The Go Betweens : Lee Remick
After just six weeks of practice, two gigs, and yet to find a drummer, cinephiles Robert Forster and Grant McLennan entered Brisbane's Bruce Window Studios as The Go-Betweens. It was here that The Saints had recorded "I'm Stranded" a year or so earlier.
Looking back in the memoir Grant and I, Forster writes:
The choice of songs was important; this could be the only record we ever made. Our models were The Velvets, The Doors and Roxy Music, groups capable of pop and arty adventure. "Lee Remick" and "Karen" covered that.
Four hours later, the duo headed to the parking lot with a master tape. They sent the tape off to a Sydney processing plant . In September they were presented with the first copies of their single. Copies were sent to Lee Remick, Roger McGuinn of The Byrds, Lenny Kaye ( of Nuggets and the Patti Smith Group fame) as well as Beserkley UK who wanted to hear more.
For a few weeks we walked around like kings.
Looking back, "Lee Remick" has a bit of a novelty song feel to it. Also, without the benefit of Wikipedia, Forster wrongly asserts she came from Ireland ( instead of Quincy, Mass) . But since he follows up with "She's very beautiful/ I come from Brisbane/ And I'm quite plain" I'm not going to tell him.
"Karen" would make Lloyd Cole blush with its literary references, but as Forster reminds eveyrone below, he was only 20 years old.
The Go-Betweens were just getting started. Before they were done, they would become my favorite band.
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