The Go-Betweens

The Go-Betweens were an Australian indie rock band formed in Brisbane, Queensland, in 1977. The band was co-founded and led by singer-songwriters and guitarists Robert Forster and Grant McLennan, who were its only constant members throughout its existence. Drummer Lindy Morrison joined the band in 1980, and its lineup would later expand to include bass guitarist Robert Vickers and multi-instrumentalist Amanda Brown. Vickers was replaced by John Willsteed in 1987, and the quintet lineup remained in place until the band split two years later. Forster and McLennan reformed the band in 2000 with a new lineup that did not include any previous personnel aside from them. McLennan died on 6 May 2006 of a heart attack and the Go-Betweens disbanded again. In 2010, a toll bridge in their native Brisbane was renamed the Go Between Bridge after them.

In 1988, "Streets of Your Town", the first single from 16 Lovers Lane, entered the Top 100 on both the Kent Music Report chart in Australia and the UK Singles Chart in the United Kingdom. The follow-up single "Was There Anything I Could Do?" was a No. 16 hit on the Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart in the United States. In May 2001, "Cattle and Cane", from 1983's Before Hollywood, was selected by Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA) as one of the Top 30 Australian songs of all time. In 2008, 16 Lovers Lane was highlighted on Special Broadcasting Service (SBS) TV's The Great Australian Albums series.

Career

1977–1982: early years

Robert Forster and Grant McLennan met at the University of Queensland, where both were taking a theatre arts course. Forster provided vocals and guitar, while McLennan provided vocals, bass, and guitar; the pair shared songwriting duties. Together, they formed the Go-Betweens in December 1977 in Brisbane, Queensland. The name of the band reflects L. P. Hartley's classic novel The Go-Between. The band made its first public appearance as the support act for the Numbers at Baroona Hall in Brisbane in early April 1978. We performed two songs, and as soon as we got off stage, Mark Callaghan, Robert Vickers – we met them all, in five minutes ... They immediately asked us to play a second show. The band, however, were still without a drummer, having borrowed Gerard Lee for their first show. They had a succession of drummers, starting with Bruce Anthon (ex–the Survivors). With a guest drummer, Dennis Cantwell (the Riptides), they recorded their debut single, "Lee Remick", in May 1978. The song, an ode to the US actress Lee Remick, was released on the independent Able label in September 1978. The B-side to the single, "Karen", was a love song to a librarian. The sleeve depicts Forster and McLennan alongside portraits of Bob Dylan, Che Guevara and Lee Remick. The band sent copies to record labels around the world, with interest shown by the UK arm of America's Beserkley Records. The group's first real drummer was Temucin "Tim" Mustafa, recruited after the recording of "Lee Remick", although he appears on the picture sleeve of the single. The band further expanded with the addition of guitarist Peter Milton Walsh. Beserkley offered the band a contract that proposed the re-issue of "Lee Remick" and "Karen" as two singles, followed by an eight-album deal. The band recorded two more songs for Beserkley in November 1978 (including "The Sound of Rain"); however, when Beserkley went bust weeks later, Walsh left to form the Apartments.

The band's second single, "People Say", which was recorded in May 1979, was produced by the Go-Betweens with Mustapha on drums and Malcolm Kelly on piano and organ. The B-side, "Don't Let Him Come Back", is a farewell to Walsh, who remained friends with Forster and McLennan. From May 1978 to May 1979, the group recorded some tracks live in Forster's bedroom using McLennan's two-track tape deck—they were not released until 1999 as 78 'Til 79 – The Lost Album, which also includes both sides of the first two singles. These songs were simple pop tunes with a rough new wave edge, an obvious blend of pure pop influences such as the Monkees with the gritty simplicity of the Velvet Underground.