The Go-Betweens

When Beggars Banquet reissued the Go-Betweens catalog in 2002, each album was remastered and repackaged with a bonus disc of rarities -- except, inexplicably, 16 Lovers Lane. In 2004 Bernard MacMahon's fine Lo-Max label (and Jet Set in the U.S.) has finally set the record straight and given this classic of 1980s Aussie pop (see original review for 16 Lovers Lane) the treatment it deserves. The band's final recording is delivered in stellar slipcased, double-disc form, utterly remastered by Bill Inglot and Dave Schultz, in a handsome package loaded with lyrics, photos, and utterly cool, unabashedly fan-boy liner notes by Andrew Male. And while the brilliant sonics and killer box is something to write home about, it's the bonus disc that is the real prize for fans. The actual bonus material begins at the end of disc one, where, tacked on to the album is a CD-Rom section with two different videos for "Streets of Your Town," and one for "Was There Anything I Could Do?." Disc Two contains ten cuts, beginning with the single version of "Love Goes On" (remixed by Tony Visconti). Unreleased session cuts like "Wait Until June," "Casanova's Last Words," "Mexican Postcard," and "Rock and Roll Friend" didn't make the album cut, but were close to finished versions and are presented here regally. Demos of three other songs, "You Won't Find It Again," "Apples in Bed," and "Head Over Heels" -- sung and played by only Grant McLennan and Robert Forster on acoustic guitars -- are stunning, naked moments that echo the most vulnerable moments on the album itself. Add to this a live version of "Running the Risk of Losing You," recorded during the band's last performance at a bar in Sydney, and a wonderfully rough, intimate version of Bob Dylan's "You're a Big Girl Now," recorded at McCabe's Guitar Shop in Santa Monica in 1988. Played by Forster, McLennan, and violinist Amanda Brown, it is unplugged, nearly unmic'ed. Forster's vocal is wracked with emotion. This set is the boss treatment, in fact the only fitting treatment for 16 Lovers Lane, one of the greatest pop records of all time, even if most of the world doesn't know it yet. Fans will have to have this, but even more, those interested in checking out what all the fuss is about the Go-Betweens and this album in particular could be no better-served than by this platter as an introduction. ~ Thom Jurek, All Music Guide