Robert Forster on staying curious and growing older with purpose

Nearly 50 years after co-founding The Go-Betweens, Robert Forster is still writing songs he believes are among his best. Ahead of his Australian tour, the acclaimed songwriter tells Starts at 60 why curiosity, good health and embracing life’s changing seasons have kept his creative spark alive.

Age, Robert Forster believes, shouldn’t be something you fight against. It should be something you write through.

The legendary singer-songwriter, who co-founded Australian indie pioneers The Go-Betweens alongside the late Grant McLennan, is now 69 and preparing to return to Australian stages with songs from his acclaimed latest solo album Strawberries alongside classics that have become part of Australia’s musical fabric.

But ask him what has changed after almost five decades of songwriting, and his answer is surprisingly practical.

“I’m definitely a better guitar player, and that’s the main thing,” Forster tells Starts at 60.

“There are more options open to me now. I can still do what I did back then, that sort of bar-chordy pop, but my playing has broadened. I’m not a virtuoso, but I’ve just got better at the guitar, and that’s really important because that’s what I write the songs on.”

His Australian tour follows the release of Strawberries, Forster’s warmly received ninth solo album, which critics praised for its elegant songwriting, understated musicianship and the quiet confidence of an artist continuing to evolve nearly five decades into his career.

Audiences can expect songs from the new record alongside highlights from his acclaimed solo catalogue and enduring Go-Betweens classics, performed with the Swedish band that recorded the latest album with him.

Growing with the music

There’s a long-held belief that great creativity belongs to youth, yet Forster quietly challenges that idea simply by continuing to produce acclaimed work.

He isn’t interested in claiming he’s become a better songwriter with age and instead says he’s learned to grow alongside his craft.

“I don’t know if it’s made me better, but I’ve been able to age with it,” he says.

“I’m still really happy with what I’m writing, which is a surprise to me. I’m 69 now, and if you’d told me at 40 or 50 that I’d still be writing songs I’m happy with, I would’ve been very thankful.”

Forster says the secret isn’t trying to recapture the voice of your younger self.

“The key is to remember your roots but not try to write a song like you did at 25 or 35,” he says. “You’ve got to take in the passing of time and what you’re learning and put that into what you’re doing as you go along.”

That shift has also changed the stories he wants to tell.

“When you’re young, a lot of what you write is about love and relationships. It’s very focused on the here and now,” he explains.

“As you get older, you’ve seen more and learned more. Hopefully you can bring that breadth and those experiences into your songs.”

Brisbane’s big transformation

Few bands are as closely linked to Brisbane as The Go-Betweens, whose songs captured a city that was still finding its cultural identity during the politically turbulent Joh Bjelke-Petersen years.

Today, Forster still recognises the place that inspired so much of his music, even if others see it very differently.

“Brisbane has changed a lot, but for the most part, for the better,” he says. “Politically, it was crazy back under Joh in the ’70s and ’80s, and that warped everything. Now that warp is gone, and that really helps.”

He says interstate visitors are often stunned by what they discover.

“I sometimes meet friends there from Sydney or Melbourne, and they’re just knocked out by it,” he says. “It’s funny because some of those people, back in the ’70s and ’80s, had a very, ‘Oh God, Brisbane, what are you doing there?’ attitude.

“Now they’re saying, ‘Oh my God, this is incredible.’ It’s very nice to hear that.”

The friend who’s never really left

While Forster continues to build his solo career, the influence of Grant McLennan remains ever-present. McLennan died suddenly in 2006, ending one of Australia’s most celebrated songwriting partnerships. Yet Forster says their conversations continue in his own mind.

“Grant is someone I can access in my head quite easily because we knew each other for such a long time, and we were friends as well as musical partners,” he says.

“He was such an influence on me that he’s still there. I think of him often — the things he said, the ideas and dreams we had.”

In fact, McLennan has become something of a personal measuring stick whenever Forster finishes writing a new song.

“If I think, ‘I’d like to play this to Grant,’ that’s almost a hallmark,” he says.

“It’s a sign to me that a song must be good if I’d want to play it to him.”

Staying curious

Forster will bring his Swedish band to Australia for the first time on this tour, the same musicians who recorded Strawberries with him after years of performing together in Scandinavia.

The familiarity, he says, gave him enormous confidence in the studio.

“I knew the songs were in safe hands.”

Off stage, however, it’s another passion that has recently returned to his life.

“We’ve just brought the record player back into the house in the last couple of months, and it’s wonderful to go back to vinyl,” he says. “I can hear the mix; I’m with the band, with the musicians in the room. It feels very real.”

For readers entering retirement or discovering new passions later in life, Forster believes the lesson is surprisingly simple.

“I think it’s important to be curious and to stay interested in new things,” he says.

“Being in good health helps. You need the energy. Living as healthy a lifestyle as you can, being as good to yourself as you can, is important because it gives you the energy to be curious.”

Ultimately, he believes the most rewarding pursuits are those that naturally draw you in.

“A lot of it comes from inner curiosity and the inner satisfaction you get from what you’re doing — reading, gardening, cooking, whatever. If it gives you joy, you don’t really have to push yourself. You enjoy it and you want to do it anyway.

“It’s about following those passions.”

As Forster prepares to step back onto Australian stages, it’s clear that nearly 50 years after first picking up a guitar, he hasn’t simply endured the passing of time — he’s learned to make it part of the music.

Robert Forster’s An Evening with Robert Forster & His Swedish Band Australian tour visits Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane this September. The shows feature songs from Strawberries alongside favourites from his solo career and The Go-Betweens. For tour dates, ticket availability and more information, visit Frontier Touring