On November 8th, 1995 I FINALLY got my chance to see R.E.M. perform live. It was unbelieveable! Although the crowd was small, it was intense. (There were only about 8,000 people in Knoxville's Thompson-Boling Arena that night.) Michael was energetic, the band was powerful...Everything came together to form the best live show that I have ever had the opportunity to see.
Opening for the guys was Luscious Jackson. With their incredible sound and stage presence, I must admit they made a fan out of me! Although the majority of the crowd was unresponsive, there were at least a few of us who really enjoyed the performance.
After a small pause, the arena lights once again dimmed, R.E.M. stepped on-stage, and I almost died of heart-failure. From the first chords of "What's the Frequency, Kenneth?", to the last ones in "It's the End of the World as We Know It", they played with ardent passion.
If I had to pick my favorite part of the show, it would have to be when Michael declared, "I'm going to do something that I've never done onstage before.", then proceeded to read an excerpt from James Agee's "A Death in the Family". (I will be adding a link to the passage he read soon) . It was a truly beautiful moment.
I consider myself lucky to have been given the chance to see my favorite band perform live. If you can, go see them...I promise you that you won't be dissapointed!