Dead Letter Office (album)

Dead Letter Office is a rarities and B-sides collection by R.E.M., released in 1987. The album essentially a collection of many additional recordings R.E.M. made pre-Murmur to Lifes Rich Pageant that were outtakes or released as flip sides to their singles internationally. Many of the tracks are favorite cover versions indicating the band's disparate influences and musical tastes, including three Velvet Underground covers, and songs by Pylon, Aerosmith and Roger Miller.

Guitarist Peter Buck composed wry, self-deprecating (and, in one instance, apologetic) liner notes to the songs on the album. Buck initially had doubts about releasing it, saying he felt as though people would perceive the album as the band "trying to cash in, maybe to sell some records," as the ultimate release date predated that of the band's final studio album with IRS, Document, by a mere five months.

The album was initially issued as a 15-song collection on vinyl and cassette, but when its CD edition appeared (now the only available edition of Dead Letter Office) the five tracks from the band's 1982 Chronic Town EP were added. This is also the only current CD availability of Chronic Town.

Dead Letter Office originally reached #52 in the U.S. and #60 in the UK.

Track listing

All songs written by Bill Berry, Peter Buck, Mike Mills and Michael Stipe, except as indicated.

Post side "Crazy" (Randy Bewley, Vanessa Briscoe, Curtis Crowe, Michael Lachowski) – 3:03 ''B-side of "Driver 8" 7 inch single & "Wendell Gee" 7 & 12 inch singles''
"There She Goes Again" (Lou Reed) – 2:50 ''B-side of I.R.S. "Radio Free Europe" 7 inch single''
"Burning Down" – 4:12 ''B-side of "Wendell Gee" 7 & 12 inch singles''
"Voice of Harold"¹ – 4:24 ''B-side of "So. Central Rain" 12 inch single''
"Burning Hell" – 3:49 ''B-side of "Cant Get There From Here" 12 inch single''
"White Tornado" – 1:55 ''Recorded on the same day as the "Radio Free Europe" single in 1981, previously unreleased
"Toys in the Attic" (Steven Tyler, Joe Perry) – 2:28 ''B-side of "Fall On Me" 12 inch singles''
Script side <li value=8> "Windout" (Jerry Ayers, Berry, Buck, Mills, Stipe) – 1:58 ''from Bachelor Party soundtrack''
"Ages of You" – 3:42 ''B-side of "Wendell Gee" 7 & 12 inch singles''
"Pale Blue Eyes" (Reed) – 2:53 ''B-side of "So. Central Rain" 12 inch single''
"Rotary Ten" – 2:00 ''B-side of "Fall on Me" 7 inch single''
"Bandwagon" (Berry, Buck, Mills, Lynda Stipe, M. Stipe) – 2:16 ''B-side of "Cant Get There From Here" 7 & 12 inch singles''
"Femme Fatale" (Reed) – 2:49 ''B-side of "Superman" 12 inch single''
"Walters Theme"² – 1:32 ''B-side of "So. Central Rain" 7 inch single''
"King of the Road" (Roger Miller) – 3:13 ''B-side of "So. Central Rain" 7 inch single''
CD Bonus tracks (Chronic Town EP) <li value=16> "Wolves, Lower" – 4:10
"Gardening at Night" – 3:29
"Carnival of Sorts (Boxcars)" – 3:54
"1,000,000" – 3:06
"Stumble" – 5:40

The IRS Years reissue

On January 26, 1993, EMI (which owns the I.R.S. catalogue) re-released Dead Letter Office in Europe with two bonus tracks: <li value=21>"Gardening at Night" (Acoustic version)
"All the Right Friends"

Charts

Album Single

Translation of "Dead Letter Office (album)"

Czech: Dead Letter Office, French: Dead Letter Office, Italian: Dead Letter Office, Norwegian (Nynorsk): Dead Letter Office, Polish: Dead Letter Office, Portuguese: Dead Letter Office, Finnish: Dead Letter Office, Swedish: Dead Letter Office.