R.E.M. - Radio Free Europe 10-06-83 (1st TV performance)

[Stube437]

Strange version. Sounds a lot more like a punk song than it does on the recorded versions. The recorded version are more stlyish and arty. This just sounds too normal.

[thischarmingyoungman]

Effortlessly cool.

[96thTear]

I wonder who Scott Pilgrim (as a bassist at least) is more heavily based on...Mike Mills or Lou Barlow?

[jflinn210]

What a tight band, just knocking em dead. Excellent first outing, wouldn't you say???

[TopHatOnly]

Team Rickenbocker!

[NadHexIsOn]

So tight for such a young band. Mills and Stipe sound great vocally already. Buck has insane energy. These posts are a fantastic blast back to the beginning.

[ForeverFilms1995]

@REMchout Do you have any recommendations on what are the best books about R.E.M.? I'm looking for a good biography but I really haven't gotten anywhere looking on amazon.

[REMchout]

@ForeverFilms1995

The best and most thorough REM book I own is It Crawled From The South....very detailed...I think there's a newer revision of it too, you'll probably want to find that one.

[workingclassBLOOD]

yes much better quality. thx.

[blakedawg76]

Just about perfect

[BradyRobin]

gawd they're so young. 

[muddybrookrambler]

Over the years, my hair has followed almost the exact same trajectory as Mr. Stipe's.

[Aiden057]

chills factory :-) thanks for a great post!

[libville]

REM: Their career was a completely original and incredible achievement. Thanks!

[GibraltarDIY]

a classic! They'll be missed.

[pattykils]

probably the most influential band in the history of alternative rock. R.E.M. we will all miss you dearly

[TheMrEMeat]

Thanks for this, I feel right now like someone died with the breakup announcement, and I dont even know how to explain it. Ive seen other bands break up, its just... I dont know. Im just sad.

[532bluepeter]

@TheMrEMeat

No where nere the news of lux interiors death. At least there still alive!!!!

[marcoamedrano]

@TheMrEMeat Totally understandable. After all, they were with us for 32 years, so many albums and so much great music. All of us who loved them are sad. Unlike most bands though, their music will live forever. 

[gah1949]

Keep the hair, Michael.

[rogue13131313]

They sound fantastic...man, 1983...whew! BTW, is it just me or does anyone else think Eddie Vedder saw Stipe and thought, I like his look & mannerisms...

[65neu]

@rogue13131313 Oh man for sure! Eddie Vedder's whole performance style and mannerisms are completely lifted from this young Michael Stipe - Stipe really originated the whole 'poet boy enigma' in Modern Pop/Alternative. Cobain and Vedder took a huge chunk from Stipe's playbook. Pearl Jam have covered REM for years and Kurt famously loved REM and was very close with Stipe

[AlSurMedia]

I just heard!

I'm sad :o(

[irishace11]

Good Bye REM you will be missed.

[DanitoG]

@irishace11 Most definately. 31 Years of great music. During my whole youth & young adulthood there was an R.E.M. song to describe my feelings.

[kauaicr07]

Peter Buck and John Michael Stipe became friends writing music together they were joined by Bill Berry and Mike Mills and named themselves REM, a name Stipe selected at random from a dictionary. In 1980 REM. had a debut single; "Radio Free Europe" the song was a college a radio success. As David Letterman says in REM.’s TV debut on October 6. 1983 the year my husband and I were married we remember REM from Decanter, Georgia. To this day REM is an alternative rock band beyond compare bravo.

[lehighmark]

tight sound! great performance

[GAdawgsfan93]

Peter Buck's Rickenbacker 360 creates the most heavenly sound in rock music.

[Sid1396]

all very great musicians. truly one of the best

[loosilu]

Mills is absolutely incredible here!

[kauaicr07]

With REM a group from Athens Georgia, WB and Reprise Records we remember our memories we plan for our futures we live in the present then rest with gratfulness and respect we wish others all the best thank you.

[boybandmassacre2]

Peter and Mike obviously belonged to the ministry of funny walks!!

[chuckschilling]

@djtopp

That isn't a Bassman. That looks like a twin Reverb to me.

[judyleasugar97]

Pretty awesome bass work there, dude.

[SrAspirante]

I miss these early REM days - simply timeless, and pales in comparison with anything else, especially at that time.

[ajmc5]

Awesome! Thanks for posting this!

[verveshawn]

@djtopp...thats a Fender Twin Reverb......

[Nobodyyy94]

Great song...

[mrbolovski]

CLASS IN A GLASS. BRILLIANT, LOVE R.E.M.

[missysundek]

They're G-R-E-A-T !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[mattthecat03]

The 2 guitarists move like they're spastic.The music is okay though-nothing to get excited about

[Firebirrd85]

This album just sounds absolutely TIMELESS. I mean, you listen to it, and you'd have NO IDEA it was from 1983. Back then New Wave, Slick arena Rock and Synthesizer pop was dominating the charts and then all of a sudden out of nowhere REM shows up with something nobody else heard of. The songs are completely timeless though. They're that special. It sounds like they could've been made TODAY...

[nicholsjoshua15]

Yeah now we have Poets Of The Fall coming in and killing all the pop crap like REM and Nirvana did.

[Bumbumawangis]

Wow Michael Stipe had bushy hair in 1983 and sang in a second language."Murmer" would be a candidate for best album of 1983,one of the best of the eighties and in my personal top 1000 albums of all time.This song actually predates "Murmer" but was probably put on the album because it is so damn good,so good in fact, that the incomprehensibility of the singing isn't a drawback.

[shanna9650]

I played the hell out of this on my college's radio station. We KNEW it was something special. In the interview they mention Pylon. Give them a listen!

[salinagrrrl69]

Love that Ric Bass!

[xmrhyde]

Look at that. Man they were great.

[reymisterio999]

R.E.M it's the best band alternative of the 80's & part 90's (Y)

[eriko111987]

I'm not a Shiny Happy person, but damn this is good. Gotta dust off that cd and revisit.

[13A55player]

r.e.m. love Rickenbacker guitars

[diskochimp]

Love this! x

[ghost037]

Even though I was nothing but a sperm cell when this song was out, its a killer track. R.E.M. has been one of my favorite bands since I was little.

[ruleta74835]

@ghost037 - I was in high school (well beyond your single-cell stage), but I was virtually ignoring groups like REM in those days, so that sucks for me. I definitely recall liking "Can't Get There From Here" when it came out, but I really didn't get into REM at all until recently.

[cynthiailly]

holy shit i didnt recognize michael stipe. or dave letterman for that matter lol. kind of surprising when he holds up a record at the beginning.

[alscot69]

is there anybody knows why mike left the rick for the fender?

[unclealbert72]

@alscot69 ...good question.

Either stolen or just found a Fender that he really liked and stuck with it.

Guitarists are like that...they come and go with what makes them happy.

I'm sure when R.E.M. started, they only have what you see here just because they haven't yet rolled in the big money.

Peter still uses his 360.

[Psykel]

@unclealbert72 He did go through a bunch of different basses between the Rickenbacker and his current used-to-be-white Fender P-bass. If memory serves me right, I heard somewhere that his current main bass (since Monster I think) used to belong to Billy Talbot of Neil Young's old band Crazy Horse.

If you check some photos or videos of R.E.M. in their rehearsal space, you can see the old Rickenbacker is still in Mike's arsenal.

[unclealbert72]

@Psykel Thanks for the info... haven't a clue.

I never knew that the current one he's using might be from Billy.

Small world!

[Psykel]

@unclealbert72 I also re-watched the Supernatural Superserious video last night, and lo and behold! He brought out the old Rickenbacker bass for it!

[ToddSweeneyOnce]

Definitely my fave by REM! Great tune.

[blacksunfish]

Rickenbacker guitar + Fender amp = BLISS

[Anden14]

omg they're young! xD

1983... it's about 27 years ago.. ;-)

[sunburgular]

Young and hungry, this is a gale force performance. I can imagine the audience's hair being blown back.

[herper64]

Yeah!!! ;) i have a Jetglo like that one!!

[degree7]

Hmmm. I guess Stipe is about 23 years old here.

And Buck is 27.

[animal90sFreak5]

Wow holy cow they are so young and full of talent,shoot I don't even Rember Michael Stipe ever having curly hair,shoot that's a 1st for me.

[violethill]

Wow!

[Rick2326]

OK!!! This is my most favorite youtube video ever! It used to the first video of this but the guy put an 'I'm gay" annotation and ruined it. So this one makes it my favorite again!!!

[kickstar1]

Hard to believe that Stipe was actually once a decent looking guy that chicks would want to bed. For the last 15 or so years he's looked like someone the U.N. would want to free from a Nazi slave camp.

[xhalor]

I have been hoping to find a cleaner sounding clip of this. Nice catch.

[OLDCRAZYLADY]

hahahha I'd have been 19 ... And a weirdo, cause I'd have known the song phonetically because it was my favourite off the album, that I'd already owned for half a year ... They played Barrymores in Ottawa Canada, about a month from this live performance. U2 played there too (obviously not @ the same time ...) weird for such a small club.

[blechtman]

this is letterman, not larry king. michael looks very young and angelic here. he's like, the exact same age as my dad (freaky....)

[duplosrce]

Nice piece. I like drumming part of it.

[Hannahorse715]

this is a classic mike is sexy I love him

[ffm20zaheri]

is this larry king ????

how funny both REM and LArry king would have become totally famous and important over the years

[ord1711]

God the Mills bassline in this song is so awesome.

[cerealkillerXXX]

Good quality. Thanks for posting

[Noeladishi]

Who would have thought they would become one of the biggest and greatest bands in history? Though on that evidence you would be silly not to!

[buddyhoot]

I had heard this tune off and on for a couple days when it came out but kept missing the whole tune.. I was with three of my oldest friends when we went to see "Eye see the light show! Rock n' roll version". Second song in and BAM... Darn near peed my pants! Walked out an REM fan and still love their tunes.. But wow, what an introduction!!!!!!!!

[soaringquail2]

Michael Stipe is so beautiful here...

[ultrakool]

yeah, what the hell happened? lol. he certainly did not age gracefully like, shall we say, cary grant. lol. but this was quite the energetic performance

[sustoercillo]

thank you very much R.E.M.

[GiampyEvil]

GREAT!!!

[unclealbert72]

Damn!! Great energy...they certainly knew this was the single, most important moment for their career.

It gave Rickenbacker guitars a whole new level of attention in the best way.

I can't look at a 360 jetglo finish ever the same again.

[Lordlollygag]

I wonder if at that time they knew how important they were gonna be for music. Buck and Mills dancing is hilarious. Wish you could see Berry a little better.

[checkvalve321]

1983 was a BIG BIG year for music, movies, and soundtracks. good to see REM in the mix.

[lordtrax8]

I personally think 84. was a lot better in movies...

[wellspout]

best mumbly-peg i ever heard, then or since, we need more music like this or we're doomed, for sure

[steveconn]

Mills and Buck really know how to move well in a tight space.

[mclovin1972]

This is GREAT! Never seen it before. How did they keep from knocking each other about during this performance?

[ask4fish]

I remember the day that album came out and the first time I heard that song - I was the caller for a radio station game called "Rate it or Hate it" and they played "Radio Free Europe". I absolutely loved the song and went out that morning and bought the album. 25 years later I still have no clue what half the lyrics are.

[ToulacAxeHand]

The leg bending of the Buck does appear to be a slight turn on for me :P

Lovely song - fantastic album - great lyrics!

[Reckoning84]

WOOOW Mr. Peter Buck!!

[ayatollahrocknrolla]

hell yeah!

[mikeswimming]

THE BEGINNING OF MAGIC...

[shenny7]

feliz 25th aniversario tenemos casi la misma edad jijij .... yeahh VIVA REM

[gannonjohn]

Hokie Smokes! Hard to believe!

Am I really 25 years older, too??

[CreamCrazy]

Happy 25th Anniversary ^_^

[tansyjor]

Después de 25 años sigue sonando como el primer día!! Yo de joven quisiera ser como ellos....

[aquacrush]

Congrats!!!

My favorite record :)

25 se dicen facil...

[AlexcoolPeru]

One of my best 10 records of all time!!! Happy 25th!!!

[Mariposaazul]

Oh my God!!! what a beautiful sorprise!!! thanks for the video!! and happy 25th anniversary!!!!

[s1i1c1]

happy 25th. anniversary!!!! r.e.m the best band in the world.

[elvfer69]

Happy 25th Anniversary!!

[elvfer69]

REM you rock our world!!!

[Orkomagic]

I still listen to their older stuff (and some newer stuff) on earphones at night- it's still amazing.

[RunyonFan]

Yes, happy 25th, indeed.

Still one of the best CD's ever.

[5akuraD1va]

happy 25th anniversary!

[mouliny]

happy 25th Murmur!!! :)

[cbarrett34]

Mills and Buck are both playing Rickenbacker's. The Ricks are very much a huge part of REM's sound. Very punchy guitar tones and jangly

[haddingtonbb41]

great video much though i love the early stuff especially LRP, accelerate tops anything they have done. Such a fun album which grows with every listen.

[knrblk]

accelerate is very good but i wouldn't say it is their best. REM had better sound back then. i think out of time is better than accelerate.

accelerate is definately up there, though

[theeponym]

I tend to judge their work within its decade. Accelerate is their best work of the 2000s.

Out of Time is possibly my least favourite of the '90s. Tough call. I used to say Up was, but damn if that album hasn't grown on me over the years. But then again, Country Feedback is on Out of Time and is one of the best songs they've ever produced...

[ffm20zaheri]

i partly agree with you

because ACCELERATE is one of their best and of course their best of the 2000s (every song could have been a single)

but i must say OUT OF TIME is my favourite while UP is only boring

[BlameItOnThePenguin]

These guys r just AWESOME!! xDD It's cool to see them in their younger days! Thanks for uploading!

[LovingPunkRock]

simply amazing!!!!!!

[souljaEXVOTO]

this is my favorite video ever of all time

[UtoobRulz]

georgia by ray charles

[sprinkleofmaniacal]

Holy shit, Peter can *move*. That is some hot guitar playing.

[leslielove]

since 1983

[biodumb]

I´m going to win the most superficial comment price here: So he had hair?

[Schpoonfish]

I don't think that they should have ended after AFTP, I just think that they should never have released any of their 2000-2004 output at all and just started from scratch.

[privatehelluk]

Great performance, great energy

[A1leejack]

seeing this video reinforces to me why they should have given it up after GREEN. They should now be the opening act for Modest Mouse. Not the other way around.

[sterlingsir]

I dont get it?

[A1leejack]

REM was defintely groundbreaking! But I can honestly say 90% of what they have put out since '89 really sucks. They have lost their innovation, which I believe is a crucial component to R&R. Modest Mouse is what REM was - REM should open for Modest Mouse-

[MauryDann73]

I wouldn't go that far - but "Automatic for the People" would've been a nice way to close the R.E.M. story.

[REMchout]

REM has a bigger audience period...why would they open for Modest Mouse?

[A1leejack]

Because they now suck!

[A1leejack]

Alright, I'll give you that -

[Elpantalla1]

You kidding me? Out Of Time, Automatic, Monster, Hi-Fi, and Accelerate are all incredible albums.

[maryannorman]

they are indeed one of the few good things to come out of Georgia

[Phishean]

Good albums and surely rated #s 7 through 11 in their top 12.

[Phishean]

Totally agree...ive been a fan since 80'...after 89 they really became lifeless and dull!

[A1leejack]

Alas, I find a friend- Most of the post 88/89 REM fans are probably the same ones who think U2 has done their greatest work in the past 5 years.

[Phishean]

Very correct, and in addition, those that feel that way probably were pop music listenrs and wernt in touch with them in the early days...heck, they probably werent even born yet.

[BlameItOnThePenguin]

You call 'Accelerate' lifeless and dull?

[truxor2]

"They should now be the opening act for Modest Mouse"... says more about Modest Mouse than about REM. Popular. Commercial. More popular. More. Commercial.

[MTBbeer]

are you fucking crazy?!!!!thats all i have to say!

[A1leejack]

No, not fucking crazy... Just have good taste in music- You really need to expand your music horizons. Bottom line... when they were really good nobody gave a shit.

[Phishean]

i think A1leejack is correct, their best was up to 88 after that...BLAH!!! more listeners, yes, like a sea of cheerios...bland and uninspiring.

[lulo2049]

rem is a great band ! uhhh very long times !

[2brave2handle]

Thanks this is great quality audio, coolest tv performance in music history.

[ThatHansonCover]

timeless