The Cure are an English rock band formed in Crawley in 1976 by Robert Smith and Lol Tolhurst (drums). As of 2026, the band's line-up comprises Smith, Simon Gallup (bass), Roger O'Donnell (keyboards), Jason Cooper (drums) and Reeves Gabrels (guitar).
Smith has remained the only constant member throughout numerous line-up changes since the band's formation.
members: Robert Smith, Simon Gallup, Roger O'Donnell, Jason Cooper, Reeves Gabrels
formed in: Crawley
labels: Fiction Records, Suretone Records, Geffen Records, Polydor Records, Elektra, Sire, Asylum Records
genres: alternative rock, gothic rock, post-punk, new wave
influenced by: Television
awards: Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
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The founding members of the Cure were school friends at Notre Dame Middle School in Crawley. They first performed in public at an end-of-year show in April 1973 as members of a one-off school band called Obelisk. That band consisted of Robert Smith on piano, Michael Dempsey on guitar, Lol Tolhurst on percussion, Marc Ceccagno on lead guitar, and Alan Hill on bass. In January 1976, while at St Wilfrid's Comprehensive School, Ceccagno formed a five-piece rock band with Smith on guitar and Dempsey on bass, along with two other school friends. They called themselves Malice and rehearsed David Bowie, Jimi Hendrix and Alex Harvey songs in a local church hall. By late April 1976, Ceccagno and the other two members had left, and Tolhurst (drums),...
Due to the band's lack of creative control on their first album, Smith exerted a greater influence on the recording of their second album, Seventeen Seconds, which he co-produced with Mike Hedges. The album was released in 1980 and reached number 20 on the UK charts. A single from the album, "A Forest", became the band's first UK hit single, reaching number 31 on the singles chart. The album was a departure from the Cure's sound up to that point, with Hedges describing it as "morose, atmospheric, very different to Three Imaginary Boys." In its review of Seventeen Seconds the NME said, "For a group as young as the Cure, it seems amazing that they have covered so much territory in such a brief time." At the same time, Smith became concerned...
The Cure are often identified with the gothic rock genre, and are viewed as one of the form's definitive bands. However, the band has routinely rejected classification, particularly as a gothic rock band. Robert Smith said in 2006, "It's so pitiful when 'goth' is still tagged onto the name The Cure", and added, "We're not categorisable. I suppose we were post-punk when we came out, but in total it's impossible ... I just play Cure music, whatever that is." While typically viewed as producers of dark and gloomy music, the Cure have also yielded a number of upbeat songs and been part of the new wave movement. Spin has said "the Cure have always been an either/or sort of band: either ... Robert Smith is wallowing in gothic sadness or he's...
The Cure are often regarded as one of the most significant alternative artists of the 1980s. They were one of the first alternative bands to have chart and commercial success in an era before alternative rock had broken into the mainstream; in 1992, NME declared that the Cure had during the 1980s become "a goth hit machine (19 to date), an international phenomenon and, yet, the most successful alternative band that ever shuffled disconsolately about the earth". Pitchfork dubbed the Cure the "unlikeliest alt-rock heroes" of the 1980s.
Are you them, or do you know them? The mail slot is open.
"Disintegration" is a song by English rock band the Cure. It is the tenth track from the band's eighth studio album Disintegration (1989) and is often cited as one of the band's strongest songs and a highlight on the album for its intense and repetitive sound.
It is the second longest song on the album, clocking in a little over eight minutes. Ned Raggett, writing for The Quietus, referred to frontman Robert Smith's vocal delivery and lyrics as "a sprawling, reeling act of desperation, on which Smith unlocked a Pandora’s Box of self-loathing" finding the song "almost too much – too transparent and psychologically invasive".
The song's repetitive structure was well received by critics, with Classic Pop noting that along with the rest of the album, it defied traditional song structures. He felt this was one of the song's strength, saying it "builds emotionally through repetition", while also acknowledging the song's dominant lyrics, which differed from the usually sparse lyrics across the rest of the album, describing Smith's delivery as a "relatively wordy succession of lines that are more direct, dealing head-on with defiance and emotional despair". The Independent said it "rattles through its eight minutes with feverish intent and increasingly desperate desolation".
The song was covered by American hardcore band Converge for the tribute album Disintegrated - A Cure Tribute Compilation (2000). American psychedelic folk band Big Blood covered the song, but changed the lyrics "babies and everything” to “babies and frequency”. In 2011 American dream pop band Snow & Voices covered the song as a part of their "Covers Project".
"Just Like Heaven" is a song by English rock band the Cure. The group wrote most of the song during recording sessions in southern France in 1987.
The lyrics were written by their frontman Robert Smith, who drew inspiration from a past trip to the sea shore with his future wife. Smith's memories of the trip formed the basis for the song's accompanying music video.
In order to develop material for Kiss Me, Kiss Me, Kiss Me, Smith forced himself to write music for 15 days of each month. During this regimen, he developed the chords and melody which form the basis of "Just Like Heaven". Structurally, Smith found what he had written was similar to the Only Ones's 1979 hit "Another Girl, Another Planet". When he brought an instrumental demo of the song to the album recording sessions in Southern France, Cure drummer Boris Williams increased the tempo and added an opening drum fill which inspired Smith to introduce each instrument singularly and in sequence.
"Just Like Heaven" is written in the key of A major and consists of an A–E–Bm–D chord progression which repeats throughout the song, except during the chorus when the band plays an F♯m–G–D progression. The song's central hook is formed from a descending guitar riff which appears between song verses and in parts of the bridge and the last verse. This guitar line contrasts with the "fuzzier mix" of the rhythm guitars.
"Just Like Heaven" was the third single released from the band's Kiss Me Kiss Me Kiss Me album. Melody Maker's review of the single was undecided; writer David Stubbs described it as "a colourful, fluttery, fussy thing" and "unimpeachable", but added, "[it] turns my face green, as if having consumed too many truffles." The song was the Cure's eleventh top 40 hit in the UK, and stayed on the charts there for five weeks during October and November 1987, peaking at number 29. In the United States, "Just Like Heaven" became the Cure's first top 40 hit when it reached number 40 on the Billboard Hot 100 for one week in December 1987.
The music video for "Just Like Heaven" was directed by Tim Pope, who had directed all of the band's previous videos since 1982's "Let's Go to Bed". The video was filmed in England's Pinewood Studios in October 1987. Set on a cliff overlooking a sea, the video recreates many of the memories detailed in the song's lyrics. When a fanzine asked Smith what the song was about, he said it was inspired by "something that happened to me a long time ago—see the video!" While Smith had claimed for years that the video was shot at the same place that inspired the song, he later admitted that the bulk of it was filmed in a studio, utilising footage of the water and cliffs of Beachy Head taken for the band's 1985 video for "Close to Me".
"Lullaby" is a song by English rock band the Cure and the lead single from their eighth studio album, Disintegration (1989). It is co-written by Robert Smith and produced by him with Dave Allen.
Released as a single on 10 April 1989 by Fiction Records, the song is the band's highest-charting single in their home country, reaching number five on the UK Singles Chart. It additionally reached number three in Ireland and West Germany while becoming a top-10 hit in several other European countries and New Zealand.
The meaning of "Lullaby" has been speculated by fans, including as a metonymy for addiction, depression, or sexual assault, and lead singer Robert Smith has offered multiple explanations as to its theme or content, such as childhood nightmares or abuse. One explanation by Smith follows that the song is about the disturbing songs his father sung to him as a kid, and the horrible ending they would always have. Tim Pope, a long-time collaborator of the Cure on many of its music videos, interprets "Lullaby" as an allegory for Smith's drug-addled past.
Upon the release, a reviewer from Music & Media wrote, "Those of you who feared the worst for the Cure's artistic future after 1986's 'Why Can't I Be You?' and 'Hot Hot Hot', can stop worrying. Their new single is serious pop music at its best. The backing is a strong, infectious rhythm with subtle plucked violins and sweeping strings, completed by Robert Smith's whispering voice. Although this is not the easiest record to programme it has already become many European DJs' favourite." Jerry Smith from Music Week felt the Cure "are back in superb form with an enveloping marshmallow of a track, exuding atmosphere with soaring strings and breathy vocals. Sure to make a big impression on the charts and heighten anticipation for their new...
The music video for "Lullaby" was filmed at a sound stage in London, England. It features Robert in bed, in a dream sequence, and the rest of the band playing tin soldiers who sporadically appear throughout the music video for a few seconds. The music video, during which Smith plays both the cannibalistic "spiderman" mentioned in the lyrics and his intended victim, concludes with Smith being swallowed by what appears to be a giant spider.
The track was used as the backing to the trailer to the TV show The Secret Circle and was featured in the British TV shows Misfits, Fresh Meat, Being Human, as well as Episode 7 of American Horror Story: Hotel.
"A Forest" is a song by the English rock band the Cure. Co-produced by Mike Hedges and the band's Robert Smith, it was released as a single from the band's second album Seventeen Seconds on 8 April 1980.
It was their debut entry on the UK Singles Chart, reaching number 31. The accompanying music video was first shown on BBC's Top of the Pops programme on 24 April 1980.
Mike Hedges co-produced the album Seventeen Seconds as well as "A Forest" with The Cure's Robert Smith. Hedges had first worked with the band on the track "Killing an Arab." Interviewed in 2004, he did not recall any demos existing for Seventeen Seconds; the band generally played the track in the studio before laying down a backing track to which overdubs were added. At the time of the recording of the album, bass guitarist Simon Gallup and keyboardist Matthieu Hartley had been added to the band's lineup. Gallup had replaced Michael Dempsey, who had departed to join The Associates. Gallup and Hartley joined remaining Cure members Smith (vocals, guitar) and Lol Tolhurst (drums) in late 1979 during the group's Future Pastimes tour, on which...
"A Forest" and its parent album Seventeen Seconds are representative of The Cure's gothic rock phase in the late 1970s and 1980s. The song has also been described as a post-punk track. Cure biographer Jeff Apter refers to "A Forest" as "the definitive early Cure mood piece" and argues the song is the centrepiece of the album. Smith's intention with "A Forest" was to make a song that was "really atmospheric". He has stated it was a pivotal recording for the group, representing "the archetypal Cure sound".
"A Forest" was released as a single on 8 April 1980. Its B-side was "Another Journey by Train," an instrumental remake of The Cure's "Jumping Someone Else's Train." The single received a mixed critical reception, though commercially its sales were an improvement for the band. Entering the chart on 12 April, it spent eight weeks in the UK Singles Chart, peaking at No. 31 on 17 May. It was the highest they had placed on the chart by that point in their career. In the United States, the song reached No. 47 on the Billboard Dance Music/Club Play Singles chart.
"A Forest" is widely regarded as one of the Cure's best songs. In 2019, Billboard ranked the song number eight on their list of the 40 greatest Cure songs, and in 2023, Mojo ranked the song number one on their list of the 30 greatest Cure songs.
"Boys Don't Cry" is a song by English rock band the Cure. It was released in the UK as a stand-alone single on 12 June 1979, and was included as the title track on Boys Don't Cry, the American equivalent to Three Imaginary Boys.
The song reached No. 22 on the UK singles chart on two occasions, in 1986 and 2026.
The video, released in 1986 to promote the "New Voice New Mix" re-recording, features three children, actors Mark Heatley, Christian Andrews and Russell Ormes miming the song. Behind a curtain, Smith, Tolhurst and Dempsey (in his only appearance with the band since his 1979 departure), appear as the children's shadows, with red eyes, an effect that was attained by painting their eyelids with fluorescent paint.
"Boys Don't Cry" is widely regarded as one of the Cure's best songs. In 2019, Billboard ranked the song number four on their list of the 40 greatest Cure songs, and in 2023, Mojo ranked the song number three on their list of the 30 greatest Cure songs.
The 1999 film Boys Don't Cry took its title from the song; a cover version, performed by Nathan Larson, was used as the title song for the film. The song has appeared in numerous other films, including The Wedding Singer, 50 First Dates, Starter for Ten, I Do, Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist, Friends with Benefits (a cover version, performed by Grant-Lee Phillips, is used in the soundtrack of the film) and Me and You. The song also featured in the second season of the TV sitcom How I Met Your Mother. The post-grunge band Oleander covered the song on their 1999 album February Son.
"Friday I'm in Love" is a song by British rock band the Cure. Released in May 1992 by Fiction Records as the second single from their ninth studio album, Wish (1992), the song became a worldwide hit, reaching number six in the UK and number 18 in the United States, where it also topped the Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart.
The accompanying music video was directed by Tim Pope, depicting the band performing on a soundstage. It also won the award for European Viewer's Choice for Best Music Video at the 1992 MTV Video Music Awards.
During the writing process, Robert Smith became convinced that he had inadvertently stolen the chord progression from somewhere, and this led him to a state of paranoia where he called everyone he could think of and played the song for them, asking if they had heard it before. None of them had, and Smith realised that the melody was indeed his. "It's always been paradoxical that it's pushed down people's throats that we're a goth band," Smith observed. "Because, to the general public, we're not. To taxi drivers, I'm the bloke that sings 'Friday I'm in Love'. I'm not the bloke who sings 'Shake Dog Shake' or 'One Hundred Years'."
"Friday I'm in Love" was the second single taken from the band's ninth studio album, Wish, and was released in the United Kingdom on 15 May 1992. Unusually, two formats of the song were released on a Friday instead of a Monday, so it debuted on the UK Singles Chart at a low number 31 on the chart week beginning 17 May. The following week, after the other two formats went on sale, the single rose to number eight and peaked at number six during its third week on the chart. As of 2026, it is the group's last UK top-10 hit. In the United States, the song reached number 18 on the Billboard Hot 100, giving the band their last American top-40 hit to date. It was also the band's last song (in a string of four) to top the Billboard Modern Rock...
The music video for "Friday I'm in Love", directed by Tim Pope, features the band performing the song in front of various backdrops on a soundstage, in homage to French silent filmmaker Georges Méliès: the video features the appearance of characters from his The Eclipse, or the Courtship of the Sun and Moon. Throughout the video the band play with various props and costumes while several extras wander around, causing chaos and ultimately trashing the set.
"Lovesong" is a song by English rock band the Cure, released as the third single from their eighth studio album, Disintegration (1989), on 21 August 1989. The song saw considerable success in the United States, where it reached the number-two position in October 1989 and became the band's only top-10 entry on the Billboard Hot 100.
In the United Kingdom, the single charted at number 18, and it peaked within the top 20 in Canada and Ireland.
Upon release as a single, the song received worldwide success, and peaked at number two on the US Billboard Hot 100, making it the group's most successful single in the United States. The song also charted at number two on the Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart, number 30 on the Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks chart and number 18 on the UK Singles Chart. Smith originally wrote the song for his long-time girlfriend and then fiancée, Mary, as a wedding present.
The music video, directed by Mark Kohr, features 311 playing the song in a bar. While not featured in the version on YouTube, the version initially released for the song in conjunction with, and featuring footage from, 50 First Dates, features a cameo from former Cure member Lol Tolhurst as a bartender. His appearance is at 2:22 in the video.
"Primary" is a song by the English rock band the Cure, released as the sole single from their third studio album, Faith, on 27 March 1981. It reached number 43 in the UK Singles Chart.
The song is unusual in that both Simon Gallup and Robert Smith play bass, with the effects pedals on Smith's giving the leads a unique sound. There are no guitars or keyboards played in the song.
"Primary" was the first song by The Cure to be remixed as a separate extended mix for release on 12" single (and not co-released on other formats, in the way the 12" version of "A Forest" was also the album version appearing on Seventeen Seconds, for example). In fact, the original 12" extended mix is, to this day, still only available on the original 12" single, which has never been reproduced on any other album, making it quite a rare item. The main difference between the 7" mix (also the album mix) and the 12" mix is that the extended mix lengthens the instrumental introductions to the song's verses.
Upon the single release David Hepworth of Smash Hits expressed his admiration for Robert Smith and wondered "how long The Cure can continue to prop their songs against the same chord progression, with its clambering bass and deadpan drums."