Wish [30th Anniversary Edition]

by The Cure

Overview

The Cure's 1989 album Disintegration was the band's inarguable artistic peak, and surprisingly also their biggest commercial success to date. A rare feat for any group, but especially unexpected when considering how Disintegration abandoned much of the pop excitement the Cure had been working with through the mid-'80s and returned to the drawn-out and depressive textural rock of their early days. Disintegration's grim grandeur and epic presentation had an air of finality, and its perfect synthesis of everything the band had explored leading up to it put the Cure in a very difficult spot when it was time to follow up. Almost three years passed before 1992's Wish arrived, continuing Disintegration's slow-moving torment on songs like "Apart" and the violin-underscored "To Wish Impossible Things," but bringing back melody and upbeat tempos to a handful of standout tracks. Bandleader/songwriter Robert Smith had established a style that evoked childlike playfulness and wonderment on the Cure's earlier pop-leaning singles, and the happier, more energetic moments on Wish find that style coming into its own. While "Friday I'm in Love" became one of the band's most popular songs and a definitive moment for early-'90s alternative pop on the whole, Smith's knack for bittersweet melodies and arrangements that take their time unfolding are better exemplified in Wish's less ubiquitous tracks. The gorgeous midtempo pop of "A Letter to Elise" is as vulnerable as it is deftly constructed, with guitar and synth countermelodies gradually stacking as the song builds. "Doing the Unstuck" is similarly dense, with its repeated refrain of "Let's get happy!" suggesting some winking self-awareness on Smith's part. Wish splits the difference between Disintegration-esque dreariness and the kind of glum pop Smith was a master of at this point. Moving seamlessly from the detached social anxiety of an obligatory music industry party on first track "Open" to genuine optimism and lovestruck devotion on "High" sets the tone for Wish. It's an album that can't help but live in the shadow of its immediate predecessor to some extent, but manages to carve out an identity of its own by examining the extremes of Smith's songwriting personality --- crushing despair and whimsical pop --- and making intentional space for both. ~ Fred Thomas

Product Details

Release Date:	01/27/2023
Label:	Elektra
UPC:	0603497837830
Rank:	4456

Tracks

Disc 1

1. Open
2. High
3. Apart
4. From the Edge of the Deep Green Sea
5. Wendy Time
6. Doing the Unstuck

Disc 2

7. Friday I'm in Love
8. Trust
9. A Letter to Elise
10. Cut
11. To Wish Impossible Things
12. End

Album Credits

Performance Credits

The Cure   Primary Artist
Boris Williams   Drums,Percussion
Porl Thompson   Guitar,Keyboards,Saxophone
Perry Bamonte   Bass,Guitar,Keyboards,6-String Bass
Simon Gallup   Bass,Keyboards,Guitar (Bass)
Robert Smith   Bass,Guitar,Vocals,Keyboards,Lead Vocals,String Bass,6-String Bass,Guitar (Bass)
Katie Wilkinson Khoroshunin   Viola
Kate Wilkinson   Viola

Technical Credits

David M. Allen   Engineer,Producer
Steve Whitfield   Engineer
The Cure   Producer
Shaun DeFeo   Mixing Engineer,Mixing Assistant
Andy Baker   Mixing Engineer,Mixing Assistant
Boris Williams   Composer
Shankar   Composer
Mark Saunders   Mixing,Mixing Engineer
Porl Thompson   Composer
Perry Bamonte   Composer
Danton Supple   Mixing Engineer,Mixing Assistant
Chris Bandy   Assistant Engineer
Simon Gallup   Composer
Peter Gabriel   Composer
Mark Warner   Mixing Engineer,Mixing Assistant
Roy Spong   Mixing
Bryan "Chuck" New   Mixing
William Parry   Mixing Engineer,Mixing Assistant
Robert Smith   Mixing,Composer,Lyricist,Producer,Mastering Engineer,Mixing,Remastering,Sleeve Notes
Bryan Chuck   Mixing
Dave Allen   Mixing,Engineer,Producer
Miles Showell   Remastering,Mastering Engineer
Paul Cox   Photography
Johnny Black   Sleeve Notes
Bill Parry   Mixing Engineer,Mixing Assistant