Review Summary: One of rocks best bands of the past 25 years puts out one of the best compilations of the past 25 years in it's "Collecters Edition" form. Disc 1 is fantastic but Disc 2 completes a super set of material from these Athens, Georgia homeboys.
For the curious and uninitiated its been hard to know where to start with REM. Having released 13 studio albums over the past 23 years, an album of interesting odds and ends, and two "Best Of" releases, it would be nice if this reviewer could simply point newcomers in the direction of one of those compilation sets to help explain the appeal and influence of this diverse and creative rock n roll band. Unfortunately both those sets, "Eponymous" for the early years and "In Time" for the latter, respectively, fall short of the best this band has to offer. And while In Time is a better and bigger collection then the former, its an incomplete glimpse of this band who did much of their best work prior to 1988 as well as in the decade to come. And with just twelve songs to its credit (In Time has thirty-three in its "bonus tracks" version, for example) Eponymous is a very slight look at that earlier work. Well, "And I Feel Fine: The Best Of The IRS Years 82-87, The Collectors Edition" takes care of that.
Spanning 42 songs, five albums, and a few singles, And I Feel Fine....is nothing less then some of the best music this band has ever recorded and it's packaged up right from beginning to end for your listening pleasure. Disc one of this two CD set wisely avoids the
perfect chronological order sequencing that plagues many best of collections which span many years, and things get started with the 1986 track "Begin The Begin" from the "Life's Rich Pageant" LP before going to the very beginning for the next cut, the now very familiar "Radio Free Europe". Perhaps answering some old critics who blasted the band for turning to a decidedly non indie sound for the Pageant album, Begin The Begin sounds right at home these days when placed alongside Radio Free Europe and it makes one wonder what all the fuss must of been about 20 years ago. And while the songs aren't in chronological order as mentioned before, they are grouped accordiingly nonetheless, usually tackling one period of the bands music making every few songs and swaying back and forth between albums with a surprise thrown in from time to time. For instance the next eight songs alternate between cuts from the bands now classic Murmur album and its second release Reckoning but also finds room to throw in the bouncy jingle-jangle of "Gardening At Night" from the bands debut EP "Chronic Town." Within this part of the disc we get great REM cuts such as the country rock flavored "(Don't Go Back To) Rockville" with its clean production and piano led melody, the lovely mid tempo acoustic ballad "Talk About The Passion" and the breezy pop-rock of "Standing Still" from the bands debut album. And someone at the record company or otherwise must of done their homework because closing out these initial eight tunes is the album and fan fave from Reckoning "7 Chinese Brothers".
And things just keep getting better as disc one moves to the next three REM albums. We get the lovely acoustic pop of So. Central Rain, the loud gothic folk of "Driver 8" and almost funk like single "Can't Get There From Here" from the bands third album "Fables Of The Reconstruction". And then once again we are given a detour as the ringing and rockin' "Finest Worksong" from the bands fifth album "Document" interrupts breifly before going back to one more from Fables, the trippy and dreamy "Feeling Gravity's Pull". But rather then an intrusion the placement of these "misplaced" songs here and there actually help the flow and direction of the collection as it offers a nice change for those familiar with these tunes and keeps things from getting too obvious for the newcomer to the band.
Song selection is excellent as the foray into the bands more electric period begins with the hopeful and hard charging "I Believe" from the groups fourth album before going back to Fables once again for the somewhat similar "Life And How To Live It", which like this discs opening songs show not much difference between this groups early eighties period and later more "compromised" output of the last part of the decade. If you are a musical snob you can quibble, sure. But you are most likely without valid point or reasoning as the next part of Disc 1 clearly shows, rounding things out with the still haunting breakthrough hit "The One I Love" which features Micheal Stipes best vocals up to that period, the beautiful enviornmentally friendly single "Fall On Me", the foreboding and dark "Welcome To The Occupation", and perhaps one of REM's most touching songs, the American Indian tribute "Cuyahoga", once again pulled from the much maligned at the time Life's Rich Pageant LP. Keeping things fresh admist all this later decade stuff however we are once again tossed a gem from another period as the lovely piano driven ballad "Perfect Circle" from Murmur is thrown into the mix before CD 1 draws to a close with that mega hit of mega fun, dance all over the apocalypse tune "Its The End Of The World As We Know It".
If that were all their was to this LP I would say without hesitation buy it. Good collection. But luckily for us this "Collectors Edition" gives us a whole other disc of music for a mere $2 more then the standard version. Review of which you can find above. And far from the suggestion of its title this second disc is not merely a "collectors only" compilation of odds and ends, but rather a most valuable part of the whole which makes this album truly special for the familiar and uninitiated alike. Not bad for two more bucks of your money. In fact I would say its downright essential and lends this album the weight needed to be truly called a "Best Of".
What you will find on Disc 2 sandwiched between two opening tracks personally selected by bassist Mike Mills and former drummer Bill Berry and the two closing tracks selected by guitarist Peter Buck and singer Micheal Stipe is a fair amount of REM goodness that follows a different path then the regular studio versions of some of these recordings, and exposes a more stripped down band then what we are used to hearing when it comes to REM. But as said previously, that is not to say Disc 2 is a collection of odds and ends for the diehard fan. The first two band member selected cuts and the final two are indeed studio tracks taken right from official albums. The lovely "Pilgrimage" from Murmur kicks things off in warm fashion before giving way to Bill Berry's pick from the Life's Rich Pageant album,"These Days", which features a great performance from the groups former drummer and its clear to see why he has been so sorely missed. Four songs from the previous disc make an appearance next in somewhat different form including the original indie single of Radio Free Europe (a more spirted if less accomplished version to this reviewers ears) and a lovely, lilting, electric version of "Gardening At Night" which is perhaps even better then the original in this demo rendition.
A few live recordings follow and they capture this band in full flight and are surprisingly vibrant records given they were taped at the same show in 1983. The fan fave "Ages Of You" makes a strong showing with guitarist Peter Buck leading the way with enthusiastic playing, and the whimsical "We Walk" from Murmur is simply three minutes of perfect pop song craft given a good sense of fun by Micheal Stipe's loose and lively vocal delivery. Easily one of rocks best concert acts this early glimpse of REM onstage shows why they were always something special and the superstardom to come was most likely inevitable, for better or for worse. This band was just too good to remain a little indie secret. And more treats abound on this second disc, from the "Horn Mix" version of Finest Worksong to the great Life's Rich Pageant album closer "Superman", which features bassist Mike Mills on lead vocals, a lovely acoustic rendition of "Swan Swan H", and the "last song cut" from the first disc, the haunting "King Of Birds" from the Document album. Oh, and those last two band picks to close things out? Well, Micheal Stipes selection of "Time After Time" from Reckoning is about as good an album closer as you can think of. And right before, as if some far off REM fan whispered softly in his ear as to what would make this collection truly complete, Peter Buck's selection of "Disturbance At The Heron House" is as inspired a choice as any as this may be the most perfectly balanced REM song ever recorded. If you know this band you know why. If you are just discovering them hopefully you will find out why. And I'm sure after hearing this collection of amazing work by one of rock n rolls all time great bands you'll catch on fast.
"Best Of" sets are made to disappoint. Usually important omissions abound, ill advised alternate takes are included, track selection can be curious at best, and in an attempt to please everyone they can play too close to the center and ultimately please no one. And I Feel Fine...The Best Of The IRS Years 1982-1987, The Collectors Edition could have been a bloated mistake, a spare "hits" package, or missed the mark completely like the unfortunate Eponymous set. Gladly instead what we get is a tight collection of some of this bands best work recorded at a time before superstardom came knocking, million sellers were expected of them, and they were crowned alternative rock gods for the ages. And I Feel Fine....shows a lean, hungry, and extremely talented band that in the short span of five years evolved more and grew further artistically then most bands do in twenty, thirty, or these days even forty years. Sounding ready for anything and making the most of it, REM was probably the hardest working indie/alt band of the eighties and this collection is a solid representation of all that work. Lively, spirited, and undeniably creative, this is a must have recording for fans and the curious alike and is an important record that documents the very beginning of what was once a little band from Georgia and in many ways still is. 42 songs, 2.5 hours of music, and not a clunker or a reason to hit the "skip" button in the bunch. Not bad for a bunch of former indie kids from Athens. Now if we can just get the Berry kid back in the fold somehow? Rock on, boys....
