Eponymous

Eponymous is the first greatest hits and the second compilation album by American alternative rock band R.E.M., released in 1988. It was their last authorized release on I.R.S. Records, to whom they had been contracted since 1982, having just signed with Warner Bros. Records. Eponymous is notable for its inclusion of several rare or alternate versions of known tracks. Spanning from the Chronic Town EP to the previous year's breakthrough hit album Document, Eponymous provides a fair overview of R.E.M.'s early work. The album features the alternate title "File Under Grain", a reference to the cover photograph. A previous album, Document, had "File Under Fire" inscribed on it and Reckoning, featured the words "File Under Water". Inside the album was a photograph of singer Michael Stipe with the words "They Airbrushed My Face" across his eyes. Released in October 1988, just a month before R.E.M.'s Warner Bros. debut Green appeared, Eponymous reached #44 in the US and #69 in the UK.