Customer Reviews

Watershed

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

 

 

Melodic, atmospheric, timeless ... it's a nice listen. Produced by Dave Dobbyn.

8 May, 2006: Grant McLennan, singer-songwriter with legendary Australian group the Go-Betweens, has died in Australia. He was 48.

McLennan died in his sleep at his home in Brisbane. It is thought that he suffered a heart attack.

Grant McLennan (see also G.W. McLennan) -- half (with Robert Forster) of the songwriting team of the defunct Go-Betweens -- has four 5-star albums that virtually NO one has heard of. What a shame! There isn't a bad track on any of his albums, and this early album is not quite as good as the last two (Horsebreaker Star, In Your Bright Ray), but his tunes always ring true, and his rhymes and lyrics never fail to amuse (and, occasionally, confuse). Buy the entire set!

I can't believe this disc is 10 years old! It seems like just yesterday that I bought it.

I love Grant McLennan's songwriting style. In his songs he juxtaposes words and images in a very unique, almost cinematic way. His music is straightforward and vibrantly produced and played. I picture him as a perpetually disappointed romantic, but without the dark edges of a total cynic.

I loved this album from the moment I bought it, and it is still a desert island disc. His other solo albums are also excellent.

Some day I'd like to ask him why he's wearing a SF 49ers cap on the album cover!

I was never what you could call a huge Go-Betweens fan. A greatest hits disc did me just fine because each of their albums seemed to have about two songs that I really liked. The rest seemed like passable filler. I figured the same would apply for the Go-Between's frontman Grant McLennan's solo material. I got a copy of Horsebreaker Star and was pleasantly surprised to like quite a few songs there. Then I got this disc, Watershed, and was blown away! Hardly anyone knows this album exists which is a huge shame. There really isn't a bad song on it while several are stunning. "When Word Gets Around", "Easy Come Easy Go", "Putting the Wheels Back On", and "Sally's Revolution" should have gotten plenty of radio airplay if most American radio stations had any sense for fun, quality music.

The bottom line: BUY THIS DISC no matter how much or how little you know about GM or the Go-Betweens! It really is a fine disc with Grant's guitar and intelligent songwriting making this a great (and often quite amusing) body of work.

Grant Mclennan's first solo effort, outside of the Go-Betweens, is quite impressive 12 years after its first release. Mclennan's songwriting and melodics are exquisite, and falls under the same vein as Glenn Tilbrook, Neil Finn, and possibly Graham Parker as a variety of songwriters that tend to add a little poetics and narrative within a catchy pop tune - check out the single off the album, "Easy Come Easy Go."

However, Watershed has a few elements that sound outdated, such as the instrumentation (the drums sound like a drum machine), and the production, which keeps its late 1980s and early 1990s sound. I wasn't quite interested in "Putting The Wheels Back On" with its pseudo-dance beat vibe. Despite that aspect, the album stands out lyrically and melodically with the song "Haven't Been a Fool." In addition, Mclennan attempts at adding a little country twang with "Just Get That Straight." This is a record that is definitely great while driving on road trips with the windows or top rolled down. So turn it up!