R.E.M. Unearths A Treasure Trove of Early Hits and Rarities for I.R.S. Records Era-spanning CD, Collectors' Edition 2-CD and DVD Anthology Releases

R.E.M. Unearths A Treasure Trove of Early Hits and Rarities for I.R.S. Records Era-spanning CD, Collectors' Edition 2-CD and DVD Anthology Releases

R.E.M. to Be Inducted Into the Georgia Music Hall of Fame in September

And I Feel Fine ... The Best Of The I.R.S. Years 1982-1987 CD Packs 21 Classic Singles and Band Favorites, Including 'It's The End Of The World As We Know It (And I Feel Fine),' 'The One I Love' and 'Radio Free Europe;' 2-CD Collectors' Edition Adds 21-Track Rarities Disc, Including Previously Unreleased Songs, Live Recordings, Alternate Takes and Mixes

When The Light Is Mine ... The Best Of The I.R.S. Years 1982-1987 Video Collection DVD Features More Than Two Hours of Content, Including Several Previously Unreleased TV Performances, Interviews and Outtakes and All 11 of the Band's I.R.S. Era Music Videos

CD, 2-CD and DVD in Stores: September 12, 2006

HOLLYWOOD, Calif., July 24 /PRNewswire/ -- R.E.M. and EMI Music Catalog Marketing are collaborating for the release of the first complete CD and DVD anthologies of the legendary band's 1980s I.R.S. Records output. Developed and compiled by R.E.M. to best represent the band's entire I.R.S. tenure, R.E.M.'s And I Feel Fine ... The Best Of The I.R.S. Years 1982-1987 will be released on September 12 in two packages, a 21-track single-disc and digital collection of hits and band favorites, and a 2-CD Collectors' Edition with a second 21-track disc of rarities, including alternate takes, previously unreleased mixes, and live recordings of familiar R.E.M. classics, among them 10 never before released tracks. When The Light Is Mine ... The Best Of The I.R.S. Years 1982-1987 Video Collection DVD, also to be released on September 12, presents more than two hours of content in 18 clips plus bonus material, including the band's 11 I.R.S. era music videos and several previously unreleased TV and film performances, interviews and outtakes.

(Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20060724/LAM071-ahttp://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20060724/LAM071-b)

And I Feel Fine... The Best Of The I.R.S. Years 1982-1987 presents R.E.M.'s I.R.S. canon in a new single CD and digital collection, with newly-penned liner notes by rock scribe Anthony DeCurtis. Its 21 tracks start, fittingly, with "Begin The Begin," followed by the band's other hits and favorites. "Radio Free Europe," R.E.M.'s debut single, rings the alarm as it first did in 1981, signaling a new awakening in popular music. That year's "Chronic Town" EP and the band's 1983 I.R.S. album debut, Murmur, lit alternative rock's torch, and Bill Berry (drums, vocals), Peter Buck (guitar), Mike Mills (bass, vocals) and Michael Stipe (vocals) were poised to be its bearers.

R.E.M.'s early storytelling was both epic and familiar, with themes of loss and alienation, as expressed in "So. Central Rain (I'm Sorry)" and 1987's Top 10 single "The One I Love," meeting with the optimism and yearning of "Sitting Still" and "I Believe" in a marriage of ideals that was at once comforting and an awakening for all who discovered this new, transformative music emitting from the sleepy/sharp college town of Athens, Georgia. R.E.M. and other Athens bands forged a scene, which spawned a movement and ultimately led to a cultural sea change in music, launching R.E.M. and others onto the world's stage to varying degrees of success and sustain. 1987's "It's The End Of the World As We Know It (And I Feel Fine)," the new CD's closing track, was a tongue-twisting pop culture rally cry, beckoning to the tuned-out masses, listless casualties of 1980s economics, politics, and general 'Me Generation' malaise. By the end of the R.E.M.'s run with I.R.S. Records, the band's success had paved the way for a new generation of alt-rock and grunge acts, as Athens' finest continued to lead the charge.

The 2-CD Collectors' Edition of And I Feel Fine ... The Best Of The I.R.S. Years 1982-1987 adds a second disc with previously unreleased and rare tracks from the I.R.S. and R.E.M. vaults. The second disc's gems include various concert recordings, an acoustic performance from the 1987 documentary film "Athens, GA -- Inside Out," and alternate studio takes and mixes. Each of R.E.M.'s four original members has selected a personal favorite for the rarities disc, and the package includes descriptive track-by-track annotations in the band members' own words.

When The Light Is Mine ... The Best Of The I.R.S. Years 1982-1987 Video Collection DVD draws back the curtain to reveal R.E.M.'s most vital early career film work, including the band's 11 I.R.S. music videos, among them "Wolves, Lower," which makes its release debut with this collection. Notable for propelling the medium forward as a creative extension of R.E.M.'s musical vision, several of the band's videos were directed by filmmaker James Herbert, often in collaboration with Michael Stipe. The DVD also unveils previously unreleased television appearances, including performances on the U.K. programs "The Tube" and "The Old Grey Whistle Test," performances and interviews from I.R.S.' own 1983-'84 MTV show, "The Cutting Edge," an acoustic performance from Athens, GA -- Inside/Out, James Herbert's 20-minute film "Left of Reckoning," and never-before-released interview clips. The DVD's visual bounty clocks in at more than two hours, with approximately half of its content released for the first time in any format on this DVD.

On Saturday, September 16, R.E.M. will be among 2006's inductees into the Georgia Music Hall of Fame. The 28th Annual Georgia Music Hall of Fame Awards will be presented during a gala event at Atlanta's World Congress Center. The Friends of Georgia Music Festival, Inc., a non-profit organization that honors the achievements of Georgia musicians, songwriters, composers, conductors, producers, publishers and agents, has hosted the ceremony since 1979. For event information, visit the Georgia Music Hall of Fame's official Website: http://www.gamusichall.com/.

Popular music's modern-day evolution can be traced in step with R.E.M.'s ascent and reign as one of music's most creative and influential bands. As R.E.M. continues to challenge the cultural status quo, popular music's evolution follows. Explore the history that leads back to Athens. These are the documents.

R.E.M. official Website: www.remhq.com

And I Feel Fine ... The Best Of The I.R.S. Years 1982-1987 (CD)
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)

And I Feel Fine ... The Best Of The I.R.S. Years 1982-1987 (2-CD Collectors' Edition)

(Contains Disc 1 + Rarities Disc)
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)

When The Light Is Mine ... The Best Of The I.R.S. Years 1982-1987 Video Collection (DVD)

(TRT: 2:06:00)
1. Wolves, Lower (4:00)
2. Radio Free Europe (3:07)
3. Talk About The Passion (3:20)
4. Radio Free Europe ["The Tube" 11.18.83] (3:40)
5. Talk About The Passion ["The Tube" 11.18.83] (2:57)
6. So. Central Rain (I'm Sorry) (3:31)
7. Left Of Reckoning (20:09)
8. Pretty Persuasion ["The Old Grey Whistle Test" 11.20.84] (3:50)
9. Can't Get There From Here (3:56)
10. Driver 8 (4:35)
11. Life And How To Live It (4:04)
12. Feeling Gravity's Pull (4:47)
13. Can't Get There From Here ["The Tube" 10.25.85] (3:25)
14. Fall On Me (3:01)
15. Swan Swan H [Athens, GA -- Inside/Out] (2:42)
16. The One I Love (3:22)
17. It's The End Of The World As We Know It (And I Feel Fine) (4:03)
18. Finest Worksong (3:51)

Extras
"The Cutting Edge" October 1983
Broadcast Segment (4:30)
Additional Interviews (1:04)
"The Cutting Edge" June 1984
Edited Broadcast Segment (6:47)
Additional Interviews (6:35)
Driver 8 (5:10)
Wendell Gee (2:30)
(Don't Go Back To) Rockville (4:00)
Time After Time (annElise) (4:58)
Pageantry (4:00)

Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20060724/LAM071-a
http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20060724/LAM071-b
AP PhotoExpress Network: PRN11,PRN12
PRN Photo Desk, photodesk@prnewswire.com
Source: EMI Music Catalog Marketing

CONTACT: Jennifer Ballantyne of EMI Music Catalog Marketing,
+1-323-871-5494, jennifer.ballantyne@emicap.com

Web site: http://www.remhq.com/
http://www.gamusichall.com/

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