Watch on the R.E.M. Youtube Channel

On July 19th – 21st, 1999, one of the biggest bands in the world played three, amazing nights of sold-out concerts at Stirling Castle. There had been previous concerts at Stirling Castle but no band this globally renowned had played there before.

These concerts were documented by filmmakers, Deborah Hogan and Andy Cronk of Lonely Goat. Lonely Goat had contacted R.E.M. about documenting how their presence would impact the small Scottish city in which the castle was located. In the band’s words, they were "...all in" for this slice-of-life approach and they all agreed it would be nice to have things told from the fans' perspective and that of the local community.

The result was the documentary ‘A Stirling Performance’, which not only records parts of the concerts and interviews with the band but also gives a fun and affectionate insight into the Stirling of 1999.

To celebrate this special anniversary of the Stirling shows, R.E.M. will be screening the documentary on their Youtube channel, REMHQ, on the anniversary dates of the original concerts.

Directors Deborah Hogan and Andy Cronk said, “We wanted to make a film that showed a different side of a band and their effect on people and places. We found out about the shows at Stirling Castle not long before they were going to happen but thought, what have we got to lose? Let’s phone up R.E.M. As it was 1999, we had access to the latest technology, the fax, so did that instead. We were not expecting a call the next day from the band to say yes. We think the film captures a magical moment in time and we’re so proud that 21 years later it still resonates. We’re excited more people are now discovering it for the first time”.

Bertis Downs, R.E.M.’s manager added, "I remember the first fax we got from Lonely Goat about the film. It was only about a week or two before Stirling. We were at Roskilde in Denmark playing a show and we had no idea that they were scrambling to get something, anything filmed. We just thought 'Oh why not? It’ll probably make a good movie the way they’re proposing it.' Glad we said yes.”

The spectacular and historic setting of Stirling Castle provided the perfect backdrop to these highly-anticipated concerts. R.E.M.’s Scottish fans turned out in their droves and showed that they are amongst the most loyal and passionate in the world. The weather might not have been the best on a few of those days but the welcome was certainly warm!

Convener of Stirling Council’s Community Planning and Regeneration Committee, Councillor Chris Kane, said: "I’ve got a personal connection with this project because I’m one of those interviewed in the film and it is fascinating to watch it twenty years later.

Stirling Castle Esplanade started hosting concerts in the early 1990s but when it was announced that REM were coming to town, I remember both a sense of great excitement and a feeling that Stirling had taken things up a level and was now attracting world-wide attention as a concert venue.

Deborah and Andy’s film captures part of the essence of what continues to make Stirling such an alluring destination for tourists and musical megastars."

Vice Convener, Councillor Maureen Bennison, said: “R.E.M were one of the biggest names in rock music and we were proud that they chose Stirling as a venue to perform for their legions of fans, who travelled from across Scotland and beyond.

This documentary captures a moment in time when they were at the peak of their powers, and it is a tribute to Stirling that they chose the city as the perfect location to hold three, amazing sold out concerts.”

The special one-time only screening on Youtube will also include there a new exclusive pre-recorded Q&A with the Co-Directors about the making of the documentary in Stirling.

Details of the screening can be found on the Tolbooth & Albert Halls Facebook pages in the coming days, with a competition to win some R.E.M. ‘goodies’ provided by the band (the competition is for UK residents only).

Watch on the R.E.M. Youtube Channel 19th – 21st July: https://found.ee/REM-StirlingYT