The Cure

One of the things that I have realised over the years that there are few people of my generation that do not think that the Cure are cool. Well, I know that there are some white boy try hard rappers out there who probably don't have The Cure albums as the most played on their Ipods, but for the rest of us The Cure hold a special place in our hearts. I am not sure why this would be, other than the fact that The Cure rule.

Seriously though , there is something about the multi faceted construction of the songs that appears to that part of us all that we think is sensitive. A favourite quote by Tommy Lee comes to mind, you can't be phoaar metal the whole time, because anyone who pretends to be phooar metal the whole time is fake. Quite often in those moments when you are not full on The Cure fit like a well made suit. There are those moments of self reflection and regret , where there is an appropriate Cure song. I have heard a lot of people say that they think The Cure music is too miserable. I can see that. However as I always say it is about time and place isn't it. If it is a sunny day and you just got promoted and you have a beautiful partner and had a great meal then there is little chance that this song will fit the moment correctly

I am not sure if I put in in  previous post or not, but I used to listen to that song a lot on long night journeys across the Australian countryside in my late teenage, early twenty's . . it is a great song for just drifting off into a revere and watching the ghostly images of the trees and fields pass by the window. Thinking about how some girl wasn't perhaps as into you as you were into them.

Like many of you I have been a big proponent of the mixtape, the cd, the mini disc and now the self made playlist. Loving the playlist and after close enough to 30 years of making them in one of the above mentioned formats I think I have developed a least a little bit of skill in creating them. I thought that as The Cure have such a massive output and so many high points over the years that I would attempt to put together a playlist for you of the best Cure songs that I know properly.

A coupe of rules in order to try to limit the arguments.

1) Each song has to come from one of the studio albums - rare B sides are great and The Cure have a lot, but it is just showing off to put them in and we are going to keep it mainstream
2) I am limiting it 13 songs. Just because
3) The selection is not an ordered best of. The songs are not ranked, my favourite Cure song is By the Edge of the Deep green sea. Simple.

Song                                      Album

Just like Heaven                    Kiss me Kiss me Kiss me
A night like This                     Head on the Door
Lovesong                              Disintegration
Charlotte Sometimes             Pornography
Edge of the deep Green Sea  Wish
Prayers for Rain                    Disintegration
To Wish Impossible Things    Wish
All Cats are Grey                  Faith
Apart                                    Wish
Same deep Water as You      Disintegration
In Between Days                   Kiss me Kiss me Kiss me
Boys Don't Cry                      Boys Don't cry
A Forest                                Seventeen Seconds

So there you have it. A list as notable for the omissions as it is for the inclusions. Do you want to see Robert Smith without make up?

The Cure have been a very important band in my musical life. While I was going off and getting into harder and harder metal, exploring the fury and righteousness of Punk , I always had time for The Cure. I listen to the songs now and I try to put away the familiarity of them all to see if they still stand up as good songs. Well they of course do, but are they dated terribly? Well to be honest a song like A Forest doesn't sound new anymore. It doesn't mean it is not still a great song, it is, but the effects of the keyboards and the production mix are not so new anymore. However, a song such as All Cats are grey, which is now 30+ years old, still hits a chord somewhere deep in the soul because of the shades of bleakness it pulls over you when you listen to it.

However this song

(can't show the orginal video) doesn't seem to age in my mind. It is just simply a great song and as such will always be a small part of me.

Which I guess it what most people will say about at least one Cure song. Which is why they remain so dear to us.