Robert Forster- Strawberries (Tapete')
Aussie legend Forster (who was one half of the brilliant Go-Betweens with Grant McLennan, who sadly passed in 2006) is still out there on the battlefield, releasing terrific records and, more importantly, still taking real chances in songwriting.
After his previous record, 2023's The Candle and the Flame (which focused heavily on his wife Karin's illness), Forster is back and seems in a more playful mood.
For Strawberries, he headed over to Sweden and recorded with Peter Moren of Peter, Bjorn and John, and these two seem to be a match made in heaven. With a loose pick-up Swedish band of guitar/bass/drum and occasionally keyboards and sax, Forster meanders through 8 classic cuts as only he can do.
Like all Forster records, you'll get moods and imagination of every kind, from the playful tracks to swoony "Breakfast on the Train" (one of his best ever, IMO) to the lush piano balled "Such A Shame" to the knuckle-down rock/pop of "Good to Cry," he covers it all on here.
They named a bridge in the Go-Betweens' hometown of Brisbane, but how about going a step further and naming a train after RF. Perhaps the Forster Express, as this guy is constantly on the move and always arrives on time. You'll love Strawberries, I sure do.
www.robertforster.bandcamp.com
www.tapeterecords.de
