| | R E M Dead Letter Office CD R E M Discography of CDs
 (1 Customer Review)
DEAD LETTER OFFICE is a collection of early B-sides and unreleased tracks. It includes the entire CHRONIC TOWN EP.
Additional personnel includes: Mitch Easter (acoustic guitar).
The "outtakes" album is all too often treated as a dumping ground for excess studio tape or contractual obligation. While this collection of rarities makes no effort to refute either charge, it is wide-ranging, informative and uniformly rewarding nonetheless. Spanning the band's career, DEAD LETTER OFFICE is culled from a variety of albums and other sources. It provides a novel perspective, playful and occasionally downright silly, with friendly, self-effacing liner notes by guitarist Peter Buck.
The range of production varies greatly, too: some outtakes, such as "Burning Down," are given full treatment. In fact, "Voice Of Harold" is the complete backing track of "Seven Chinese Brothers" with a bizarre vocal take by Stipe (not that the one they kept on RECKONING was any too straightforward). Covers abound, including the opener "Crazy" by fellow Athenians Pylon, a drunken, clumsy take on Roger Miller's "King Of The Road" and yes, Aerosmith's "Toys In The Attic," as well as three Velvet Underground songs. The most striking and inspirational thing about DEAD LETTER OFFICE is that no matter how much effort the band expends, every track displays an innate genius and an intimate level of musical communication.
Includes liner notes by Peter Buck.
R.E.M.: Michael Stipe (vocals); Peter Buck (guitar); Mike Mills (bass); Bill Berry (drums).
Producers include: Mitch Easter, R.E.M., Joe Boyd, Don Dixon, Don Gehman. R E M Dead Letter Office Songs Dead Letter Office Music Review Average Rating: (4 out of 5 stars)  Really good stuff - fun
Dead Letter Office sums up R.E.M. prior to their leaving IRS Records for Warner Bros - it is not a hits collection but rather B-sides and outtakes, including several excellent covers. The last five songs are a re-release of the Chronic Town EP, the earliest R.E.M. recordings. You get three Velvet Underground covers - There She Goes Again, Pale Blue Eyes, and Femme Fatale. There's a raunchy cover of Toys in the Attic. There are fast blow-outs like White Tornado, Rotary Ten, and Windout. Then there are several songs that could easily have fit on early albums, like Burning Down and Ages of You. If you like early R.E.M. this a good one to have to fill in the gaps. Plus the liner notes are written by Peter Buck. Finally, there is a hilarious song called Voice of Harold which is Michael Stipe reading the album notes from a Christian gospel record to the backing track of Seven Chinese Brothers. Off the cuff and very funny. Give it a try.
Submitted by Michael (Canal Winchester, OH, USA)
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