The Go Betweens

[Peterbean]

If you think that they are one of the greatest Aus bands then you will appreciate that we need a thread for them,

one thing about them is that their good songs are really really great, but the others aren’t so good, and only one album has consistently good music-16 Lover’s Lane, 

 

any other fans ?

 

ohh and I have a spare ticket to Forster’s Sydney show this Friday, up for grabs 

[aussievintage]

 

I had not heard of them until Brisbane was building the bridge.  I had heard "Streets of your town" but not paid attention to who did it.  My excuse was that I was busy studying at Uni, and heavily into progressive rock.  None of my friends played Go Betweens either.

 

Nevertheless, I will tag along and learn   

Edited November 21, 2024 by aussievintage

[BugPowderDust]

Robert Forster's book "Grant and I" is a great read for fans of the band. https://www.theguardian.com/music/australia-books-blog/2016/aug/29/grant-i-review-the-go-betweens-robert-forster-grant-mclennan-moving-definitive-portrait

[grammefriday]

Saw them several times back in the early 80's including a famous gig at the NSW Uni Roundhouse with The Birthday Party and Laughing Clowns. Before Hollywood is a great album and Cattle and Cane is one of the best singles to ever come out of this country.

[surprisetech]

4 hours ago, Peterbean said:

If you think that they are one of the greatest Aus bands then you will appreciate that we need a thread for them,

one thing about them is that their good songs are really really great, but the others aren’t so good, and only one album has consistently good music-16 Lover’s Lane, 

 

any other fans ?

 

ohh and I have a spare ticket to Forster’s Sydney show this Friday, up for grabs 

 

Good call Steve.  Certainly, a great and influential band that never got the attention they deserved.

 

Saw them a couple of times here in Melbourne including an intimate show at the Mentone Hotel which was pretty special.  Amanda was in the band by then and had all her tools of trade on hand; violin, oboe, cello & guitar.  I'll stick my neck out a little here and say that I think Amanda's presence played a big part in making 16 Lovers Lane (and Tallulah) more consistent than the earlier albums.

 

They'd come up with a formula that was working really well and who knows what might have been if their management hadn't decided they needed to fix something that wasn't actually broken!

 

I enjoy Grant McLennan's solo albums, especially Watershed.  Also, the releases from Lindy & Amanda's band, Cleopatra Wong.  I don't mind Robert's solo work, but find I lose interest before long.  I think it's fair to say that Robert is more the poet than musician and the Go-Betweens brought his insightful words to a much wider audience.  The Forster-McLennan partnership certainly produced some timeless gems.

 

Enjoy the show tomorrow night.

 

[Andythiing]

Great Aussie band - I’d have to say I think this album is a great “whole” album 

 

 

[Peterbean]

Last night I watched the Go Betweens chapter from Classic Aus Albums SBS series. It was certainly worth watching ( I could lend it out possibly) 

I have always thought of Amanda Brown as the key to the album’s sound-or more accurately the addition of her to the band, that combination of her skill and the ideas and creativity of the 2 boys- as other members have said here 

the show makes it clear that John Millstead on bass ( and guitar) was also very important, even despite his negative attitude to the band and its music. He and Browne were something of a unit ( they were probably the only ones who knew what a bar of music was:)

 

it’s something that we see in businesses too sometimes.,of course ideas people and detail people can all annoy each other too

 

[Phill451]

6 hours ago, Peterbean said:

Last night I watched the Go Betweens chapter from Classic Aus Albums SBS series. It was certainly worth watching ( I could lend it out possibly) 

I have always thought of Amanda Brown as the key to the album’s sound-or more accurately the addition of her to the band, that combination of her skill and the ideas and creativity of the 2 boys- as other members have said here 

the show makes it clear that John Millstead on bass ( and guitar) was also very important, even despite his negative attitude to the band and its music. He and Browne were something of a unit ( they were probably the only ones who knew what a bar of music was:)

 

it’s something that we see in businesses too sometimes.,of course ideas people and detail people can all annoy each other too

 

Willstead did himself no favours in that documentary. Too often sounded envious of the songwriting talent and quirky nature of the original members and tried to make up for it with a “look at me I can really play” attitude. Worst mistake they ever made having him in the band despite his self professed contributions to the album.

[Phill451]

21 hours ago, Andythiing said:

Great Aussie band - I’d have to say I think this album is a great “whole” album 

 

 

Possibly my favourite of the original albums before the split.

[muon*]

I like all their music, I have 5 or 6 of their CDs.

[proftournesol]

They are underrated in Australia, perhaps because their most influential days were spent in London. Ironically, the longer they were there, the more Australian they became. They are also a band where the collective was more significant than the individual elements. I'm a real fan of their later post-reformation albums, which are often overlooked when appreciating their earlier output.

 

I'm a fan of Grant's solo efforts, but you can see the hole left by Robert's absence in crafting the lyrics.