Customer Reviews

Tallulah

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The album is a bit of a disappointment, especially when measured against "Liberty Belle," but it contains two of the best songs the Go-Betweens (or any other 80s band) ever did. "Right Here" and "Bye Bye Pride" are the GB's at an absolute peak -- melodies, harmonies, bittersweet exuberance, gut-wrenching singing, pop at its pinnacle. If you're lucky enough to hear them when you're young and impressionable or going through something momentous in your life, they will touch you indelibly. Nothing else on the album matches these two jewels (a few tracks sound a bit dated in an unfortunate, 80s kind of way), but it's still worth picking up. That said, the "Bellavista Terrace" best-of collection might be the place to start for the uninitiated. It's a little skimpy and I could quibble with the selection, but any disc that has "Right Here", "Bye Bye Pride," "Head Full of Steam", "Streets of Your Town" and "Spring Rain" is a must. If you want a coherent, consistent album, try "Liberty Belle", a true masterpiece.

Mixing the rhythmic stiffness and perverse amelodicism of the least user-friendly parts of "Spring Hill Fair" with their penchant for shameless beauty (that would dominate 1989's fine "16 Lovers Lane"), "Tallulah" is the Go-Betweens' toughest and finest work. "Spirit of a Vampyr" and "The House Jack Kerouac Built" detail personal anguish with angular music to match, but "Right Here," "Bye Bye Pride," and "Hope Then Strife" lace realistic depictions of relationships in-and-out-of-crisis (always the Go-Betweens' coup de grace) with absurdly magnificent chord changes. The additional instruments (viola/oboe -- thanks Amanda!) are the flourishes that make it even more memorable. Thanks for reissuing this!

The Go-Betweens were one of the few rock bands who just got better and better with each new album. After SEND ME A LULLABY, their charming but somewhat limp debut, all of their subsequent releases were major classic pop masterpieces. TALLULAH, the bands' fifth album, is one of their finest. The long standing lineup of Grant McLennan, Robert Forster, Lindy Morrison and Robert Vickers was augmented here by multi-instrumentalist Amanda Brown, who added immeasurably to the group's ever growing proficiency and fullness of sound.

A great place to start for Go-Betweens' neophytes, TALLULAH contains some of the band's strongest and most delightful songs. The glorious "Right Here" and "Bye Bye Pride" are the album's most melodic and pop oriented songs, of course, but all of the others (especially "Hope Then Strife", the desparing and haunting final track) provide almost perfect examples of the group's beguiling and quirky music. The only true problem child, "Cut It Out", has received a great deal of flack over the years but it has an absolutely terrific chorus that irrefutably breaks the song free from the constraints of mediocrity.

It may not be The Go-Betweens' ultimate masterpiece--that would arguably be 16 LOVERS LANE--but TALLULAH is full of great songs and comes highly recommended for all fans of lush, ravishingly beautiful guitar rock.

The Go Betweens has been in my heart since the 80's. I've never got the chance to get hold a copy of their recordings then due the fact that it was never released here. But now you can find it here on the rack of Tower Records!

Right here and Bye bye pride were just two of the songs which remind me of my high school days. The other tracks were a breath of fresh air and introduced me songs i've never heard off from The Go Betweens.

Being merely fifteen, the go-betweens were before my time. however, i recently got this album and i am in love with it. i dont love it, i am in love with it. even my tonedeaf seven year old brother appreciates hope then strife, stating that it was his favourite song, along with bigmouth strikes again, by the smiths. bye bye pride could be one of my favourite songs ever, and i dont get tired of this album. buy, buy, BUY!!!

I put this up there, way up there, in the GBs canon. Probably 3rd, behind "Oceans" and, what I believe is the consensus choice for absolute best in the catalog, "16 LL"...I know some (perfectly reasonable) GBs fans would put "Liberty Belle" ahead of this, and a fine record it is indeed. But this one, I dunno, something about the charm of it, the (admittedly flawed) production, the songs, the fact that this was the first record I personally heard by them, combine to give it that certain cache, that special something....

It was, I believe, a special time in the GBs history: they had just added Amanda Brown as a fifth, basically utility, player. After spending the rest of their history, up until then, as a four piece. And, she had a salubrious effect...not that there was anything wrong with their sound, but she simultaneously added depth, while lightening it up...and provided a lot of variety and richness to their arrangements that wasn't there before...

Some of the alltime great GB tunes, here, that's for sure, I mean c'mon, "Right Here", "Bye Bye Pride", "Clarke Sisters" and "House that Jack Kerouac Built"" on one record? It is, as they say, an embarrassment of riches...

No, no, no stop you evil producer!!! "Tallulah"]comes oh so close to being a pop masterpiece, however the quest for chart acceptance resulted in some utterly hideous production. If you can get over this flaw and a few other little rhythmic and vocal problems here and there you may really enjoy this record. Track breakdown:

1. Right Here; This is one of Grant's most obvious attempts at a chart hit and whilst it sounds a little cheesy and very dated the melodies and vocal sentiments are undeniably beautiful.

2. You Tell Me: Forster's first track may not be one of his finest, however some of the lyrics are great interesting.

3. Someone Else's Wife: This had real potential. There is a nice atmosphere at work here and Brown's violin playing is quite stunning, however Grant's vocals just don't seem to work (he is more shouting than actually singing in a pleasant key). Flawed but enjoyable.

4. I Just Get Caught Out: Forster has a stab at a more straight forward pop song and it works quite well.

5. Cut It Out: This is probably their most cheesy song, however the female vocals that kick in during the chorus are quite beautiful.

6. The House That Jack Kerouac Built: The record really starts at shine with this Forster penned number. The vocals and lyrics are superb ("in a darkened cinema I'll give you pleasure in the stalls") and the arrangement has a nice jarring yet beautiful quality to it.

7. Bye Bye Pride: With track 7 we reach one of the finest pop moments they would create. Everything on this track is utterly perfect. Gorgeous vocals from Grant and Amanda, lovely melodies, introspective lyrics and some great woodwind to back it up. This along with "Cattle and Cane" is easily Grant's finest moment.

8. Spirit Of A Vampyre: Another fine Forster number that contains some nice reflective lyrics and a suitably rockier edge.

9. The Clarke Sisters: This remains my favourite album track. The subtle production, emotive vocals and gorgeous arrangement work perfectly. A fascinating character sketch and one of Forster's finest songs.

10. Hope Then Strife: A suitable way to end the record. There are a few little vocal moments that don't quite work here, however with better production this had potential to be one of Grant's best moments.

A flawed masterpiece if there ever was one!

Krokus was the first concert that I ever went to and this concert is a great reminder about how cheesy a band can be but make kick a** music. Good stuff.

Two really great songs on this album (Right Here and Bye Bye Pride) but for the most part I did not find this album to live up to the hype that I've heard about the Go-Betweens......I will definitely buy another album, however....maybe Liberty Belle or 1978-90.....too bad its an import and very expensive

After a run of 3 phenomenal records, from "Before Hollywood" through their masterpiece "Liberty Belle," one must've wondered how on earth the Go-Betweens could top that. Unfortunately, they didn't, and "Tallulah" suffers by comparison. The main problem is inconsistency, but "Tallulah" is also marred by a strangely muddy production and an apparent desire to streamline their sound for commercial acceptance. Despite that, "Tallulah" is by no means a complete failure. In fact, it contains a number of excellent tunes, bolstered by the permanent addition of Amanda Brown on oboe and violin.

"Tallulah" contains what many diehard fans site as the worst Go-Betweens song ever: "Cut it Out." Built around a cheesy, trite blues riff, the song is shackled to a booming late 80s dance beat (!) while tacky, late-80s style synths snake in and out. That the tune still manages a catchy and lush chorus is a tribute to the band's talents, but it's still "Tallulah's" most notable scar. Other songs seem like relatively weak stabs at mainstream acceptance, like McLennan's "Bye Bye Pride," which veers a wee bit too close to MOR for comfort (nearly coming off like some late 80s, bombastic Simple Minds epic). Lead off track "Right Here" isn't bad, but there's something a bit too pleasant and agreeable about it to make it truly noteworthy.

Fortunately, the rest of the album is actually quite good. Forster offers a few great, upbeat tunes with the simple but engaging "Then You Tell Me" and the driving "I Just Get Caught Out." These are maturely balanced by the beautiful, baroque, moody angst of "House Jack Kerouac Build" and the melancholy "Clarke Sisters" (both of which prominently feature Amanda Brown's violin). McLennan's brilliant, achingly bitter "Someone Else's Wife" builds up from a sad, appropriately spare verse to a sweeping, sophisticated, 70s soul-styled chorus.

Though it's not their best, "Tallulah," still has plenty going for it to warrant attention. Furthermore, the 2-disc remastered version is the one to get as it lifts "Tallulah" out of the muck, freeing it from its gritty, flawed production and exposing new details with greatly improved sonic clarity.