Full Album Stream: REM – Fables of the Reconstruction

“ I’m really proud of how strange it is. Nobody but R.E.M. could have made that record.
” Peter Buck, R.E.M. Fans of R.E.M. will not want to miss this one. Remastered and packaged with 14 previously unreleased demo tracks, the 25th anniversary edition of Fables of the Reconstruction documents an important moment in R.E.M. history and contains liner notes by Peter Buck. Click through to hear the full 2-disc release, and trip back to 1985 with America’s original alternative rockers.

Click below to launch the free stream of Fables of the Reconstruction, and click “More” for a behind-the-scenes look at the making of the legendary album.

Listen Now

The story behind this, one of R.E.M.’s most controvercial and talked-about albums of all time, is fascinating. Peter Buck, who writes the liner notes to this 25th Anniversary edition release, had this to day about how Fables of the Reconstruction came to be:

“The last day of rehearsal, I think with Joe Boyd in attendance, Jim Hawkins recorded what we had come up with. We spent about four hours recording all the new songs live, with minimal overdubs. I hadn’t listened to this stuff since we recorded it, and I’m kind of stunned at how good it is.”

Here’s an amazing blast from the past – this is vintage R.E.M. doing an acoustic performance of “Driver 8″ in 1984, the year before the official release of Fables of the Reconstruction.

TRACKLIST

Disc One: digitally remastered original album
1. Feeling Gravity’s Pull
2. Maps and Legends
3. Driver 8
4. Life and How To Live It
5. Old Man Kensey
6. Can’t Get There From Here
7. Green Grow The Rushes
8. Kohoutek
9. Auctioneer (Another Engine)
10. Good Advices
11. Wendell Gee

Disc Two: “The Athens Demos”
1. Auctioneer (Another Engine) [demo version]
2. Bandwagon [demo version] [final version was B-side to “Can't Get There From Here”]
3. Can’t Get There From Here [demo version]
4. Driver 8 [demo version]
5. Feeling Gravity’s Pull [demo version]
6. Good Advices [demo version]
7. Green Grow The Rushes [demo version]
8. Hyena [demo version] [album version appeared on Life’s Rich Pageant]
9. Kohoutek [demo version]
10. Life and How To Live It [demo version]
11. Maps and Legends [demo version]
12. Old Man Kensey [demo version]
13. Throw Those Trolls Away [demo version] [previously unreleased]
14. Wendell Gee [demo version]