Robert Forster

Robert Derwent Garth Forster (born 29 June 1957) is an Australian singer-songwriter, guitarist and music critic. In December 1977 he co-founded an indie rock group, the Go-Betweens, with fellow musician Grant McLennan. In 1980, Lindy Morrison joined the group on drums and backing vocals, and by 1981 Forster and Morrison were also lovers. In 1988, "Streets of Your Town", co-written by McLennan and Forster, became the band's highest-charting hit in both Australia and the United Kingdom. The follow-up single, "Was There Anything I Could Do?", was a number-16 hit on the Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart in the United States. In December 1989, after recording six albums, the Go-Betweens disbanded. Forster and Morrison had separated as a couple earlier, and Forster began his solo music career from 1990.

Forster's solo studio albums are Danger in the Past (1990), Calling from a Country Phone (1993), I Had a New York Girlfriend (1995), Warm Nights (1996), The Evangelist (2008), Songs To Play (2015), Inferno (2019), The Candle and the Flame (2023) and Strawberries (2025). AllMusic's Stewart Mason described him as having "a knack for crafty pop songs along with the brooding ballads he contributed to the Go-Betweens' albums, and his solo career has shown a healthy mix of the two styles". From 2000 to 2006, the Go-Betweens reformed and issued three more studio albums before Grant McLennan died on 6 May 2006, of a heart attack. In May 2001 "Cattle and Cane", from the Go-Between's Before Hollywood (1983), was selected by Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA) as one of the Top 30 Australian songs of all time. In 2008, 16 Lovers Lane (1988) was highlighted on Special Broadcasting Service (SBS) TV's The Great Australian Albums series as a classic example of 1980s rock music. Forster began writing as a music critic in 2005 for national current affairs magazine The Monthly and a columnist for its sister publication The Saturday Paper in 2014.

For his debut solo album, Danger in the Past, Forster was backed on vocals by Karin Bäumler of German pop group Baby You Know. In the early 1990s Forster and Bäumler married; the couple has two children.

A portrait of Forster, by the artist known as what, won the 2019 Doug Moran National Portrait Prize.

Biography Robert Derwent Garth Forster was born on 29 June 1957 and grew up in Brisbane.

Solo career alt=Robert Forster performing at King George, Cologne (Germany), on 10 November 2017. Robert Forster performing at King George, Cologne (Germany), on 10 November 2017.In July 2007, Forster resumed his solo music career with live performances over four nights at the Queensland Music Festival. He picked three songs co-written with McLennan, including "Demon Days", which is the last track the pair wrote together, and recorded them alongside his own material for his first solo album in 11 years, The Evangelist, which was released on 26 April 2008 through Yep Roc Records.

Music journalism Since May 2005, Forster has had a parallel career as a music critic, he began writing for the Australian magazine, The Monthly and its sister publication The Saturday Paper in 2014.

Released: 1996 Label: Beggars Banquet Format: CD, LP

Released: 2008 Label: Capitol Format: CD, LP, digital

Released: 2015 Label: Tapete Format: CD, LP, digital

Released: 2019 Label: Tapete Format: CD, LP, digital

Released: 3 February 2023 Label: EMI Music Australia Format: CD, LP, digital

Released: 23 May 2025 Label: Tapete Records Format: CD, LP, digital

Compilation albums Title Details Intermission: The Best of the Solo Recordings 1990-1997 (with Grant McLennan) Released: 2007 Label: Beggars Banquet / EMI Format: CD, Cassette

Other appearances Songs for the Young at Heart (2007) – contributed "Uncle Sigmund's Clockwork Storybook" I'm Your Fan: The Songs of Leonard Cohen (1991) – contributed "Tower of Song"

With Go-Betweens See The Go-Betweens

Filmography Prüfstand VII as Ferryman (2001) Big Gold Dream (documentary) as narrator (2015)

Awards ARIA Music Awards The ARIA Music Awards is an annual awards ceremony held by the Australian Recording Industry Association. They commenced in 1987. 2008 The Evangelist Best Adult Contemporary Album 2016 Songs to Play Best Adult Contemporary Album Queensland Music Awards The Queensland Music Awards (previously known as Q Song Awards) are annual awards celebrating Queensland, Australia's brightest emerging artists and established legends. They commenced in 2006.

(wins only) 2008 "From Ghost Town" Published song of the Year