The Go-Betweens Album: “78 'Til 79: The Lost Album”

Having just recieved this record today I've got to sit down and write a few words about it! An insight into the beginnings of a truly great band consisting of the previously released but hard to come by singles "Lee Remick" and "People Say" and nine other songs, the latter recorded in Roberts bedroom in Brisbane. Though poor in sound quality there is no hiding the warmth and charm in these songs. The Go Betweens were always more about personality than actual musical skills. That is not to say that the playing is bad on the contrary it sounds very tight and fresh but technique was never an issue. Personality and style was. What a rare quality!

This collection is worth owning for the excellent (even crackly!) 7" singles and their respective b-sides (plus "The Sound of Rain" which was to be their first UK single in '79) that bookend this CD, but the rest of the bedroom recordings will only appeal to the diehard fans. These "lost album" recordings do not make for a very pleasant listening, namely due to the crude 2-track quality which cuts out in several places. The songs are not very memorable, but they offer glimpses of where Grant McLennan and Robert Forster were heading with 1981's "Send Me a Lullaby".

A fabulous relic that's finally seeing the light of day, this release is made up of mostly home recordings made four years before the Go-Betweens recorded their first proper record. While the sound quality is of course a little grainy (it sounds about as good as most bootlegs), and on or two tracks the sound cuts out, the songs shine through the non-existant production value: all of them are clever, gorgeous pop songs. However, the best thing here is the inclusion of the first Go Betweens single, "Lee Remmick" and the b-side "Karen." These two songs are worth the ten bucks alone.

this is one of the greatest albums i have ever heard by the go-betweens (or anyone for that matter). the recordings are raw and honest, the songs make you want to sing along. everything else i have heard by this band sounds nothing like the lost album. i don't know why those other people who reviewed this album are whining about the sound of the recording. if you love retro-rock and roll garagy pop songs, this one is for you!

This is a wonderful first time pop album. To see the Go-betweens as very young men playing in their apartment while knowing their long musical history culminating in Grant McClennan's death is very touching. These two are true artists.