20.07.1985
USA, Berkeley, University of California at Berkeley, The Greek Theatre
Carnival of Sorts Box Cars
vg / exc. Aud.

01. Intro [1:03]
02. Feeling Gravity's Pull [4:44]
03. Moral Kiosk [3:25]
04. Maps and Legends [3:21]
05. Green Grow the Rushes [3:41]
06. Hyena [2:57]
07. 7 Chinese Brothers [4:21]
08. Sitting Still [3:56]
09. Driver 8 [4:05]
10. Good Advices [3:29]
11. So. Central Rain (I'm Sorry) [4:10]
12. Have You Ever Seen the Rain [2:52]
13. Can't Get There From Here [3:27]
14. Auctioneer (Another Engine) [2:41]
15. Old Man Kensey [4:08]
16. Pretty Persuasion [3:49]
17. Life and How to Live It [4:16]
18. Little America [2:43]
19. Radio Free Europe [3:41]
20. Second Guessing [2:45]
21. (Don't Go Back To) Rockville [4:44]
22. Carnival of Sorts (Box Cars) [4:45]
23. Theme From Two Steps Onward [4:42]
24. Harborcoat [4:45]
25. Boy (Go) [0:44]
26. We Walk [3:22]
27. See No Evil [2:59]

Total Running Time: [1:35:42]

Mike G. master recording > 1st gen. Maxell XL II-S cassettes

Recording hardware unknown

2020 Transfer: 
1st gen. Maxell XL II-S cassettes > Nakamichi Cassette Deck 1 azimuth-adjusted playback > Sound Devices USBPre2 > Audacity 2.4.1 (24/96 capture) > iZotope RX and Ozone > resample to 16/44 FLAC

Musicians:
Bill Berry (drums, vocals)
Peter Buck (guitar)
Mike Mills (bass, vocals)
Michael Stipe (lead vocals, harmonica)

This file set features a 2020 transfer from first-generation cassettes (using the azimuth-adjusting Cassette Deck 1), with new levels and tones courtesy of mjk5510. Try as I might, I couldn’t replicate the sound from the samples he presented, so I asked him to take over; his guidance makes this edition excellent. It’s a great way to mark 35 years of Reconstruction and easily replaces a version that originally circulated in 2008.

July 20 was my first R.E.M. concert, and luck was in store that Saturday evening: during the opening set by The Three O'Clock, I spied a fellow with a microphone a row or two ahead. That fellow was Mike G., and he sent tapes soon after. In return, he asked for leads on recordings of the 1980 Talking Heads set from the Heatwave Festival and any Martha and the Muffins. Though we fell out of touch, R.E.M. became a fixture in my life.

"Fables of the Reconstruction" was a muted affair, but R.E.M.’s live show was animated. How Peter Buck managed his arpeggiated picking while leaping about like a young Pete Townshend still mystifies me. Michael Stipe wore a long coat, if I recall correctly; he was intriguing, though not quite the enigma the press had made him out to be. Bill Berry and Mike Mills held the music together as only they could.

What stands out today is the enthusiasm and controlled chaos the band maintained over a simple but rich sound. Songs hadn’t quite bulked up as they would by decade's end — I'm still partial to the Green tour's superb revival of "Good Advices" — but the sound wasn't thin, either.

The five songs beginning with "Auctioneer" formed the core of the show, which featured a typical setlist for this part of 1985: most of "Fables," selections from the first two LPs, and songs they’d release later: "Hyena" (1986) and the spooky and cool "Theme From Two Steps Onward" (2006) — both favorites of my old pal BK, incidentally. Michael sings an a cappella bit of The Golden Palominos' "Boy (Go)" before "We Walk," which he reprises at song's end.

We sat on Peter's side, maybe 15 rows back, fairly close to the P.A. The Greek Theatre always gave tapers a sonic premium: if you brought good equipment, sat in a reasonably good place, and knew what you were doing, you would leave with a very good tape. This one is no exception.

Mike G., if you're reading, thank you again for recording and sharing. I hope you found the tapes you were seeking. Shout out to PJay, my old friend with whom I took in the show.

Thanks again to mjk5510 for making the sound rise.

Share it freely, and for free!

 - slipkid68