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In February 1981, a full 18 months before releasing their debut Chronic Town EP, R.E.M. played three known concerts, including a pair in Atlanta opening for Joe “King” Carrasco at the 688 Club. Little of this period has been seen on video all these years later, but Slicing Up Eyeballs is thrilled to be able to premiere — courtesy of Wuxtry Records in Athens, Ga. — this 40-minute set filmed at one of those Atlanta dates.
The management of Wuxtry — where Peter Buck famously worked and met Michael Stipe — is putting some of the store’s long-held and uncirculated early-’80s video of R.E.M. and other classic Athens bands such as Pylon onto YouTube, beginning with this 13-song set that was recorded on videotape either on Feb. 20 or 21, 1981 (it’s difficult to tell which because, without bootlegs circulating, those shows’ setlists hadn’t been preserved).
As you can see, this footage — some of which was screened by Wuxtry’s owners at an Athens Historical Society event five years ago — shows the nascent band tearing through future classics (“Radio Free Europe,” “Gardening at Night”), covers (“Rave On”) and songs that ultimately would fall by the wayside (“Narrator,” “Dangerous Times”). It’s a thrilling snapshot of the band’s earliest era, and Stipe, in particular, is a dervish onstage.
Check out the full 40-minute set above; the 13-song setlist is reproduced below.
Setlist: R.E.M., 688 Club, Atlanta, GA; Feb. 20 or 21, 1981 *
1. “Rave On” (Partial)
2. “Burning Down”
3. “Dangerous Times”
4. “I Don’t Want You Anymore”
5. “Get on Their Way”
6. “Different Girl”
7. “Permanent Vacation”
8. “White Tornado”
9. “Narrator”
10. “Wind Out”
11. “Gardening at Night”
12. “Mystery to Me”
13. “Radio Free Europe”
* Opening for Joe “King” Carrasco
