Hidden Things collects songs that were recorded by Paul Kelly and both his backup bands, the Coloured Girls and the Messengers, from 1986 to 1991, but weren't put on to any previous albums (except for "Bradman" and "Pastures of Plenty"). Paul's genius for telling stories behind the jingle of his acoustic guitar is pure and plentiful throughout this album.
It says a lot about the status of Paul Kelly And The Messengers that this collection of one-off singles, B-sides and unreleased studio material, originally put out in late-1991 to coincide with the band's break-up, went on to become a chart success in its own right. It was probably a testament to the band's depth that tracks such as "Other People's Houses," "Beggar On The Street Of Love" and the band's brilliant cover of Australian Crawl's "Reckless" never found their way onto one of the Messenger's proper studio albums.
