Basically a singles collection from
R.E.M.'s first five albums,
Eponymous gives the listener a sense of the band's change from folk-rock to rock. The songs are intelligently selected, distilling most of the best moments from their first five albums for I.R.S. Included is the original single of "Radio Free Europe," and different mixes of "Gardening at Night" (where it's actually possible to hear the vocal) and "Finest Worksong," and the previously unreleased (and unspectacular) "Romance."