The Friends of Rachel Worth is the seventh album by Brisbane indie band The Go-Betweens, released in 2000, 12 years after their sixth, 16 Lovers Lane. For this album, Robert Forster and Grant McLennan were joined by all members of American indie rock bands Sleater-Kinney and Quasi as well as new bassist Adele Pickvance. The album was recorded in Portland, Oregon at Jackpot! Recording Studio by Larry Crane.
| The Friends of Rachel Worth | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 16 September 2000 | |||
| Recorded | February 2000 | |||
| Studio | Jackpot! Recording Studio, Portland, Oregon | |||
| Genre | Indie rock | |||
| Length | 39:49 | |||
| Label | W. Minc (Australia) Circus (UK) Clearspot (Germany) Jetset (US) | |||
| Producer | The Go-Betweens | |||
| The Go-Betweens chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Singles from The Friends of Rachel Worth | ||||
| ||||
McLennan said, "Rachel felt really natural – it wasn't like Robert and I had separate managers or any of that industry bullshit. We'd always wanted to record in America, too, so that was a real dream. I think it has a really mysterious, otherworldly, 'lost' feel to it."[1]
Reception edit
| Aggregate scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Metacritic | 77/100[2] |
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |    [3] |
| Consumer Guide | A[4] |
| Entertainment Weekly | B+[5] |
| The Guardian | [6] |
| Melody Maker | [7] |
| NME | 8/10[8] |
| Pitchfork | 6.5/10[9] |
| Rolling Stone | [10] |
| Spin | 8/10[11] |
| Uncut | [12] |
The Friends of Rachel Worth received generally positive critical reviews. It holds a score of 77 out of 100 on the review aggregator website Metacritic, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[2]
Track listing edit
All music by Robert Forster and Grant McLennan.
- "Magic in Here" (lyrics, McLennan) – 3:52
- "Spirit" (lyrics, Forster) – 3:59
- "The Clock" (lyrics, McLennan) – 4:06
- "German Farmhouse" (lyrics, Forster) – 3:51
- "He Lives My Life" (lyrics, Forster) – 3:58
- "Heart and Home" (lyrics, McLennan) – 3:13
- "Surfing Magazines" (lyrics, Forster) – 4:34
- "Orpheus Beach" (lyrics, McLennan) – 4:48
- "Going Blind" (lyrics, McLennan) – 2:56
- "When She Sang About Angels" (lyrics, Forster) – 4:31
Personnel edit
- The Go-Betweens
- Grant McLennan – vocals, guitar
- Robert Forster – vocals, guitar, organ
- Adele Pickvance – bass, vocals
- Janet Weiss – drums, vocals
- Sam Coomes – keyboards
- Additional personnel
- Carrie Brownstein – guitar on "Going Blind"
- Corin Tucker – vocals on "Going Blind"
- Brent Arnold – cello
- Jen Chorowhas – violin
References edit
- ^ Mills, Fred (June 2005). "The Go-Betweens: Their Back Pages". Harp. Retrieved 12 June 2018 – via Rock's Backpages.
- ^ a b "Friends of Rachel Worth by The Go-Betweens Reviews and Tracks". Metacritic. Retrieved 19 September 2021.
- ^ Horowitz, Hal. "The Friends of Rachel Worth – The Go-Betweens". AllMusic. Retrieved 30 October 2016.
- ^ Christgau, Robert. "The Go-Betweens: The Friends of Rachel Worth". robertchristgau.com. Retrieved 28 April 2016.
- ^ Brunner, Rob (6 October 2000). "Music Review: 'The Friends of Rachel Worth'". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 30 October 2016.
- ^ Costa, Maddy (22 September 2000). "The Go-Betweens: The Friends of Rachel Worth (Circus)". The Guardian. Retrieved 30 October 2016.
- ^ "The Go-Betweens: The Friends of Rachel Worth". Melody Maker. 4–10 October 2000. p. 49.
- ^ Robinson, John (15 September 2000). "The Go-Betweens – The Friends Of Rachel Worth". NME. Archived from the original on 17 October 2000. Retrieved 7 June 2019.
- ^ Zamula, Meg (19 September 2000). "The Go-Betweens: The Friends of Rachel Worth". Pitchfork. Retrieved 30 October 2016.
- ^ George-Warren, Holly (14 September 2000). "The Go-Betweens: The Friends Of Rachel Worth". Rolling Stone. No. 849. p. 174. Archived from the original on 29 September 2004. Retrieved 18 April 2019.
- ^ Weisbard, Eric (October 2000). "The Go-Betweens: The Friends of Rachel Worth". Spin. Vol. 16, no. 10. pp. 174–175. Retrieved 30 October 2016.
- ^ Thackray, Jerry (October 2000). "The Go-Betweens: The Friends of Rachel Worth". Uncut. No. 41. p. 94.