While R.E.M. officially threw in the towel back in 2011, the band's celebrated catalogue is being dusted off again for a series of vinyl reissues. Following a 2014 box set collecting a group of 7-inches, reissues have been announced behind the Athens all-stars' Lifes Rich Pageant album, rarities set Dead Letter Office and 1988 compilation Eponymous.
The band's official Facebook page confirmed today (June 2) that all three LPs are being repressed, and will hit stores July 29 through Capitol Records/Universal Music Enterprises. These will be direct represses that preserve each release's original art and tracklisting. While 1986's Lifes Rich Pageant was reissued on vinyl in 2011, this marks the first time the compilations have been made available on wax in in years.
Originally delivered through I.R.S. Records, Lifes Rich Pageant was cut at John Mellencamp's Belmont Mall Studios in Indiana. The album went gold, in part due to the strength of singles "Superman" and "Fall on Me."
Dead Letter Office, R.E.M.'s first compilation, arrived in 1987. The 15-song release comprised various B-sides and rarities, from original songs like "Burning Hell" and ""Bandwagon," to a series of Velvet Underground covers and a run-through of Roger Miller's "King of the Road."
Lastly, Eponymous is a greatest hits, of sorts. It featured the original version of "Radio Free Europe," alternate takes of "Gardening at Night" and "Finest Worksong," and classics like "So. Central Rain," "The One I Love," and Document's revelatory "It's the End of the World As We Know It (And I Feel Fine)."
You'll find pre-order info on all of the releases over here on R.E.M.'s webstore.
The band's official Facebook page confirmed today (June 2) that all three LPs are being repressed, and will hit stores July 29 through Capitol Records/Universal Music Enterprises. These will be direct represses that preserve each release's original art and tracklisting. While 1986's Lifes Rich Pageant was reissued on vinyl in 2011, this marks the first time the compilations have been made available on wax in in years.
Originally delivered through I.R.S. Records, Lifes Rich Pageant was cut at John Mellencamp's Belmont Mall Studios in Indiana. The album went gold, in part due to the strength of singles "Superman" and "Fall on Me."
Dead Letter Office, R.E.M.'s first compilation, arrived in 1987. The 15-song release comprised various B-sides and rarities, from original songs like "Burning Hell" and ""Bandwagon," to a series of Velvet Underground covers and a run-through of Roger Miller's "King of the Road."
Lastly, Eponymous is a greatest hits, of sorts. It featured the original version of "Radio Free Europe," alternate takes of "Gardening at Night" and "Finest Worksong," and classics like "So. Central Rain," "The One I Love," and Document's revelatory "It's the End of the World As We Know It (And I Feel Fine)."
You'll find pre-order info on all of the releases over here on R.E.M.'s webstore.
