May 1988 - Cure News #5
 

cure news number five

May 1988

hello

 there's not much news to report since i last wrote. unfortunately "hot hot hot" received very little airplay in the uk and subsequently didn't set the charts alight - such a pity because the video was brilliant! on a brighter note, the usa's "star hits" magazine (sister magazine to the uk's smash hits) readers' poll the results were excellent, with the cure achieving a top three position in virtually every category.


the response to "the cure in orange" video competition was enormous - for those of you who still can't place the lyrics, the answers are as follows:
1) a strange day
2) give me it
3) three imaginary boys
4) 100 years
5) play for today

congratulations to our 10 lucky winners; martin garish, andrew shearer, gavin little, lesley fradley, colin goodwin, billy armit, jm leadbeater, becky allsopp, gary moore and hassni who will have received their prizes by now.

that's nearly it for this time. i hope you enjoy reading the following selection of questions and answers. as several of you have asked robert what your favorite song is actually about, i've decided to introduce a new section, taking each track on each album in turn; asking robert to give a brief outline about the inspiration behind the songs. where better to start than at the beginning? - this issue features "three imaginary boys". i hope you like it.

 love janie

 cure news number five - questions and answers

(all answers, as usual, by robert)

 .....february, march, april, may...four months spent coming up with ideas and writing, writing, writing! Porl and Janet did the decent thing in March and tied the knot....

the rumour that you're quitting, despite your denial in the last cure news continues to spread - can you again deny this?
i deny it i deny it - not guilty! we are rehearsing new songs in june, and recording an album after the summer.

assuming you can deny the above, what's going on currently? have you started working on your solo album? is it true that the next cure album will be called "a dream of deception". when can we expect a new single?
my solo album is ready to be caught - but i'm not sure if i will go into the studio before or after the cure stuff is done. the working titles are still "a dream of deception" and "wild mood swings", but nothing will be released on record until next year. however, a video of a day in the life of the cure on tour, plus all the 'kiss me' videos, will be out in late summer. possible title "when you never come back".

were you disappointed that "hot hot hot" didn't do well in the uk charts?
no - i never expect anything we do to chart.

what do you think about your success in america's "star hits" magazine readers' poll?
i was surprised - cure fans don't usually write in to magazines (or that's what i pretend anyway!)

did the short film played before the kissing tour concerts have a title? what were you saying in it?
it was called "eyemon" and will also be part of the "never come back" video. it was a recital of an ancient japanese tea ceremony... (parched art being obsessed with tea and contemplation...)

at the birmingham nec concert you took an object from your pocket resembling three silverrings (?)
which you held throughout "charlotte sometimes". what are they? where did they come from? the object was a sort of silver chain link wristlet that someone had thrown up onto the stage, and i liked it.

what do you do / how do you feel 10 minutes before going on stage?
excited / apprehensive / bemused...(and sometimes a bit dizzy!)

do you ever find it difficult to get along with the rest of the band while traveling?
everyone hate lol because he chain smokes, but no one ever really falls out - we know it will end.

what do you say before "hot hot hot"?
"she maybe the face i can't forget" in my worst charles aznavour voice! - i don't know why.

who was the lady in "the walk" video - what was her reaction to you?
she was a sign language teacher / interpreter. she was a bit wary, but ended up liking us. i think.

what do you think about the very high cost of your early, now rare, recordings?
the singles and b sides are all on the "standing on a beach" cassette - and all the other recordings are available on cd at normal price. so i don't understand why anyone would pay a high price.

do you enjoy being interviewed? what do you think of 'pushy' interviewers who pry into your private life?
i hate interviews, and am currently adamant that i will never speak again...

when are you getting married?
on my wedding day!

of all the nick-names you've been given, which (if any) do you like and which do you object to?
i like "robin" (from "hush hush whisper who dares christopher robin is saying his prayers") - a sarcastic nick-name i got around "the top" time, and i hate anything with bob in it.

what's your worst vice?
drinking.

what's the most bizarre thing you've ever done?
there are a million things i can't believe - climbing round the outside of the paris hilton from balcony to balcony on the 7the floor at 4am in the rain is one, water-skiing as a dare at 7am in the lake district is another, climbing into edinburgh zoo at midnight is another...i can't go on...

what personal qualities do you admire most in a) yourself, b) other people?
i like my sense of the absurd - it saves me - and i like perception in others. and honesty.

what epitaph would you like on your tombstone?
i am not here.

what's your definition of the perfect cure fan?
a sincere individualist with a hatred of fashion, bigotry, and soulessness.

what do you think of fans who hassle you?
not much.

when a fan approaches you in the street / supermarket / pub etc.. how do you prefer their reaction to be?
friendly.

how do you feel about fans getting injured at concerts; either by other over excited fans or by bouncers?
we take a lot of precautions, but some injury seems to be inevitable - although thankfully infrequent. over excitement is excusable - violence isn't.

do you ever pick out a face in the audience and focus on that person throughout the performance?
sometimes i pick out a face - usually just for one song - but i have sometimes stared for an hour.... 

inspirations number one - "three imaginary boys"
10.15 saturday night self explanatory - me sitting in the kitchen sink waiting for a phone call... accuracy the ease and desire of hurting someone you sometimes love.

grinding halt another entropy and apathy song - how i sometimes (often) felt on waking.
object a decisive sneer hiding a sour desire.
subway song a story i was told...
meathook a strained comparison between the chart pop song catch and revolting dead meat?
so what me drunk!!!
fire in cairo an eastern fantasy...
it's not you another hateful song.
three imaginary boys a dream i had.
foxy lady michael wanted to sing a song - and i didn't like the idea of him singing my words- so we picked a cover version. this one was chosen because it was unlikely at the time!

what historical figure would you most like to go back in time and talk to?
at the moment i would really like to meet john dee, the court physician / magician / astronomer at the time of elizabeth I, to see what he really knew...

what three possessions would you want with you if stranded on a desert island?
my telescope, my bed, and a beach ball.

what are the first and last gigs you went to?
the first wes i.o.w festival with my brother in 1970 - the first on my own was status quo in 1972 (i think - it could have been the mahavishuu orchestra) and the last was a flamenco group on a day off in spain.

what news paper do you buy?
usually none, occasionally the guardian or the evening standard. i generally read teletext.

what's your favorite tv programme?
tickle on the tum, eastern eye, hill street blues, the re-runs of the man from uncle.

what's your favourite and most hated tv commercial?
i like the pepe jeans advert because of the music and the colours, and i hate so many that i'll just put down the first three that come into my head: hofmeister, miller lite, abbey something with jonathan ross.

what music did you grow up to?
everyone from bach to beatles to bowie to beefheart to the banshees to kate bush to john mayall and alex harvey...etc...

what's your favorite childhood memory?
coming home from school in summer.

what made you and mary decide to 'adopt' two orphans? how does the scheme work? do you receive progress reports? do they know who you are? have you any plans to meet them?
mary adopted a haitian boy and i adopted a guatemalan girl - we pay an annual amount for their education and we get progress reports and pictures; and we send them postcards and photos of england and snow and punks and fireworks and anything else that will disturb them!

what cure record do you listen to the most at home?
all in equally small amounts. except "three imaginary boys".

when playing live do you try to please yourself or your audience most?
deciding what to play is generally with the audience in mind - how to play is with us.

do you have any close friends who were original fans?
yes - four of five.

the end

(Text & photos from thecure.com)

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