The Go-Betweens / G Stands for Go-Betweens limited box set

i’d like all the songs not on lps. the early singles and all b sides .

It’s available at HMV Japan, for those still looking for it. I have the lovely doubles on CD from awhile back, so I don’t see myself forking out for this, but it is a nice-looking box, no question!

I pre-ordered from Barnes & Noble who then really messed me around. On the US day of release (Feb 3rd) I phoned Best Buy and was told they had it in stock for immediate delivery. I received it 2 days later and it really is gorgeous. Barnes & Noble continued pushing back the availability date and I cancelled my order with them. Anyway, it’s possible that Best Buy may have it still.

My beef with this whole thing is that Domino seem to be in the business of creating highly desirable “collectibles” that sell out immediately and become virtually impossible to get for most devoted fans. They did the same with the Triffids. Although I commend them for their excellent reissues of the classic Triffids albums and the brilliant “Beautiful Waste” compilation, has anybody out there even seen a copy of the 10 disc rarities collection? I’d give my right arm for a copy, but since Domino made a mere 1000 for worldwide distribution, I’m more likely to find the Holy Grail on e-bay!

So Domino…thanks for re-releasing some incredible music from criminally overlooked bands, but PLEASE release more copies of the boxed sets, or make the songs in those boxed sets at least available for download so more true fans can get hold of what’s most important…not glossy books and posters, but the actual music!

I preordered with Amazon US…now they’ve pushed back the delivery date to “unknown”. Has anyone received the Amazon preorder??

Cheers Colm.

Ordered with amazon.ca but it now says it takes 1-3 weeks so I’m not sure you’d have been any better off.

Hi Paul

I have pre-order with amazon.de but it now appears to be out of stock.
I hope they will able to send it. I was going to go with amazon.ca but was afraid of custom duties between Canada and Ireland.

Wish I pre-ordered with Domino!!!

Did some hunting yesterday and found in the US Barnes and Noble still has copies available. For how long is up in the air:

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/g-stands-for-go-betweens-vol-1-the-go-betweens/28443637?ean=887830008938

Hi Gareth

I think so – on previous releases, Bachelor Kisses was down in volume – I think they’ve now corrected it – I’ll double check.

Just for the record – not all the extra material has been remastered from source tapes. The Able Label stuff and the ‘Very Quick on the Eye’ material is all sourced from Vinyl.

Great stuff, Justin. They’re my favourite band but the price has put me off…until now. One question: the cd of ‘Spring Hill Fair’ from 10 years or so ago has a fault on ‘Bachelor Kisses’. I recall it being quieter (or louder?) than the rest of the album. Have they fixed that on this release?

Hopefully we’ll get a new version of ‘Oceans Apart’ in the future that removes the awful distortion and compression. It’s the worst sounding album I’ve heard.

I was undecided for a long time. The vinyl put me off (I don’t have a turntable, thus making them redundant). I eventually capitualated and bought one from domino on the last day of the deadline.

Firstly, the remastered LPs which I have downloaded as wav files and burnt on to cd. These sound lovely – more depth, clarity and punch. Particularly the first 2 lp’s. I’m very pleased with those as I have to admit I wasn’t completely satisfied with the sound of SMAL and BH from the previous 2002 remasters.

The bonus cd’s contain a wealth of great songs – many of them unreleased. The first 2 cd’s are fine – sonic improvements for the ‘lost album’ material (but they were low fidelity recordings to start with). I prefer the second Teekman session with tracks like ‘I am an architect’ and ‘Big sleeping city’ – mostly unreleased. The second unreleased cd is probably the least interesting, but even so – tracks like ‘I know why’ and ‘Circle you’ are good additions.

I don’t like Live cd’s as a rule, but the Mosman Hotel disc is fantastic. Very taut performances – the clarity is so good that they sound like studio recordings – great versions of well-known songs and versions of obscurities like ‘Undo what you did’ which sound excellent.

The final disc is my favourite. There is a great early single version of Man o’sand which runs perfectly into Newton Told me and on into the released version of Man o’sand. Somehow it works – and the sound quality is superb. Significantly better than on previous releases in my opinion. There are some lovely demos from Spring Hill Fair here as well. Some previously released, some not. Finally, we get the release of the b-sides Just a king in mirrors and Rare breed for the first time – again the sound quality is superb. And so on…

I was very undecided for a long time, but I’m now very happy I bought the box – the booklet is also very well written and it is clear that a lot of thought and attention has gone into this package.

I’ve chucked all this down because I think that if you love the band, you will really enjoy the box. The downloads of the albums are a very component for me – you can download them in mp3 320, wav 16 bit, wav 24 bit. All of the 8 cd’s are available for download. It would be nice to have the lp’s as physical cd’s, but that is about my only criticism.

Fair point

If you just wanted the CDs would it not be possible to buy the set then sell on the unwanted LPs on ebay?

I’m pretty upset about it also. I dropped quite a bit of money on the 2 disc reissues several years ago, but there are many rarities on the CD’s in this set not on those discs. Vinyl has no appeal to me, and the download cards are pointless as I’m satisfied with the mastering on the previous CD’s. So basically I’m having to decide between dropping $160 for about 30 songs I won’t be able to get elsewhere or just not owning them depsite GB being one of my favorite bands of the 80’s (alongside aussie comtemporaries the Church).

Thanks for the info everyone.

This new obsession with vinyl is a drag. But very lucrative I’m sure.

I agree with Charles. I bought The Go Betweens albums on vinyl during the 1980s. I don’t want or need reissued LPs. The CDs would be fine on their own.

Chucky – by ‘getting screwed’, I simply mean being asked to re-buy what I already have (the vinyl) to get what I don’t have (the rarities CD’s). As the vinyl will account for the vast majority of the price / size / & weight – how can this be described as either a good deal financially or aesthetically?!

Even the contents of the rarities CD’s themselves seem rather haphazard, eg why isn’t there a complete Radio Sessions set from the ’78-’84 era? Each album should have been repackaged as a superior ‘deluxe’ version of the 2CD sets from 10-15 years ago, incorporating all the singles / b-sides / contemporaneous radio sessions / unreleased tracks / demos / album session outtakes / a full live show from each LP era. (Even DVD’s for videos / TV / live appearances where available.)

The Beggars Banquet Box Sets for The Fall (‘The Wonderful And Frightening World Of The Fall’ / ‘This Nations Saving Grace’) or the 2CD+DVD sets for The Jesus And Mary Chain and Suede – would have made a good template. Then add in the quality ‘feel’ and ‘build quality’ of Dylan’s ‘Basement Tapes’, or the Beatles ‘Mono’ Box or Numero Group’s Bedhead box and you’d really have something befitting the group. And this could even accommodate (a smaller version) of what’s included in the book you rave about. (& separate vinyl standalone reissues for those who CHOOSE!).

Actually, the GB’s Beggars era is up next – maybe there’s hope if they take on the project rather than licence to Domino to compile another HUGE white elephant of a box!

Agree with Charles – if you don’t want a load of vinyl you won’t play, this isn’t appealing. CDs on their own and I’d buy it.
Vinyl/CD combos don’t appeal to me, for a start they take up too much space!

Rob C – you’re right. I won’t be buying this box set in it’s present form. I’m a long time fan (jeez, since hearing Cattle & Cane on the radio when it was the new single. And going out THAT DAY to buy it.) Therefore I already have all the vinyl they ever released (short of the Lee Remick and People Say original 7″-s – they were rare even then!) and I don’t want another big ugly heavy box set to sit useslessly on the shelf. And two more to follow! A GB’s box should be like some exquisite Faberge egg…
I just want those rarities CD’s (and maybe one for the ‘First Five Singles’ would be handy too). Looks like long term fans are getting screwed again. Wish this had been put together before the vinyl revival…
(Anyhow, I find it hard to listen to them since Grant’s death. Still can’t get over that. No other musician’s death has affected me like that, but they were such an intrinsic part of my life growing up. They were THE band for my circle of friends, believe it or not, and we all kinda idolised them. Even Vickers leaving was hard to get over. He was so perfect for the GB’s. And they were decidedly not ‘just another band’ who could just replace members. Not to me anyway. As LP Hartley said in the opening line of a novel (whose title I don’t need to mention); “the past is a foreign country. They do things differently there”.

Beautiful set, and much needed. But why not release the Cds as a box set in their own right? It seems very unfair for those who don’t buy vinyl. You would think with the various ways music can reach the fan that there would be a way to appease those of us who are only interested in buying what we don’t have and not be put in a position to buy what we already have to get what we don’t have.

There’s a list of retailers selling the box on http://www.go-betweens.net, maybe you could try Rocking Horse?

Isn’t it available on redeye.com.au?

Such a shame it’s not on sale on Australia. I live in the city where The GB’s are from and I can’t buy this beautiful box set here.