Lifes Rich Pageant [Original recording reissued]

R.E.M. | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (January 27, 1998)
• Original Release Date: 1986
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Original recording reissued
• Label: Capitol
• ASIN: B000002UVZ
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Audio Cassette  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Music
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (151 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #11,471 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #22 in Music > Alternative Rock > Indie & Lo-Fi > Jangle Pop
  • #39 in Music > Alternative Rock > American Alternative > General

Editorial Reviews

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

40 of 42 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars a very strong remaster July 12, 2011

By J. Berner

Format:Audio CD

Obviously this is a classic R.E.M album that had them pushing the limits of their sound for the time and does not need to be reviewed again. What does need to be looked at is how well the remaster of the original album is as well as if the second disc is worth the repurchase

Firstly, the first disc does sound a lot crisper then the original cd pressing that has been on the market. The remastering sound is definitely worth the effort, especially if you have a good soundsystem to listen to this on. The vocals are a lot clearer as can be heard on Underneath The Bunker and the music itself is crisper and cleaner.

The second disc is the Athens Demos. Obviously the songs are rough takes but they definitely are worth checking out as several of the songs sound quite a bit different than their finished versions. It is also nice to know that the sound quality on the demos is as crisp as it can be. Though the demos will only really interest fans who like to hear how the songs evolved. If you are not a fan of rough drafts then the second disc will not be as essential as the first.

I personally would have loved to hear some of these songs sung live during that time period.

As for the packaging, it is the same quality as the last reissue Fables of the reconstruction. You will get both discs in sleeves, a booklet with an essay that looks back upon the album as well as postcards and a poster.

It should also be noted that the track listings are still printed a bit out of order as it is on the original. Fall on Me is still track 3 even though it is listed as track 9. Same with Just a Touch, and I believe.

I do realize this was intentional but i liked that touch with the remaster.

I found this reissue to be worth the purchase and would recommend any fan of the album to pick it up as well.

27 of 30 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars "Life" isn't "Out of Tune" but the remaster suffers from excess compression/loudness-a missed opportunity for remaster on CD August 2, 2011

By Wayne Klein HALL OF FAMETOP 100 REVIEWERVINE™ VOICE

Format:Audio CD

Everyone else has debated the merits of this album here so I'm not going to go into a lot of detail about the artistic quality of the album except to say that this remains one of my favorite REM albums. "Lifes Rich Pageant" saw the formula of the first three albums altered alteration of the band's once murky sound in favor of clear, clean vocals and instrumentation. Producer Don Gehman ushered the band more into the mainstream with this album helping the band fashion a strong ROCK record that focused less on mysterious sonics and more on straight ahead Rock 'n' Roll.

Interestingly, Geham (according to the liner notes) convinced Stipe to deliver lyrics with a message that fans could understand but if you listen to the demos it seems he was already headed in that direction with much clearer diction so, perhaps, the band was already headed down the less rocky path of the indie band it was and decided to swerve into the lane reserved for mainstream rock artists.

The remaster is another matter entirely. While the detail is extremely good here on the remaster, it is compressed and loud sounding--there's no subtly (I'm not sure if there should be any but I doubt the mastertape sounds like this)to the presentation or the soundtstage on this remastered 25th Anniversary Edition. It suffers from many of the sins that have dogged other remasters including REM's recent deluxe reissues. My advice--hold on to whatever version of this sounds best to you because I doubt sincerely you're going to love this unless you're listening on earbuds from an iPod or mp3 player (or small computer speakers). You can then decide which one you like best. Clearly that's what this remaster was designed for. I suspect the decision to go with the compressed version here came from REM themselves. That said, the EQ choices for the mastering aren't quite as harsh as many remasters and there is a bit of dynamic range although peak limited appears to be used.

The real reason most fans are going to buy this set isn't because of the deluxe packaging--the booklet which is a measeley 12 pages doesn't provide quite the immersively experience for most boxed sets. The postcards are nice although hardly essential and the same can be said for the poster (most fans are of an age where a poster really wouldn't be high on their reasons to buy this)--it's because of the disc of demos. I do wish that Capitol/IRS/EMI had gone for a THREE disc set with a live disc from one of their better shows on the tour here in addition to the original album AND the demos disc.

The demos disc features 19 songs including some material that didn't make the final album (and some tracks that have never appeared in finished form anywhere). The material that appears here but didn't make the final album includes "Two Steps Onward", "Out of Tune", "Wait", "All The Right Friends" and "March Song" (which became "King of Birds"). There are also VERY rough drafts of some songs including "I Believe" where Michael Stipe just hums the melody of the unfinished song that are fascinating as it's like listening to the creation of the songs themselves and being allowed to hear avenues the band elected NOT to turn down for certain songs.

My only major issue is with the mastering of the album (and the demos disc); people who are going to buy the CD are buying it NOT because they want to hear it louder but because they want to hear the best possible sounding version of the album on CD possible. Those who want the compressed, louder version will, no doubt, download it.

I am disappointed that we keep going in this direction with remasters. If you want to hear this album the way it SHOULD have sounded my advice is to not purchase the CD but buy the vinyl (if you have a turn table)as Mobile Fidelity mastered the vinyl version (just go to their website and see about ordering it)and that, at least, promises a good sounding version of this album.

Recommended but only for the second disc of demos NOT the mastering of the main album.

5 stars for the album itself (and the second disc of demos)
3 stars for the mastering

25 of 29 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars No Sleeping Through This Rich Life March 17, 2003

By M. Swinney

Format:Audio CD

"I believe in coyotes and time as an abstract/
Explain the change, the difference between/
What you want and what you need, there's the key"
-- "I Believe"

A review, however written, however praised, I fear won't do this one justice. It's that good...the pinnacle of what R.E.M. has to offer, which is saying a lot in and of itself. To offer unabashed praise without reason is as empty as the soul of a record company corporate lawyer, so here goes.

After all these years of following R.E.M., I've just now noticed the cover art for "Lifes Rich Pageant" is none other than a close-up of Bill Berry upper mug. Who could mistake those bushy unibrows? And now he farms and has left R.E.M. a drum-machining threesome, but this is all beside the point...reason...where's the reason?

"Lifes Rich Pageant," opens up smoking and we hear Michael Stipe's voice clearly, lucid, growling, "Let's begin again, like Martin Luther's Zen." And so they have, once again recreating themselves in discovery which has kept their marathon career fresh, interesting, and relevant.

"Fall on Me," and "The Flowers of Guatemala," represent the genius of Stipe and Mills songwriting and are hauntingly beautiful. "Fall on Me," pays homage to the sky, gives religion back to the sky, fears the falling of the sky with the interplay of rounds between Stipe and Mills, "Don't fall on me (What is it up in the air for) (It's gonna fall)/Fall on me (If it's there for long) (It's gonna fall)/Fall on me (It's over it's over me) (It's gonna fall)"

Ther's silliness as well, but artistic silliness in a curious, "Underneath the Bunker," screams and yelps in "Just a Touch," and archaic arcane lyrical language of, "Swan Swan H." What does it all mean? R.E.M. is just beginning to flesh out their politics here and pays homage to a lost childhood with "Cuyahoga," the same Ohio river that caught on fire due to it being so heavily polluted and toxic in 1969.

This album really has so many layers like the peels of an onion, the music, the lyrics, the accompanying vocals layered and subtle, that you will find yourself years later still discovering things with closer listens. Though R.E.M. has put out some briliant music over the years particularly in "New Adventures in Hi Fi," and "Automatic For the People," none reach the watermark set by 1986's "Lifes Rich Pageant." It raves, it rocks, it reels, it rolls. It's a reckoning of a different order, a revolution, musical and deep...a must. One of my top three pieces of music I own and I own a lot.

There I told you I wouldn't do it justice, but don't let your music collection go without this one. There is a difference between what you want and what you need. You need this.