Jenny Watson (b. 1951)  is a local Melburnian artist.  During her informative years in the 1970s, Watson like many other Melburnians’  spent many hours at the iconic Crystal Ballroom to hear their greatest local-grown bands play.

After making a series of portraits for the band Boys Next Door, Watson painted these portraits of the Indie rock band, the Go-Betweens for the cover of their first album Send Me a Lullaby. At the time, the band were living in their hometown of Brisbane. This first album was picked up by English label Rough Trade resulting in the band moving to London in May 1982.

Prior to this, they had recorded their debut single “Lee Remick“, in May 1978. The song was an ode to the US actress and released on the Indie label “Able“.  The B-side to the single, “Karen“, was a love song to a librarian.

• (Image featured above)  is Watson’s oil on canvas board “The Go-Between Series” (Lindy, Robert & Grant)  commissioned, 1981. (National Portrait Gallery, Canberra). These portraits are also used on the cover of their first album – Send Me a Lullaby.

Send Me a Lullaby  is considered to be the rawest and roughest album they made. At the time the band members were Robert Forster (guitar /vocals), Grant McLennan (bass guitar/vocals) and Lindy Morrsion (drums).

• My favourite song from this album is “Eight pictures”–  I just love it when the following recitation appears in the middle of the song “And when is a door …  not a door …  when it is ajar” – It just takes me back to those days of innocent pre-pubescent jokes and riddles one used to bore the pants off parents, when you thought it was hilarious, assuming they had never heard it before.

Sadly McLennan’s life ended unexpectedly from a heart attack on 6th May, 2006.
… ‘and you can’t complain, you can’t cry,  ’cause cameras never lie’…
Eight pictures. Got eight pictures

• For more examples of cover art see this page.
• To find other artists covered on this site, see my Artists A-Z page.

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