Gothtober : The Top 50 Cure Songs 20-11

Now we are in the top 20. Hard choices are always made when it gets to this point , but it should not come as a surprise that more songs from "Disintegration" and  "Pornography" are going to start taking over, maybe not the ones you would expect, unless you have already figured out my tasstes in this regard.

20 -Disintegration

One of the best bass lines ever. The is Full of stormy intensity.


 


19- A Forest


There are the popular Cure radio songs and then the songs popular with the fans . This is one popular with fans . It has too much of a punk rock tension for radio and not the traditional hooky chorus. It's not an anthem.


 


18-A Strange Day


One of the Cure's darker songs. It has an ominous drone, that is balanced out by passionate melodies, so everything I could want from the Cure.

 


17- Prayers for Rain


I love the production of Robert Smith's voice on the entire "Disintegration" album, this song is an example how it makes his voice more of an instrument. The lyrics are also awesome


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16-Closedown


It might take half the song for the vocals to come in, but it's one of those rare occasion where the pay off is worth it.

 


15-Lullaby


While as a teenager I had a hard time separating the lyrics of this song from Peter Parker, I saw Robert Plant and Jimmy Page cover it live and it clicked.


 


14- Out of this World


You might be surprised that a song from "Bloodflowers" made it this deep into the top 20. It's also one of the more strummed ballad like moments, but has an honesty to it that resonates with me
lyrically


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13-Hanging Garden


One of their more driven and aggressive moments. The bass and drums work together like a machine, I am sure it influenced a few industrial bands that crossed over into more organic music.


 


12- the Dream


Sure this album is a little weird, but he does sing about being like a vampire bat here, so that is goth as hell.


 

11-Love Song


Ok, from this point on we are not just talking about the best Cure songs ever, but some of the best songs ever. I was surprised it didn't make the top ten, maybe some of the terrible covers of this song have soured my ears to it a bit, but I guess this serves as a honorable mention in the top ten as it was the first Cure song I ever took notice of. i just noticed the cave he is supposed to be in looks like it is from a Put Put gold course.


 

Gothtober : The Top 50 Cure Songs 30-21

We are beginning to close in on the top 20 soon, the bar is getting raised with some of Robert Smith and company's better works. These are not their most popular songs, but the best. The sheeple can't handle the best, so Robert knows how to keep the rent paid and writee pop songs , but that is not typically what you are going to find here.

 30-Last Dance


It will be no surprise that songs from 'Disintegration" will begin weighing in heavily on the list right about now. The guitar in this song is so incredible it's easy to hear how I can rank it above something like "Killing An Arab"



29- A Short Term Effect 

 Not the band's darkest or heaviest moments, it does still head in that direction. I love the production on the vocals of this one. The songs' hypnotic drone sums up much of what I look for in music.

 

28-Want

 Working on this has reminding me what a great album "Wild Mood Swings" is. While other albums might have more entries on this list it certainly holds it own here.

 

 27-A Letter to Elise 

 While this song embodies everything about the Cure's more mainstream radio friendly excursions, it's so well written and performed it's hard to argue against. Still it's far from being the anthem of basic bitches like "Friday I'm in Love"


 

 26-At Night 

 This track from their 1980 album 'Seventeen Seconds" is precursor to their darker heavier side that would come out of the shadows on "Pornography" a few years later, but still holds up on it's own.


 

 25-Pictures of You 

 This and maybe one other song are the representatives of mainstream radio air play Cure. So don't hold your breath for the basic bitch "Just Like Heaven" shit to show up. The guitar playing on this song is pretty dope and it carries the melancholy to the masses.


 

24-Push 

 This song might have some of the more accessible elements of their sound, but still transitions over live well enough for me to put it here and is one of Smith's strongest vocals

 

 23-Strange Attraction


Here is another happy Cure song, though if you listen closely it's easy to hear many elements from Siouxsie's sound on this. Another source of prood that "Wild Mood Swings" is wildly under rated.

 



22-End


Off of "Wish" this song is a good example of what I refer to on this blog and others when I talk about something being heavy in terms of emotional weight, sonic scope and darkness. This is not the darkest Cure so though the lyrics are rather bleak, there is a ton of emotion in this one though.

 

 21-The Walk 

 It was the "Mixed Up" remix of this song that won me over. It adds a darker tone, but I think it goes to show a good song is going to be a good song if at it's core the song is solid. I normally don't like the Cure's happier moments , but there is an exception to every rule when you are crying like a Japanese baby.

Gothtober : The Top 50 Cure Songs 40 -31

Pull on your hair and pull on your pout, as we continue counting down the top 50 Cure songs. So going through the first installment you might have wondered what is determining this list. I did use my Last Fm page to help guide me as far as what tracks I have been listening to the most, but I have been listening to the Cure since before there was anything called the internet, so I deviated from this and factored in which of the songs have endeared me the most over the years. So that factors in, though you might have songs that you think should be on here or rank higher , and the moral to this story is I don't give a fuck because this is my blog and if I say this is the top 50 Cure songs then that is what it is, end of story.



40- This Twilight Garden

Off of "Wish", yet another song that goes to show the Cure is one of those bands that if you only heard their radio songs , you would not have the most accurate picture of what they are all about. This song manages to blend smooth pop structured song writing with layers of more surreal dream like textures.


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39- Underneath the Stars



The guitar tone is once again awe inspiring, Robert Smith might not be a shredder, but he is the master of tone really only David Gilmore can touch him in this department. Here this is put on display proving that all he has to do is let a chord hang sometimes. That is not to say there is not a tone of great intricate guitar melodies in almost every moment of this song.

 


38-The Last Day of Summer


 While the Cure is one of my favorite bands, I typically am not as into the more strummed acoustic songs, this one however takes that and does it in a melancholic manner that evokes the feeling I need to get from these guys or in other words I don't want to hear Robert Smith happy.

 

37-This is a Lie



Speaking of Robert Smith not being happy this song as graced many a break up mix tape. The strings give that elegant quality I think goth should have, even though if you ask Robert Smith he is not goth.
 

36-Birdmad Girl

The Top is an odd album, psychedelic and funky all at the same time, though vocally Robert Smith continues down the same road to make this even more unique and quirky in it's sound. The guitar does take on an under current of darker shadows that float the upbeat visage.
 

35- Cut


As a Cure fan , one thing you hear all the time is "Robert Smith is too whiny for me" , well when he sings that you don't feel anymore and you don't care any more , it sounds pretty convincing, and he is not whining about it he is stating the facts.

 

34-Before Three


By the time you are done with this list, you are going to be much more willing to give the band's more recent work the fair shot it deserves. Granted when some of these albums came out I was not as impressed , but over time they grew on me.

 

33-Scared As You

While the main verse riff to this song shares a similar to "A Forest" the melody is much different , but is a great blend of tension and lush layers.


32- Killing An Arab

Many of you might be surprised this one did nt place higher, the earlier punk years are not my favorite, this song is still great for when I do want punk though.


 

31- Cold

It wasn't until I listened to the remastered version that I really took note of the cello part at the beginning. Very dark and the lyrics are extra biting

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Gothtober : The Top 50 Cure Songs 50 -41

So for Gothober I am counting down the top 50 songs by the Cure. The reason for doing this is because I had 150 songs by the Cure on my iPod which was almost 3xs more than most bands so I needed to narrow it down to the best 50. So here are the 50 songs that are left on there making them them the top 50 songs, which I in turn have ranked for you.


50- 10 :15 Saturday Night 


From the 1979 "Three Imaginary Boys" album. The tension and restraint is what draws the line to separate post-punk from punk.





49-Give Me It 


Off "the Top" , this one has more anger and punk recklessness to it. The drums really help keep it from being a punk song.


48-In Your House 
This one from "Seventeen Seconds" has a beautifully gloomy guitar tone, but that is not where the expression ends as Robert Smith has dreamy and detached pondering to his vocal to contrast it.

 

47-Shiver and Shake
The guitar is perfect in it's chaos and the bass drives this song into the thunder of the drums. Hearing this live won me over.
 


46-Hungry Ghost 

You might be surprised that I have a Cure album from 2008 on the list. Well I think this song provides an argument for the fact that the band's newer material holds up against the classics, which is why they are one of the greatest bands ever.So it's too bad if your favorite band started sucking after a decade or so, Robert Smith proves there is no excuse.
 

45-Us or Them

"Blood Flowers" is part of the trilogy so I suppose that means, it should be filed alongside a"Pornography", this song makes a good argument to that point.
 


44-Sleep When I'm Dead

So the stuff from the "413 Dream" album is going to gravitate toward the bottom of the list, but for a band that has as many songs as the Cure does the fact that it made the top 50 is an accomplishment.
 


43-Numb

A drug song from 'Wild Mood Swings" which was an under rated album.
 


42-Object

If anyone doesn't believe the Cure used to be a punk band play this for them.
 



41- the End of the World

As far as singles go this is upbeat , but not as bright and cheery as some of his radio moments.