R E M Holiday single 2009 torrent

Every year, R.E.M. send out a holiday single to members of their fan club. This year, fan club members get an extra surprise: former drummer Bill Berry, who left R.E.M. in 1997, plays on the single, as Slicing Up Eyeballs reports.

The single features a cover of "Crazy Like a Fox", a song that Patti Smith Group guitarist Lenny Kaye released in 1966 under the name Link Cromwell. Unfortunately, it's not a reunion of all four original R.E.M. members, as Michael Stipe and Peter Buck don't participate. Berry plays drums and tambourine, while Mike Mills plays guitar and bass. Both sing, as does producer John Keane. The single also includes Mills covering holiday chestnut "Santa Baby" all by himself.

Berry's appearance isn't unprecedented. He's played the rare live show with R.E.M. since his departure, and he played on the band's cover of John Lennon's "#9 Dream" on the 2007 Amnesty International benefit comp Instant Karma. But still! Christmas miracle!