Biography of The Cure
The Cure has become one of the most popular groups to emerge from Great Britain's post-punk gloom-rock trend of the late '70s, though it took a relatively long time to achieve its present prominence. Amid a variety of personnel changes, the constant in the group has been singer, songwriter, and guitarist Robert Smith (b.Apr 4, 1957), whose teased hair and black eyeliner dominate the group's look. He formed The Cure as a trio in 1976 with Laurence Tolhurst (drums) and Michael Dempsey (bass). After some work for an independent label (including the single "Killing an Arab," based on Albert Camus's novel The Stranger), they released their first album, Three Imaginary Boys, in 1979.In January 1980, Dempsey left and was replaced by Simon Gallup. More albums followed at yearly intervals, with the fourth, Pornography, finally breaking the U.K. Top Ten. The fifth album, The Top, became another U.K. Top Ten in 1984, a year that also produced the album Concert - The Cure Live. In 1985, The Head on the Door became the band's biggest U.K. hit yet, reaching # 7; it also broke the U.S. Top 100 list.By 1986 The Cure had expanded to a quintet. In addition to Smith, Tolhurst (now on keyboards), and Gallup, the group had Porl Thompson on guitar and Boris Williams on drums. That year a compilation album, Standing on a Beach - The Singles, hit # 4 in the U.K.; in America it went gold in early 1987, finally establishing The Cure in the U.S. In 1987 they released the double album Kiss Me, Kiss Me, Kiss Me, another success, and added Roger O'Donnell on keyboards. (Tolhurst subsequently departed.) In 1989 Disintegration produced The Cure's first big U.S. hit single, "Love Song" (#2). The album itself hit #12 and went platinum. Wish, released in the spring of 1992, entered the U.S. charts at #2. ~ William Ruhlmann
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