The Cure

[Jimmy's A Legend]

...favourite album, song, how did you find out or get into The Cure, facts about them, why you like them...anything

I have my brother to thank for introducing them to me, he bought me their "greatest hits" CD, which I loved and asked him to buy me their CDs for B-day and christmas.

Favouite song is "just like heaven"

Hopfully this hasn't been started yet, and if it has sorry.

[Otto Masson]

There probably is another thread about them, but if so, it's buried deep anyway. Yep, count me in, I think they're great, and along with Siouxsie and the Banshees really the best thing that emerged from the British punk/new wave scene. Many of their early songs showed a peculiar sensibility, a simplicity and catch-iness that sounded like nobody else (Killing an Arab, Jumping Someone Else's Train, things like that, for instance) - but for me, on the whole. it was after Robert Smith had spent some time playing guitar with Siouxsie and the Banshees (in 1983-1984) that The Cure finally started to achieve music that was perhaps more substantial and complex. It was more diverse, and yet at the same time had a stronger unity, because the band had developed a great deal and the changes were perceptible in every song. The occasional heavy feel of the earlier albums (One Hundred Years on Pornography being the most obvious example) didn't go away, but rather became part of a more unified musical profile - and the catchy feel was also preserved in a new guise, as in my favorite Cure song, which is on Kiss Me - How Beautiful You Are. I think there is quite a bit of Syd Barrett in Robert's songs, which I like a great deal.

Edited November 2, 2008 by Otto Masson

[Suz]

Love them. I didn't really notice them much in the 80's, but a few years ago my daughter got into them. She asked for a Cure cd for xmas and I listened to it before I gave it to her- I think it was the hits album, and it was so good that I wondered how I missed them before. I guess when I was a teenager I didn't like mopey English bands much and thought they looked like corpses. I was closed-minded about it and it's a shame because I missed a lot of good stuff. My favorite Cure song is the one that starts with "Tell me how you do that thing." It is just beautiful and I love the guitar sound. I also love the one that I think is called "Close to me," and "Friday I'm in love," and some others. I saw them on tv a few years ago and what cracks me up about them is Robert Smith's sad and lonely eyes looking all over the place. Interesting character.

[Virginia]

I listened to them all the time towards the end of college ('86-87, and for a few years after). Along with the Cult, Violent Femmes, Siouxsie, the Smiths, Psychedelic Furs, etc ... I think I wore out my "Standing on the Beach" cassette That one will always remind me of French Lit/Camus "The Stranger" ("Killing an Arab").

I do still listen to them too!

Edited November 3, 2008 by Virginia

[Rock Action]

I saw "Lullaby" performed live once.

By Jimmy & Robert...

[ninelives]

Lurrrrrrve the Cure!!! Been a huge fan for years. My favorite album has to be Pornography. It's so uber dark - fantastic. Didn't really jive on their later works as much. I really was into that whole sound - the cure, Joy Division, Depeche Mode, OMD.

[Kentuckygirl]

Lurrrrrrve the Cure!!! Been a huge fan for years. My favorite album has to be Pornography. It's so uber dark - fantastic. Didn't really jive on their later works as much. I really was into that whole sound - the cure, Joy Division, Depeche Mode, OMD.

I really liked all those bands but I liked the Psychedelic Furs too. I had a horrible crush on Richard Butler

[ninelives]

I really liked all those bands but I liked the Psychedelic Furs too. I had a horrible crush on Richard Butler

I didn't have a crush on him but I liked the Psychedelic Furs a lot too

[Wolfman]

I saw them last Spring in Philly. Great concert!

[Knebby]

Lurrrrrrve the Cure!!! Been a huge fan for years. My favorite album has to be Pornography. It's so uber dark - fantastic. Didn't really jive on their later works as much. I really was into that whole sound - the cure, Joy Division, Depeche Mode, OMD.

Woah - I've never ever heard OMD and Depeche Mode put in the same bracket as The Cure and Joy Division before. They certainly aren't considered that way in the UK. I think Depeche Mode always had more credibility in the US - they were never really respected here in the UK ( don't ask me why, I don't think my personal slant on it is all that informative) and OMD were always looked at as far more poppy and throw-away, whereas Joy Division in particular are virtually worshipped by the music press/musos in general over here.

I'm very interested in that perspective Nine. Ta for mentioning it.

[Virginia]

Thanks for the prompt; I just put a bunch of their songs on my grooveshark playlist

[ninelives]

Woah - I've never ever heard OMD and Depeche Mode put in the same bracket as The Cure and Joy Division before. They certainly aren't considered that way in the UK. I think Depeche Mode always had more credibility in the US - they were never really respected here in the UK ( don't ask me why, I don't think my personal slant on it is all that informative) and OMD were always looked at as far more poppy and throw-away, whereas Joy Division in particular are virtually worshipped by the music press/musos in general over here.

I'm very interested in that perspective Nine. Ta for mentioning it.

You're welcome

I think here in the states and this is just my perception of things, the media pretty well lumped them in the same musical genre which could have been laziness on their part. I can see how they'd say OMD were more poppy - in some respects that's fair. I'm surprised Depeche Mode weren't respected there. They had a pretty good following here for a long time. Joy Division were more underground though I do remember them being critic's darlings in the short time they were around.

I would say that each of those groups has a very distinct sound but perhaps (maybe OMD wasn't quite the best example there come to think of it) what I view as linking them together is in my ears they have this dark, I hate to use the word techno, but I can't think of any other word right now, sound that while approached very differently, there's something in it that I can connect them with.

Okay that was wayyyyy too wordy! Hopefully it made sense

Edited November 5, 2008 by ninelives

[~tangerine~]

I became a huge Cure fan when i was watching a video channel (i don't recall the name, but you called in and gave requests, not any VHI or MTV show). So i'm watching this and the video for "A Letter To Elise" comes on. I loved the song instantly and went out and bought WISH, which was newly released (1992). Anytime my interest in a band is sparked i learn about them. It didn't take me long to purchase most of their albums.

Favorite Cure songs: A Letter To Elise (my fav) others in random order: Trust, From The Edge of the Deep Green Sea, Apart, Doing the Unstuck, Plainsong, Pictures of You, Lovesong, Just Like Heaven, Catch, One More Time, A Thousand Hours, Play for Today, Charlotte Sometimes, Boys Don't Cry, Push, A Forest, In Between Days...

Favorite Albums: Wish, Kiss Me, Kiss Me, Kiss Me, Show (live) and Paris (live), Disintegration, Mixed Up (great re-mixes), and Starring at the Sea.

I have many Cure Videos (i think a total of 5)

Sadly only saw them in concert once (Wild Mood Swings tour).

Huge fan of Robert Smith and Simon Gallop!

Most underrated awesome band imo.

[missytootsweet]

I often bring up on threads my love of music from the 60's and 70's and that's still true.

I tuned out most post 1980 music by choice because most of what I heard I didn't like. My 1980's exposure was mostly to club or dance music.

But thanks to joining this forum, I've discovered I missed out on a lot of good music! Now, I've given a listen (and like) more recent bands such as REM, Zero 7, Nick Drake, Camera Obscura, Stereolab, High Llamas. Thank you members for that!

Not long ago a friend turned me on to a Cure song (In Between Days). I liked it so much I bought The Cure "Bloodflowers" for 5 bucks on a whim at the mall a couple days ago. I had no idea of any of the songs on this CD. But I have been listening almost non-stop since buying it. I'm loving Robert Smith's gorgeous vocals and moody lyrics.

This thread has very few posts, so perhaps I'm in a small group of fans but hoping someone will give me an opinion on what to get next. Because I definitely must hear more Robert Smith. They have 15 studio albums over a long career, but I know little more than that right now.

I'd like to get a couple more CD's with a sound similar to Bloodflowers. Did they change their sound up much through the years? I know I can sample on Amazon for 30 second pops, but forget You Tube. These guys have way too much music to sample (would take me weeks!). Can any fan of The Cure give me some insight? Any replies would be much appreciated! Thanks......... missy

Here's 2 songs I especially like, but the whole CD is great.

And this....

[Virginia]

Funny that a lot of people love Adele's "Love Song" and don't realize it's a cover of a Cure song. I love them both and they are very, very different; hers reminds me a lot of Sade, and the Cure is, well, definitely the Cure

[Jahfin]

I saw "Lullaby" performed live once.

By Jimmy & Robert...

Me too, in Atlanta during the Unledded tour.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kuIyiqOGXB8

[Ady]

I'm not a major fan or anything, but I've got this.

I love A Forest, gives me goosebumps.

It reminds me a bit of Joy Division.

Edited August 23, 2011 by Ady

[Strider]

OMG! I mean...

OH. MY. GOD.

Holy effing shit! How in the world did I miss this announcement?!? http://www.broadwayla.org/production/show.info.asp?ID=69

Here's more from the OC Register:

The Cure to play first three albums at the Pantages

By Ben Wener, Orange County Register

I heard about a few local fanatics who flew to the other end of the world to see this seemingly one-time-only show at the Sydney Opera House in spring. I’m sure for them it was money well spent, but I can’t help wondering if they feel a bit foolish now.

For, as it turns out, the Cure have decided to repeat the Reflections retrospectives that Robert Smith & Co. staged Down Under, where they played their first three albums in full.

Due to clamor from fans, a limited run of seven encore performances will take place in November — one night at London’s Royal Albert Hall (on Nov. 15), three gigs at NYC’s Beacon Theatre just after Thanksgiving (Nov. 25-27) and, lucky us, three nights at the Pantages Theatre in Hollywood just before the holiday, Nov. 21-23.

Yet, though they’re playing a trio of dates, they aren’t spreading their earliest material across that stand. Each show will feature all three albums in their entirety: the wiry, kinetic post-punk of Three Imaginary Boys (1979), the shift toward atmospherics that came with Seventeen Seconds (1980) and the much moodier Faith (1981).

Each set, separated by brief intervals, will add on an increasing number of members, with dutiful bassist Simon Gallup standing by Smith’s side throughout the night and estranged keyboardist Laurence “Lol” Tolhurst rejoining for Faith. (His appearance at the Australia gig was his first in 22 years with the Cure, the group he co-founded with Smith but left in 1989. Five years later he unsuccessfully sued Smith over royalties and rights to the band’s name.)

As if that weren’t enough, the triptych of album sets will be followed by an encore of era-appropriate material — perhaps “Jumping Someone Else’s Train,” “Killing an Arab” and others that were introduced to stateside audiences when much of Three Imaginary Boys was repackaged as Boys Don’t Cry in February 1980.

You have time to gather your pennies for this one, however. Tickets, $65-$105, don’t go on sale until Halloween at 10 a.m. (That’s a Monday if your calendar isn’t handy.) There is a strict two-tickets-per-person limit.

________________________________________________________________________________________________

Well, at least I found out in the nick of time...but this is going to be nuts. Tickets to this will be tighter than...well, I'll leave it to you to supply your own analogy.

The Cure are still a BIG DEAL in this town...Los Angeles is one of the first places where they became popular. They, along with Depeche Mode, pretty much ruled influential radio station K-ROQ in the 80s. In fact, it got to be so ridiculous that we started calling the radio station Cure-Mode. They've played Dodger Stadium and the Rose Bowl. To see them in a tiny venue like the Pantages Theatre, playing all of the first three albums is going to create pandemonium. Every star and starlet and their bikini waxer is going to want in to these shows.

Add in that these are the ONLY West Coast dates, and you're going to have every goth and gothette from Vancouver to Mexico City clamoring for tix...as well as the usual ticket brokers/scalpers.

Oh well, this is going to test my concert karma...I got in to see the Rolling Stones at the Wiltern in 2002 for the face value of $50...I scored tix at the B.O. for the Them Crooked Vultures secret show at the Roxy...I got in to see Bruce Springsteen at the Pantages on his Devils and Dust tour...I made it in to two of the Bob Dylan & Merle Haggard shows at the Pantages. Hell, I even got tix for the secret show Guns and Roses did at the Pantages back in 1991...the last good show they performed before the bloated Use Your Illusion tour...waited all day in the freaking hot sun for those tix.

Yep...this is going to be B-I-G big!

It was 30 years ago that I first saw the Cure in concert at the Whisky A Go-Go...two days before my birthday in 1981. It was just a trio then; Robert Smith on guitar and vocals, Simon Gallup on bass, and Laurence Tolhurst(or Lol) on drums. The "Faith" album had just been out for a few months, so the setlist was heavy with songs from "Faith", as well as the first two records.

So, in a way, these will be MY 30th anniversary shows.

IF I get tix, that is.

[Virginia]

Just found this; listening now for the first time. Some vintage Cure at the beginning; not sure what's after though. But about 25 min. of the Cure.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dkREIaRN1sU&feature=watch-vrec

Edited November 3, 2012 by Virginia

[Virginia]

The Cure Live in Japan '84 (full show)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7eBj3Ks7XJg

[Strider]

^^^

As a fan of "The Top", I loved the 1984 tour. I have had this show on VHS for ages...it was one of my first bootleg videos I purchased. Thanks for posting this Virginia and bumping this thread.

As a Cure fan, you might be interested to know they'll be playing the U.S. later this year.

[Virginia]

^^^

As a fan of "The Top", I loved the 1984 tour. I have had this show on VHS for ages...it was one of my first bootleg videos I purchased. Thanks for posting this Virginia and bumping this thread.

As a Cure fan, you might be interested to know they'll be playing the U.S. later this year.

Sweet! I've never seen them live, but have been listening to them since '83/84, so I'll definitely be on the lookout for tour dates!

[Charles J. White]

I’m not against the genre that The Cure is part of, but I must admit that the lyrics are some of the most depressing stuff I have heard. The music is fine, but the lyrics are enough to cause one to pull the trigger. And yes, I understand that something doesn’t have to be shiny and glossy 24/7 but the guy from the Cure is one odd cat. Sometimes a little warmth and happiness can go a long way!

[Virginia]

It may sound weird, given the lyrics, but I have a lot of great memories related to their music. Good friends and good times, so they have always been a favorite and I don't associate them with gloomy. Maybe I'm the only one though...

[ZeppMan93]

I have Staring at the Sea compilation album, I always play that when I'm driving for more than 20 minutes. Phenomenal band. I lean towards their earlier stuff.