Time was good to the Go-Betweens: it vindicated them. They were not a popular group, but they were very much loved, and that was far more important. The gospel had spread. There were substantial inducements for the two songwriters to work together again – not least their faltering solo careers – and after they toured as a duo to promote a best-of release, there was a sense of inevitability that a second act was imminent, especially when both songwriters returned to live in Brisbane.

HERE'S THE FIRST thing you should know about Grant McLennan: he wasn't a genius. Neither is his friend and songwriting partner Robert Forster, with whom he formed the Go-Betweens in late 1977. Rather, both were artisans of the first order: talented songwriters who worked diligently at their craft and believed completely in the value of what they were doing. Their aesthetics were finely tuned and they understood – first intuitively, then by experience – what it took to make great records.