Four different studio recordings of the song have been officially released. The original
Chronic Town version can be found on the CD edition of
Dead Letter Office, on the 2006 R.E.M. compilation
And I Feel Fine: The Best of the I.R.S. Years 1982-1987 and more recently in the band's 2011 career-spanning greatest hits compilation
Part Lies, Part Heart, Part Truth, Part Garbage 1982–2011. A version featuring an earlier vocal take appears on the 1988 compilation
Eponymous. An acoustic version of the song appears as a bonus track on the European "I.R.S. Vintage Years" reissue of
Dead Letter Office. A substantially slower electric version of the song appears on the bonus disc accompanying the special collector's edition of
And I Feel Fine. Six live versions have been officially released–the first, recorded on July 13, 1983, appeared on the Dutch "I.R.S. Years" reissue of the band's debut album
Murmur. The second appeared as a
B-side of the 12-inch "
(Don't Go Back To) Rockville" single in 1984. The third appeared on a promotional CD called
The Alternative Radio Sampler. A performance at
Larry's Hideaway, Toronto, Ontario, from July 9, 1983, was released on the 2008 Deluxe Edition reissue of
Murmur. A performance from Chicago's
Aragon Ballroom from July 7, 1984 was released on the 2009 Deluxe Edition reissue of
Reckoning. Finally, a performance from the band's 2007 rehearsal tour in Ireland was released on the
Live At The Olympia In Dublin album. R.E.M. performed the song at their 2007 induction into the
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Singer
Michael Stipe dedicated the song to his father. Stipe also mentioned that the band considered this their first "real" composition after 20 or 30 presumably failed efforts. ==Personnel==