Grant McLennan, circa 1994
Canadian singer-songwriter Allister Thompson — who has recorded as The Gateless Gate, Twilight Fields and Khan Tengri — later this month will release a tribute to Grant McLennan, a collection of some of Thompson’s favorite songs written by the late Go-Betweens co-founder.
The album, No Reason to Cry: Songs by Grant McLennan, features Thompson performing 11 songs written by McLennan from his time in the Australian band, his solo career and his Jack Frost collaboration with The Church’s Steve Kilbey. The album, with new arrangements of the material by Thompson, is due out Feb. 20.
Below, check out the music video for the lead-off track, Thompson’s cover of “Dusty In Here,” a song off the Go-Betweens’ 1983 album Before Hollywood.
Of the project, Thompson writes: “Grant McLennan died in 2006, and I remember well how sad I felt as a longtime admirer. In 2019, since I’d always felt an affinity with his work both as a listener and a player, I decided to record a cover version; that one song turned into 11, since they all just started coming to me.”
The album’s cover features a new portrait of McLennan that Thompson commissioned from artist Samantha Thompson.
McLennan died at age 48 of a heart attack, three albums into a Go-Betweens reunion with that band’s co-founder and co-singer/songwriter Robert Forster. With McLennan and Forster at the helm, the Go-Betweens released nine albums of guitar-based pop songs between 1981 and 2005.
Below, see the album’s tracklist, the video for “Dusty in Here” and stream two more songs from the project.
Allister Thompson, No Reason to Cry: Songs by Grant McLennan
1. “Dusty in Here”
2. “Horsebreaker Star”
3. “Bachelor Kisses”
4. “Cattle and Cane”
5. “Finding You”
6. “Lamp by Lamp”
7. “Black Mule”
8. “Things Will Change”
9. “Right Here”
10. “Quiet Heart”
11. “Providence”
PREVIOUSLY ON SLICING UP EYEBALLS
- 10-disc ‘G Stands For Go-Betweens Vol. 2’ to include unreleased recordings, live album
- The Go-Betweens’ Robert Forster to release new album ‘Inferno’ — hear the title track
- Robert Forster sets UK book tour for ‘Grant & I: Inside and Outside The Go-Betweens’
- Watch: The surviving Go-Betweens look back in trailer for new documentary ‘Right Here’
- Steve Kilbey releases 3-hour film documenting 1991 U.S. tour with Grant McLennan
- Vintage Video: The Go-Betweens on Australian TV show ‘Rock Arena’ — full 30-minute set
