michael stipe

Downloads of the song will benefit an activist group fighting climate change.

As Radiohead prepare for their controversial show in Israel, they've found a sympathetic voice in R.E.M.'s Michael Stipe.

The former R.E.M. frontman celebrated his hero's 70th birthday onstage with her in Chicago.

"It was two stunning evenings," Stipe wrote, "hearing songs that I grew up with, all contributors honoring the output of such an astonishing songwriter."