The Last R.E.M. Waltz - A 69-song concert

People don't know it. Media failed to cover it. Even Twitter was silent. Just few hundreds of fans got the news, but they shared it only in private (and perfect) circles, with the power of telepathy and rapid eyes movements. Last night, while trillions of desperate facebookers were mourning the departure of R.E.M. and youtube-linking their beloved songs, Peter Buck, Mike Mills, Michael Stipe and Bill Berry (yes, him too) went back to Rockville and played their very last concert. A big party: you know, something like the farewell match of soccer stars. But in a small venue. An almost 5-hour show that chronologically retold the story of 31 years, through 69 songs, plugged & unplugged. From Radio Free Europe to The Great Beyond. And beyond. A lucky guy taped the gig and telepathically (again) sent it to me. I can't tell you how, but I managed to put it on Spotify. Here it comes.

P.S. Liked the story? It really happened, in another dimension. One of the parallel universes opened to us by the faster-than-light neutrinos. In our boring one, unfortunately, the story is not so exciting. And it goes like this: Spotify collects a wonderful series of R.E.M. past live recordings (live albums, b-sides, songs hidden in the albums' deluxe editions). I listened to them, selected my favourite 69 and put them in this playlist. Some hits are missing (Shiny Happy People, It's the End of the World..., Nightswimming), some not-so-known gems are shining (Country Feedback, Electrolite...). That's the second little Spotirama tribute to this great band (the first one was a rather happier celebration). Enjoy! (and if you think that five hours are too much, even for a last waltz, look below at the 23-song greatest hits-oriented version)

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THE LAST R.E.M. WALTZ
(A 69-song concert)

(from Murmur, 1983)
1. Radio Free Europe
2. Pilgrimage
3. Talk About the Passion
4. Perfect Circle
5. Catapult
6. 9-9
7. We Walk
8. West of the Fields
(from Reckoning, 1984)
9. Harborcoat
10. 7 Chinese Brothers
11. So. Central Rain
12. Pretty Persuasion
13. Second Guessing
14. Letter Never Sent
15. (Don't Go Back To) Rockville
(from Fables of the Reconstruction, 1985)
16. Maps and Legends
17. Driver8
18. Life and How To Live It
(from Lifes Rich Pageant, 1986)
19. Begin the Begin
20. These Days
21. Fall On Me
22. Cuyahoga
23. Hyena
24. I Believe
25. Just a Touch
26. Swan Swan H
(from Document, 1987)
27. Finest Worksong
28. Exhuming McCarthy
29. Disturbance at Heron House
30. The One I Love
31. King of Birds
(from Green, 1988)
32. Pop Song 89
33. Get Up
34. You Are Everything
35. Stand
36. World Leader Pretend
37. Orange Crush
38. Turn You Inside Out
(from Out of Time, 1991)
39. Losing My Religion
40. Low
41. Country Feedback
42. Me in Honey
(from Automatic for the People, 1992)
43. Drive
44. Everybody Hurts
45. Monty Got a Raw Deal
46. Man on the Moon
(from Monster, 1994)
47. What's the Frequency, Kenneth?
48. Crush With Eyeliner
49. I Took Your Name
50. Circus Envy
(from New Adventures in Hi-Fi, 1996)
51. New Test Leper
52. So Fast, So Numb
53. Electrolite
(from Up, 1998)
Nada. Sorry, folks.
(from Reveal, 2001)
54. I've Been High
55. Imitation of Life
(from Around the Sun, 2004)
56. Leaving New York
57. Electron Blue
58. Final Straw
(from Accelerate, 2008)
59. Living Well Is the Best Revenge
60. Man-Sized Wreath
61. Houston
62. Accelerate
63. Until the Day Is Done
64. Mr.Richards
65. Horse To Water
66. I'm Gonna DJ
(from Collapse Into Now, 2011)
Nada. They hadn't the time to learn how to play it.

Encore (b-sides, soundtracks...)
67. Gardening At Night
68. Bad Day
69. The Great Beyond

Listen to it on Spotify: HTTP, URI. (SR0730)
Lite version (23 songs): HTTP, URI. (SR0731)