The Go-Betweens were perhaps the quintessential cult band of the '80s: they came from an exotic locale (Brisbane, Australia), moved to a major recording center (in their case, London) in a sustained bid to make a career out of music, released album after album of music seemingly tailor-made for the radio in spite of their having little use for contemporary Top 40 musical/lyrical formulas, and earned considerable critical praise and a small but fervent international fan base. Although the Go-Betweens were absent throughout the '90s before re-forming in the new millennium, both of the band's songwriters embarked on respectable solo careers in the interim and, while rarely reaching the heights the Go-Betweens scaled, they still managed to uphold the group's legacy.

Robert Forster and Grant McLennan began as a pair of teenagers obsessed with the earthy rock of Dylan, CCR, and the Velvet Underground and encouraged by the Australian punk of the Saints. As collected on The Able Label Singles, their first two singles show a fondness for scruffy, British Invasion/new wave-influenced pop/rock. Picking up permanent drummer Lindy Morrison, they recorded their debut LP, moved to England, and signed a short-lived deal with Rough Trade. Going for a lush, tuneful sound crammed with nonstandard rock instrumentation, they went on to record five more excellent LPs. Though their pre-Beggars Banquet albums were traditionally hard to find in the States, that label finally reissued all six albums on CD in 1996.

In 2000 the band reunited and released a new album, The Friends of Rachel Worth, which also featured all three members of Sleater-Kinney. It wasn't just a fluke, as the band recorded follow-up albums released in 2003 (Bright Yellow Bright Orange) and 2005 (Oceans Apart). Documenting a 2005 concert in their hometown, the DVD/CD package That Striped Sunlight Sound arrived in early 2006, just a few months before the death of McLennan in May. ~ Michael Ribas, All Music Guide

"Why do people who read Dostoyevsky look like Dostoyevsky?" The Go-Betweens return in good form on Oceans Apart, their third post-reunion disc. Relatively modest next to towering achievements such as Tallulah and 16 Lovers Lane, the disc is a grower, impressive and moving in its glimpses of truly human moments. The sturdy, rootsy backing here allows wry Robert Forster and unaffected Grant McLennan to range across familiar territory while finding new, small delights there. A handful of songs rise to the top, sure to make their places on fans' mix tapes; among them are McLennan's "Boundary Rider" and Forster's "Born to a Family" and "Here Comes a City." Early copies of Oceans Apart contain a bonus disc with live versions of a half dozen Go-Betweens classics. --Rickey Wright 

CD1:
1. Here Comes a City
2. Finding You
3. Born to a Family
4. No Reason to Cry
5. Boundary Rider
6. Darlinghurst Nights
7. Lavender
8. The Statue
9. This Night`s for You
10. The Mountains Near Dellray

CD2 (Recoded Live at The Barbican Concert Hall, London, June 27, 2004):
1. People Say
2. He Lives My Life
3. The Wrong Road
4. Bye Bye Pride
5. When People are Dead
6. Streets of your Town

Also included is the cover and CD art.

Enjoy & please seed!

DD2K2