which is rare these days, and I applaud them for it.
AGLightner 11 months ago
1:37...suddenly, michael stipe
thprfssnl1 11 months ago 39
@thprfssnl1 so how cute were peter buck and mike mills? delicious!! michael stipe just getting up to sing-beautiful x
haysiefantasie 4 months ago
Dnload the audio from this video at speedyconversion doht cohm.
PowellZevin770 1 year ago
@PowellZevin770 my too...thay here good playing...lol
TheTtomo 1 year ago
the best rock of the 80s
filibertoa85 1 year ago
R.E.M. were influenced by The Byrds & The 1960's Bee Gees. I Love The 1960's like The Beatles, The Beach Boys, The Byrds,The Mamas & The Papas & The Bee Gees.
pirolozzi1stson 1 year ago
R.E.M. were influenced by The Byrds & The 1960's Bee Gees
pirolozzi1stson 1 year ago
Look at 0:59 - Peter looks pissed.
Floskeknosk 1 year ago
Two things that were once great: REM and Letterman. But that was so long ago . . .
MrRodomontade 1 year ago
@MrRodomontade Accelerate was very recent. Listen to it again.
top20modernrock 11 months ago
Early on in 82 and 83 he would sing with his arm over the mic, like Johnny Rotten, to hide his face behind his arm and elbow.
.
Met them in 88 in Largo and Stipe just stood quietly by the door, speaking to no one at the pre-show industry meet and greet. Mike Mills and Bill Berry were great guys and Peter was on stage with Drivin' and Cryin'
.
If you ever meet a famous, or nearly-so, rock band, hang out with the rhythm section. Great guys, down to earth, lots of fun. John Entwhistle was the same.
Knepperify1 1 year ago
@Knepperify1 Dino Jr's drummer Murph as well. Super humble guy.
Floskeknosk 1 year ago
I saw this when it aired. I want to go back in time.
ar4216 1 year ago
reckoning, my fav rem album
georgeshrub 1 year ago
the early days of letteman were great. he didn't have big stars yet so he would have to interview small bands (at the time) like REM and X. there was something so anti hollywood those days...but not now :(
naguiat1 1 year ago 3
Still sends shivers through me....
cspradbery 1 year ago
beautiful
fatfrankblack 1 year ago
Great video.
Can't believe some of the previous comments, just listen to the music and stfu.
hughjass1019 1 year ago
This is so great.
diskochimp 1 year ago
michael is a doll
evanian63 1 year ago
People saying the IRS days were the best are nuts. REM evolved creatively and Automatic for the People can stand up to the greatest pop albums ever created.
ouchyg 1 year ago
I doubt anybody there knew how big rem would become
colpetne 1 year ago
GO PETER BU(TT FU)CK
runnersdialzero33 1 year ago
plummy video
Layouts4Facebook 1 year ago
Funny how I was born in 78 and was in kindergarten at this point.... REM is timeless, other than some songs
themooddisorders 1 year ago
Good grief, bands often start off on inferior record labels beccause they are so unknown, then sigh with a major label because they can then get access to superior recording studios and have better distribution. And has anyone ever wanted to live life as a broke college student???? Give them a break. they are one of the best alternative bands ever.
billsurf101 1 year ago
Well, Reveal got me into the band, but my favorite stuff is the older songs. For me new adventures and up were the best albums they made. I didn't buy around the sun (remember Stipe saying that if he ever began to wrote simple love songs, he would stop and the lyrics to leaving new york?), but accelerate was good enough to buy.
mischiamnesiac 1 year ago
twat. the irs years were and are ace but rem continued to produce good stuff. a big case of i saw them first syndrome . greens an ace album
martinkenny100 1 year ago
your name sir, that wouldnt happen today
yurf9 1 year ago
It realiy pisses me off these bandwagon jumpers saying the IRS years were the best. Yes they were good and Good Advices is up there. However there is more to life than the 80s. REM are getting old and we are getting old. There is nothing wrong with artistic development, and I think there latest stuff is strong. Didn't like Monstor though. New Adventures and Fables....Yes.
rjrayner1972 1 year ago
Really impressive. REM took the best elements of 60's folk rock and turned into something else altogether. Obscure lyrics that really work with the music, lots of energy. Only a few bands in the past 40 years have come even close to REM.
marinman39 1 year ago
Wow, I didn't even notice Michael Stipe sitting behind Peter Buck until he stood up!
ErnieandBert1 1 year ago 2
Really,rem are the Souths musical version of Faulkner.And from my home state,couldn't be more proud.
veritasrex66 1 year ago
WOW! This is pure genious! I am at a loss for words. They are so good!
fairandpale 1 year ago
@LuckySaturn Yet when I first saw them in 1985 (Portland ME) it was one of the most amazing lead singer performances I've ever seen. It was like seeing Jim Morrison or Iggy Pop - just an unreal performance by Stipe.
osravensblackbears 1 year ago
This interview is amzing!!
kaliyuta 1 year ago
R.E.M. have always been one of my favorite bands. The IRS years are the only albums worth listening to in my opinion, back before Michael Stipe began to take himself wayyyyyyyyy to seriously. I saw the band in New Haven CT, in Worcester and in Portland back in the mid 80's Peter Buck is why i play a Rickenbacker 360 today
fuzzybuttcb750 1 year ago
@fuzzybuttcb750 I would kill to have a Rickenbacker 360.
kujoalt 1 year ago
wow how shy they were and how funny the song hadn't even been named yet. I believe this was onthe album Reckoning.
akepley 1 year ago
@akepley It is on Reckoning,my favorite rem album,and one of their most hauntingly beautiful songs.
veritasrex66 1 year ago
REM - great song!! This was back when Letterman actually gave a shit about the bands on his show. Great clip, thx for posting it! :-)
volksrepair 1 year ago
Good music for the 1980's.
dmgcat 1 year ago
This is mind blowing footage. There is no other way to describe it.
rgelder 1 year ago
Priceless.
nancymcify 1 year ago
thx
gtell79 1 year ago
GREEN represented the point where Stipe had lost his shyness and began to become a bit more political. The "message" replaced "the music" in importance. Ironically though, "World Leader Pretend" from GREEN is my favorite REM song. After GREEN they became too corporate.
TheN01skinsfan 1 year ago 2
So. Central Rain is a great song. Their 1st five albums were masterpieces of Rock music in the 1980's. Murmur, Reckoning, Fables of the Reconstruction, LIFE'S RICH PAGEANT (Freakin AWESOME Album, "I Believe" & "Flowers of Guatemala" rule) and Document. Green was ok.
TheN01skinsfan 1 year ago
I heard this song for the first time in 1988, it was the first REM song I ever heard and still think its one of their best.
robertodowneso 1 year ago
I was the biggest R.E.M. fan, back when they were with the record lable I.R.S., with albums like: Murmur, Reconing, Document # 5, but then they left I.R.S. and went to Warner. It was then that they put out Green, a FAILED album if you ask me. They gave up their controlling rights for the all mighty dollar, However there were some all right albums under warners controll, like Automatic For The People, and Out Of Time. I just dont think their music is all that it could have been.
CollectorOfMusic 1 year ago 41
@CollectorOfMusic They became much more successful when they left I.R.S. and many people liked the change in music. I certainly did, though their early albums were great.
lifehouse57 1 year ago
@CollectorOfMusic I agree with you . I was in Memphis at the time and they often came thru and played at the Antenna Club on Madison in Midtown...
boomoutahere 1 year ago
@boomoutahere ive seen them twice, the first time i saw them, they were promoting the fables album. the second time, they were promoting the green album. both were great-great shows. i just prefer their early stuff by far
CollectorOfMusic 1 year ago
@CollectorOfMusic I don't think they have compromised their music when they went to Warner. There's nothing wrong with making a buck with your art anyway. And if you ask me Green is a brilliant record. Of course they've made some not-so-great records but that's expected from a band whose output counts fifteen or so records
longlegged 1 year ago 2
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longlegged 1 year ago
@CollectorOfMusic Did you see them on "Austin City Limits" last year? Pathetic! My memory tells me they sucked after Bill Berry left, however I think you are really right about the W/B vampires. Same thing happened to U2, saddness - utter saddness! IRS days were the best!!
Circumpunk 1 year ago
@CollectorOfMusic I don’t ask you! It’s not “Document # 5" just “Document" it was their 5th album, and Green is a GREAT Album!
superbeavo 1 year ago
@CollectorOfMusic I love the "new" R.E.M . Automatic for the People is the best album in this world (for me)
EricHobs 1 year ago 2
@CollectorOfMusic
Green was a great album...had many amazing songs...Automatic was a lull, and Monster gave them new life...stopped following them after that though....so I disagree.
bsgisgay 1 year ago
@CollectorOfMusic Eh, GREEN is better than either of those albums and less poppy, IMO, minus the one you know who song, lol.
ryta1203 1 year ago
@CollectorOfMusic I was a huge fan during the IRS years too and pretty much quit listening to them after that. But to be fair, they insisted on complete artistic control in their contract with Warner--according to their biographer. They decided when they recorded and whether or not they toured, as well as having freedom over the music itself. But despite all this, they managed to become pretty commercial sounding anyway.
peterdolson 11 months ago
@CollectorOfMusic Some bands/artists set such a high bar w/their early genius that they can never again reach those heights. After his motorcycle accident in '66, Dylan never came close to the towering greatness of his early work.
thutton67 11 months ago
@CollectorOfMusic what the hell is wrong with the album Green? the music or the 'selling out'?
GreenDayPolice 11 months ago
@CollectorOfMusic you missed Fables of the Reconstruction (1985) love Feeling Gravities Pull, Driver 8, Fall on Me...
hammertoejoe 10 months ago
@CollectorOfMusic I have Document #5 it is one of my favorite albums from one of the greatest rock bands of the last 30 years.
RealTime88 9 months ago
@RealTime88 Document was good I guess.... I always thought Reckoning kicked its ass though
andreweparks 8 months ago
Jesus, I had no clue as to the faces behind the voices of REM! Stipe was so gorgeous :O *drool*
ArlithCake 1 year ago
@ArlithCake ..his lips right? I'm a 41 y/odivorced woman, in college I had a big crush on him. I wanted to make that short drive to Athens, GA in hopes of us meeting... <- that is just par for the course on how great my choice in men have been thus far (yes, later I found out he is gay)
thutchison68 1 year ago
@thutchison68 Stipe's actually bisexual
wombatter1 1 year ago
I love that Peter mentions Love Tractor!
tommyrock69 1 year ago 3
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So talented, too bad they're cross burners.
Empyriumman 1 year ago
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I stand by my comments that Letterman is a left wing tool.... besmirching a 14 year old and screwing his interns......what a creep. Liberals suck big time we all that.....I like what I like to listen to that's all.
nyerndc 1 year ago
R.E.M. has certainly never "sold out." The greatness of their work has diminished, to be sure, but 27 years will do that in the pop music game, and they are better live now than they have ever been (if you can say that with Bill Berry gone). Anyway, for my money, R.E.M.'s catalog is so deep that few other bands compare. They are The Beatles of "alternative" rock. Bless them.
aarp7 1 year ago 4
They certainly did sell out. You're kidding right?
Alfrunk 1 year ago
Go listen to Shiny Happy People and then think about what you just posted you goofy moron.
Alfrunk 1 year ago
I am a loser
themooddisorders 1 year ago 9
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Letterman used to be urbane and witty now he is just a brazen liberal jerk.
nyerndc 2 years ago
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I've heard Letterman is a communist. Let's poison his wine.
mrhaymack 1 year ago
Letterman is great. Get your own opinion, not fox news's...So that must make you a conservative, and if so what are you doing listening to liberal songs with liberal lyrics by a liberal band like REM. Oohh no you're going to hell.
Long live America. Ever ask yourself what the The statue of Liberty stands for? Man those founding fathers were a bunch of liberals...
heygodders73 1 year ago 4
Ah the ever intelligent Fox News comment. You know you're dealing with a true retard when that nonsense comes up. I'd love to hear your theories on 9-11. lol
Alfrunk 1 year ago
Seems unheard-of today, an unknown band getting to play a yet-to-be-released song on national TV. Not all was for the better then, but at least there was some spontaneity and risk-taking.
opaquiosq 2 years ago 5