R.E.M. Radio Free Europe Live on THE TUBE **HQ** 

16 years old in 2024. keep going on brother!

It was an amazing year musically. I remember not wanting it to end.

I loved '83 for music -- so much variety.

I do not care. REM were REM. Decide Yourself.

I was thinking the same thing!

Bearing in mind this was a new sound to the brits.. rem didnt even have a genre to be classed in...so thats maybe your answer..we did end up loving them quickly tho😊

Its just one of them songs that sounds better live all the time

I think REM are still underappreciated for what a great live band they were. They didn't put out much live stuff when they were together. I think some of the reissues had live bonus tracks. But there were tons of bootlegs and TV appearances to hear them live.

This was a performance on a British TV program called ‘The Tube’ filmed in Newcastle. The show was groundbreaking at the time in that it went out live early on Friday evenings and featured up coming bands like The Smiths etc so the audience would have been expecting to ‘witness’ all sorts of bands.

This was a performance on a British TV program called ‘The Tube’ filmed in Newcastle. The show was groundbreaking at the time in that it went out live early on Friday evenings and featured up coming bands like The Smiths etc so the audience would have been expecting to ‘witness’ all sorts of bands.

One of the main reasons R.E.M. left I.R.S. is that they couldn't expand their music into Europe. They'd tour "across the pond" and no one knew who they were. I mean, at this point practically no one did, but that didn't change to match R.E.M.'s growth in the US. Towards the end of their career, the band was probably more popular across the sea

Brit audiences were suspicious of American bands back then on account that they were usually crap. REM were the exception and they laid the foundations for the likes of Sonic Youth, Nirvana and many others.

And Baby Mike Mills tearing it UP! ❤️

@@melaniejo5296 he's so underated

Totally a banger. I used to play it with my band, I love to sing it ❤

That's why he's the best!!

I thought Mike was playing a Rickenbacher in 1983. He and Peter have matching Ricks in the ‘83 Letterman clips.

Michael’s hair was gone by 92. It is 1983 genius.

Wire, Ramones and Byrds I would say.

Channel 4 UK. Live from 5pm on a Friday

They don't understand that

I was thinking the same thing!

The Tube showcased many new bands from across the pond, usually their first UK TV appearances, the “ boring, subdued crowd “ in many cases had never heard such bands as REM, 10000 Maniacs, The Call and Missing Persons to name but a few so they weren’t likely to be moshing. All those named bands I personally loved and thank heavens for this TV Show filmed local in Newcastle.

The audience was made up of production staffs kids and the occasional trendy dressed punter from the pub round the corner and competition winners to give a vague semblance of a live performance. Much like the German show Beat-Club from the 60s and 70s. It was all filmed up North too so a good old mackerel chunder was enjoyed by all before showtime to anoint the vagueness of their daily day-to-day! You can't have too much critical thinking going on as they might wander off and get in the way of the cameraman and let's not forget many of these dunderheads dropped the brexit sprog.

It wasn't the electronic synth keyboard sound that they were familiar with

Dull band