REM members celebrated Rock Hall announcement on stage

The members of R.E.M. were able to celebrate their being named to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame by performing for some very lucky fans. Guitarist Peter Buck was on tour in the U.K. with old friend Robyn Hitchcock when the announcement was made back in January, and singer Michael Stipe and bassist Mike Mills were also in England at the time. Stipe told us that they decided to celebrate the news on stage: "Mike and I wound up on stage. We played four songs, including an unreleased song of ours, an R.E.M. song called 'I'm Gonna DJ,' that we just kind of bashed through in this small club in Oxford. I guess that was our way of commemorating the event. (chuckles)" )

R.E.M. will be joined in the Rock Hall's Class of 2007 by Patti Smith, Van Halen, Grandmaster Flash & the Furious Five, and the Ronettes.

The ceremony takes place Monday (March 12th) at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in New York City, and it will air live on VH1 Classic beginning at 8:30 p.m. ET.