Let us now praise...

...The Go-Betweens. Robert Forster's The Evangelist is one of my favorite CD's of the year. (Monitor Mix)

After the performance, we were lucky enough to meet them. We ended up back at the Phoenix Hotel, half of us on mattresses, the rest of us on the floor, guitars and beers out. I asked Grant to teach me The Go-Betweens' song "Love Goes On," and I played the chords while he sang. I cannot overstate the generosity of this moment. Later that night, I told Robert that my band's album The Hot Rock -- or at least my own writing and guitar playing on it -- was inspired completely by their music. Before The Go-Betweens, I never thought that delicacy could wield sharp knives.