I’m not sure if there’s a band that I can claim as my favorite of all time, because the reality is I have a different favorite every day. This process of choosing one favorite over all others seems futile. But, for me, The Cure, is about as close as it gets. For me, their music is irreplaceable. There are things that I feel when I put on a Cure record that I can’t experience with anything else. For the month of June, I hope to share some of this as a I cover a different Cure song each day – counting down from #30 to #1. And, in this case, I have no qualms stating my #1. #30DaysofTheCure
U.S. original release: Disintegration (1989) - Track 6
Ranking: 12
The stark contrast between U.K. and U.S. audiences is crystal clear when it comes to this classic, imperial-era Cure song. “Lullaby” was chosen as the lead single off Disintegration in the U.K., and climbed all the way to #5 on the charts. Meanwhile, “Lullaby” was passed over as the lead single in the U.S., where “Fascination Street” was chosen instead. The song was eventually picked as the second single in the U.S., but barely made a dent on the charts. My conclusion: U.K. once again proved their musical taste superiority over the U.S. “Lullaby” is a fantastic track – and could’ve easily slipped into my own Top 10 here.
A fellow music fan in the Twitterverse referred to “Lullaby” as a jaunt. I can’t think of a better word to describe the track. There’s a rhythm on the song that seems staccato in one sense and legato in another. When I first heard it, it felt like my body was learning an entirely new groove. On the instrumental side of things, the song is pure genius. Every element seems to further the story of a spiderman closing in on the protagonist – from the plucking violins that mimic the movement of a spider’s legs to the sweeping string overtures that spin a web of horror. “Lullaby” is timeless. I saw The Cure perform it in 2016 at MSG. But it felt like I was right back in the beautiful spring of 1989 when Disintegration descended on the music world.
“And there is nothing I can do when I realize with fright that the spiderman is having me for dinner tonight.”