Hosted by R.E.M. biographer Tony Fletcher
Featuring REM covers by musicians Mark Sidgwick, Andy Shernoff, Joe Magistro and Noel Fletcher.
In April 1983, R.E.M., a little known four-piece from Athens, GA released Murmur, a landmark debut album that would not only propel the band on a steady path towards 1990s global fame, with total album sales topping 65,000,000, but that almost singlehandedly opened up the “alternative” “college rock” music scene to the American mainstream. Now, almost 40 years to the day from its release, best selling music biographer Tony Fletcher, author of Perfect Circle: The Story of R.E.M., will host an interactive presentation on Murmur. Elaborating on his belief that Michael Stipe, Peter Buck, Mike Mills and Bill Berry comprised the Perfect Rock Group, he will discuss the group’s origins, why Murmur had such an impact, how R.E.M. became one of the biggest bands in the world while continuing to make friends and influence people, and why their music – from “Radio Free Europe” to “Everybody Hurts,” “Fall On Me” to “Man on the Moon” – continues to reach new generations. The event will include performances of Murmur songs by special guest musicians, rare video footage and other surprises. Signed books will be available for purchase.
Tony Fletcher is the author of a dozen books, including several best-selling music biographies including Dear Boy: The Life of Keith Moon (2005), In the Midnight Hour about Wilson Pickett (2017) and All Hopped Up and Ready to Go (2009) about the history of music in New York City. Born in the UK in 1964, he started the fanzine Jamming! during the punk rock explosion of 1977. Fletcher moved to the Hudson Valley in the mid-2000s. He enjoys weekend work as a showdirector at the Woodstock Rock Academy, running the local Catskill mountains (and roads) and hosting his own outdoor lifestyle podcast, One Step Beyond.
Co-presented by Inquiring Minds Bookstore.
Our 2023 LIVE FROM UPSTATE series is presented with support from Hammertown Barn and Diamond Mills Hotel & Tavern.
Upstate Films programs are made possible by Arts Mid Hudson and support from the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature.
