The Go-Betweens are one of the most beloved and influential Australian groups of all-time and were the quintessential cult band. Throughout their hugely acclaimed career they sustained an unparalleled artistic consistency which year by year matched the very best of their contemporaries.

We are pleased announce that their three Beggars Banquet albums will be made available individually on vinyl for the first time in over 30 years. The records were remastered in 2019 for the second volume of Domino’s G Stands For Go-Betweens Anthology, and will also be available on cd.

The albums were recorded in what could be called the band's ‘London Years' - when they lived and recorded in the city. Liberty Belle and the Black Diamond Express (1986) and Tallulah (1987) are studio albums, while Fountains Of Youth, catches the group in imperious form at the Town and Country Club in May 1987. Many of the songs for 16 Lovers Lane (1988) were written at this time, before the band returned to Sydney to record the album. The majestic sun-filled “Streets Of Your Town” was the first single off the record.

Formed in Brisbane in 1978, Grant McLennan and Robert Forster were two Queensland University students with a passion for films, mid-Sixties Bob Dylan and the New York punk scene. They both sang, played guitar, and wrote songs. The set up of the band with two independent singer-songwriters at the helm was an unusual one, but in this case, it worked beautifully. Robert's edgy, dark romantic compositions were perfectly balanced by Grant's highly melodic, pop poetic contributions.

Through a set of very strong singles, beginning in 1978 with John Peel favorite, "Lee Remick/Karen”, the band were signed to Rough Trade, beginning their London period with the post-punk opus Before Hollywood (1983). Lindy Morrison had joined the group on drums, and shortly after came Robert Vickers (bass) and Amanda Brown (violin, oboe, vocals) - creating a band that sounded and looked like no other on the planet. John Willsteed (bass, guitar) joined the band in 1988 for 16 Lovers Lane.

The Go-Betweens existed in and out of time - widespread fame may have alluded them, but the ability to make great records didn't. Their sound, songs, and image, have been a huge inspiration to generations of bands and fans alike. The Beggars Banquet albums lie at the heart of this appreciation.

Liberty Belle and the Black Diamond Express (1986)
This was the fourth album by The Go-Betweens. Record Collector called it “one of the greatest albums of the decade” and Uncut wrote that “everything comes together with the perfect fourth album”. Drummer Lindy Morrison said "We produced this ourselves and it's got the best songs, and I think every single song is a classic.” The band entered the studio determined to create the album they envisioned. Forster later wrote, "If this was to be our last shot, it had to be on our terms. There'd be no drum machines, no piecemeal recording, no acquiescence to higher authority. Our intention was to expand on the crisp, woody sound of Before Hollywood, to include a grander, more exotic range of instrumentation."

Tallulah (1987)
On the band’s fifth album, they added multi-instrumentalist Amanda Brown, and she broadened their sound and gave it more drama. The album is a pivotal one in their discography and sits as a stepping-stone between their early era, and their more richly textured later work. Paste Magazine included it in their list of the best new-wave albums and said that it features “several signature works by the group’s chief writers, most notably McLennan’s infectiously chorused shoulda-been-hits “Right Here” and “Bye Bye Pride,” as well as such characteristically edgy Forster compositions as the undertowing “House That Jack Kerouac Built” and “The Clarke Sisters,” a haunting character study of spinsters that perfectly captures its author’s eye for detail.”

16 Lovers Lane (1988)
This was the band’s sixth album, and Record Collector noted that it’s “almost universally acknowledged as The Go-Betweens finest hour” – and it’s been referred to as “the indie Rumours”. The ten beautiful songs on this album are all love songs and it’s been called a piece of “romantic artistry”. Legendary music critic Robert Christgau called it "the straightest and catchiest bunch of love songs they've ever produced" and the album was included in the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die. Forster described the album as, "the perfect combination between London melancholy and Sydney sunshine.”

Fountains Of Youth (Live at the Town and Country Club) (2020)
Recorded professionally in May 1987, this stunning live set was captured right before the release of Tallulah. About it, Uncut said that it “provides detailed evidence of the band’s growing confidence and continuously refined songwriting”. Robert Forster noted that “This show is almost certainly the only performance of The Go-Betweens’ career that was captured on 24-track, 2-inch analog tape. The recording was made from a mobile recording truck parked beside the venue’s stage door….Our intentions for the recording heavily influenced the way we approached our performance. What you are hearing is not a typical Go-Betweens show. This is a one off - and it manifests itself in one big way. The set list. Given this opportunity to catalogue over four sides of vinyl, we took a more adventurous course regarding ‘the set’. What we have, is not only a one-off recording, but a one-off show. And some of the best moments comes from our wild intent.”

In recent years, the Go-Betweens lore has grown with a 2017 documentary film, career spanning box sets, tribute concerts and books. They have even had a bridge in Brisbane named after them. They are ripe for re-discovery and renewed appreciation, and we are honored to help grow their legacy.