I understand there are all sorts of R.E.M. stories, and this one is certainly in a category all its own. It has to do with an old friend of mine, Jason Narducy, who I gather played some role in inspiring R.E.M. Stories in the first place. In addition to his founding role in Shannon/Narducy & Friends, Jason also fronts the band Split Single; tours regularly with both the Bob Mould Band and Superchunk; as well as does living-room concerts as a solo performer. It was in this last guise that Jason reached out to me in the middle of last year, 2025. I’m from Chicago but moved with my family up to Milwaukee some years ago. Jason was looking to play a living-room concert in the Milwaukee area, and he was hoping I might have a lead for him. As it turns out, my friend Tom has hosted numerous house concerts, including a few with Mike Doughty, one with the Posies and several others. Tom was delighted about hosting Jason solo, because it happens he’s a big fan of Jason’s music. I put the two of them together and let them hammer out the details.
When the show came in November, Jason invited me and my wife to dinner, along with show hosts Tom & Sue Martin. During the meal, Tom casually mentioned a rather interesting fact; it turns out the Martin house, where Jason was about to play his concert, decades earlier served as the childhood home of a certain William Thomas Berry, known to R.E.M. fans around the world simply as Bill Berry. As most people reading this will be aware, Jason is not only an enormous R.E.M. fan, he’s also a colleague, and so has R.E.M. advisor/attorney Bertis Downs in his Contacts. Jason explained to Bertis by phone about the very special living room in which he was about to play a concert. Instead of saying, “Oh, that’s nice,” being the great man he is, Bertis set up a call in which Jason walked around the house on his cell phone, with Bill recalling details of his home from 50 years before. To make it even more special, Jason revealed that the Martins would be hosting him overnight that night, and that Jason would be staying in Bill’s childhood bedroom!
After all of this, Jason handed his phone to the Martins, who spent some time talking with Bill as well. Bill and the Martins exchanged phone numbers so they could remain in touch, with the Martins extending an open invitation for Bill to come by on his next visit to the Midwest. This “feel-good story” made its rounds on social media last year, and I’m here to tell you it is 100% the truth.
KEN SUMKA is best known to longtime Chicago radio listeners as a DJ on WXRT, “Chicago’s Finest Rock.” He is a man of many hats, including a long stint at Shadow Traffic, giving reports from a helicopter. Ken now lives with his family in Milwaukee.
Bill Berry in 1968
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