In a 1996 radio interview McLennan nominated Before Hollywood as one of his two definitive Go-Betweens albums, describing it as a "nice combination of our skewered and classic songwriting, but with a heavy underground feeling".

[6] Missing Link label boss Keith Glass, who had funded the recording and distribution of Send Me a Lullaby, told the band he could not finance a second LP, but began shopping the debut album overseas.

[8] Brand had just completed High Land, Hard Rain, the debut album by Aztec Camera, for Rough Trade at International Christian Communications (ICC) Studios in the seaside town of Eastbourne, and its two singles featured catchy, singalong choruses that were directly aimed at the charts.

[7] In a 1983 radio interview McLennan said Brand had been strict about keeping the drums to a steady rhythm and the singing in tune—"because Robert and I have a propensity to wander off in directions of sheer anarchic brilliance.

"[7] Brand brought in an Australian keyboardist, Bernie Clarke, who had shared production duties on High Land, Hard Rain and formulated a sound that Forster later said was "not fashionable at the time: live drums, electric and acoustic guitar, Hammond organ and piano".

Where Send Me a Lullaby was like a great recording of us in the practice room, Before Hollywood was a production—the band brightened, the tunefulness brought forward, the quirky riffs and time signatures kept—yet, through John's engineering skills, clear and punchy.

Forster wrote of "Cattle and Cane": "It proved difficult to put chords to, so I doubled his part; then Lindy arrived with her drumsticks and announced that the song was in some incredible time count ... 13/8 or something, which theoretically only Charlie Parker could play, and to her credit she didn't try to straighten it, only preserved its oddness, in turn making one of the most distinctive beats in rock."

[10][11] Reviewing in NME at the time of release, Mat Snow said "Lindy Morrison's drumming is crisp, subtle and dynamic, Grant's bass is a model of telling economy and Robert plays a song-writer's guitar – soaring and lyrical but always to the point."

For good reason – both Robert Forster's and Grant McLennan's singing sounds much more honestly theirs, finding their own voices, while collectively the trio create a series of intricate, surprising melodies and songs which balance past and present beautifully.

"[12] Andrew Stafford, in his book Pig City: From the Saints to Savage Garden, states "Before Hollywood' s impressionistic lyrics and sparkling blend of acoustic and electric textures recalled earlier folk influences – Simon & Garfunkel, the Byrds, and, especially Bob Dylan's Bringing It All Back Home.