Modern Rock Tracks No. 1s - The Cure and "High"
For a band that has a lot of sullen goth-emo cred, The Cure really seems to knock it out of the park when they channel those presumably dark vibes into solid alt-rock-pop confections like "High"
The Cure - “High”
Weeks atop the Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart: 4 weeks (April 11 to May 2, 1992)
Previous Modern Rock #1 hit: U2 - “One”
Next Modern Rock #1 hit: Cracker - “Teen Angst (What the World Needs Now)”
Billboard Hot 100 chart toppers during this time:
Vanessa Williams - “Save The Best For Last” (5 total weeks, beginning 3/21/92 and ending 4/18/92)
Kris Kross - Jump (2 weeks, beginning 4/25/92)
Being a tangential fan of The Cure comes with some confusion. Most of the people I’ve encountered over the years seem to lust after The Cure because of Robert Smith’s proto-goth aesthetic: the heavy eyeliner, the crazy I-don’t-give-a-fuck haircut, the fish-out-of-water projection. This whole mystique made so many late-stage Gen X kids decide that “being goth” was a stylistic choice both in school and out of school. Granted, it’s not just The Cure that contributed to this: I feel like folks were informed as much by other bands like Nine Inch Nails and Marilyn Manson, among others, but really it’s The Cure that became the flag-bearers for Gen X and older Millennials to come off as cool by straying far away from societal norms related to their outward appearance.
I was never a goth kid. I was barely a grunge kid, to be honest. I was a nerd before it was cool to be a nerd, so that came with its own heavy burden of trying to fit in while everyone else was trying to look like they didn’t fit in. And even if I tried to dabble in the style of the times, I always did it far too late. Case in point: I got into the “grunge flannel” look, but in like 1997, many years removed from when flannel was in its heyday. Fortunately, I’ve finally made peace with my uncoolness, but thinking back on it, it was an unusual time for music and fashion.
Hell, just look at who’s #1 on the Hot 100 at this time. We go from living goddess Vanessa Williams to backwards-pants-wearing teens Kris Kross, and I swear there was a good long time where I saw neighborhood kids try to pull off the reversed jeans look and failed miserably. As I reflect on the music of this time, I can’t help but put the outward visual aesthetic of people’s clothing choices and how much music in the monoculture affected individual choices.
This is a very long-winded intro to The Cure’s latest Modern Rock Tracks chart topper, “High,” if only to point out that for all the talk about Robert Smith and The Cure, and how they present this morose, goth-infused sadness aesthetic, the singles off of the album “Wish” really presented a very different picture of the band, and it’s this aspect of their music that I appreciate the most. It’s actually energetic and hopeful sounding, almost to the point of being a pop-music confection to be enjoyed on a beautiful summer day, rather than a dour rebuke of society to be listlessly consumed while moodily sighing in the darkness of your parents’ basement.
This is The Cure that I know and love, even though their particular goth aesthetic never really settled in for me until long after I’d fallen in love with their biggest pop hits. Indeed, my earliest musical memories of The Cure include their late ‘80s pop juggernaut tracks like “Just Like Heaven,” which might be my very favorite. It’s upbeat, catchy, rock-driven pop, and hardly maintains a dour outlook on all the things. It’s a feel-good song, first and foremost. In most of my lived experience, prior to starting “Chart Chat,” I just never found myself diving into The Cure’s prodigious history.
Indeed, I admitted in my writeup of The Cure’s first MRT #1 single, “Fascination Street,” that I didn’t really get too deep into the band’s catalog until I started this project, and while I don’t have the bona fides to comment on the band’s more goth-laden music, I can see where they get that reputation based on solid tracks like “Fascination Street.” This is not to say that all of their non-pop-inflected songs are terrific; “Never Enough,” the band’s second MRT #1 hit, was not great, in my opinion.
So without any real time or interest in reviewing the band’s entire catalog, the only thing I had to inform me that The Cure was gothic and moody was popular culture and the clothing choices of my contemporaries. Probably the most obvious pop culture reference I can recall regarding The Cure and their dour outlook on things was from Adam Sandler’s character Robbie Hart in “The Wedding Singer,” when he sings about his breakup with his fiancee and admits that he was largely influenced by The Cure.
All of this creates a wonderful juxtaposition to “High,” a track that definitely doesn’t make you scream “somebody kill me please.” Quite the opposite, actually.
It begins and ends with a very unique music video, one that’s punctuated with an awful lot of colorful light projections, and the band playing practically in silhouette against the bright background. Eventually, Robert Smith goes from singing about a kite to literally being attached to one, and the entire experience seems to channel a happy breeziness both in his outward appearance in the video and in the lyrics themselves, which are reflective of the “high” Smith feels when he thinks about his connection with a love interest.
And when I see you happy as a girl
That swims in a world of a magic show
It makes me bite my fingers through
To think I could've let you go
And when I see you take the same sweet steps
You used to take, I say
"I'll keep on holding you in my arms so tight
I'll never let you slip away"
This isn’t a breakup song; this is a song written from the perspective of someone who may have come close to breaking up, but realized just how good he had it, and remarks on how lucky he is to not have lost this loved one. That’s pretty upbeat for a band whose dour outlook on things would presuppose you to believe that the song should be all about how the breakup made them feel sad and morose. Herein lies the issue for me: How do I make sense of the mental mixup between what I’m told The Cure is like (goth, dour, emo) and the tracks that make me like them the most (upbeat, loving, awesome)?
Everything about this track resonates positively with me. The guitar work tends more toward jangle pop than hard-hitting goth alt-rock, more inspired by R.E.M. than Nine Inch Nails. The song is energetic right from the start, with an up-tempo drum backbeat and occasional rhythm guitar flourishes that give me literal chills at times. And I’m feeling all this about a song that, full disclosure, I’ve almost certainly never heard before this week.
Strange, right? This song wasn’t the commercial success that some of their other tracks were in the late ‘80s and early ‘90s, but it was no slouch, either. In addition to topping the MRT charts for an entire month, it also managed a respectable #42 peak on the Hot 100 chart, and managed to be a top-10 hit in at least a half-dozen countries around the world. As the lead single off “Wish,” it helped drive the album to #2 on the Billboard 200 Album Chart, which speaks both to the prestige driving The Cure on the record charts but also the solid work they put into this album. So, yeah, it’s weird that this track wasn’t on my list of songs from the band that I’ve enjoyed over the years, but it’s definitely going to find a home on future playlists.
This won’t be the last time that The Cure appears in this space promoting “Wish,” and I expect to have similar glowing commentary about that track when the time comes. But for now, for all the talk about The Cure and their goth aesthetic, when it comes to their feel-good songs about love and happiness, this is, to me, where I find they’re at their very best, and I appreciate adding this track to my collection of truly enjoyable Cure songs.
Rating: 8/10
Chart Check: A look at other notable MRT chart songs from this time period
Lots of tracks peaked in the top 10 during The Cure’s monthlong run at the top in April 1992. I found myself looking at the comments from the YouTube fandom of these tracks and tried to feature the top comment from each track. Some of them, as in the case of Jah Wobble, really line up perfectly. Some, like the comment on David Byrne’s track, are way off. But hey, to each their own!
“She’s Mad” by David Byrne: I think, going forward, I might try to incorporate the initial comment on the YouTube videos I link to these tracks. For the #3 MRT peak of “She’s Mad,” David Byrne’s first trip back on the MRT charts since his band Talking Heads topped the charts with “Sax and Violins” a few weeks back, the first YouTube commenter writes, “The only thing better than David Byrne music is David Byrne videos.” You be the judge, as I think the video is light years better than the song, and the video is … fine. To each their own, gang, but no thanks, sir.
“Born of Frustration” by James: The top YouTube comment for “Born of Frustration” by James, which topped out on the MRT chart at #5 behind The Cure: “My 18yr old son came to me a few days ago and asked if I'd heard of a band called ‘James.’ I told him this is one of my favourite songs of all time. He was amazed that a dinosaur like myself had such good taste in music. Faith in humanity restored.” James launched in 1982 but really hit their stride in both the U.K. and the U.S. in the 1990s, and this is a solid track that exemplifies their alt-rock bona fides. Bonus points for the infusion of some horn music in the track as well — always a plus for me!
“Under The Bridge” by Red Hot Chili Peppers: The top YouTube comment on this track, arguably RHCP’s best song (it topped out at #6 on the MRT chart but hit #2 on the all-inclusive Billboard Hot 100): “My middle school history teacher loved the peppers. He would play them during class everyday! Rest In Peace Mr. Sweet!!” Indeed, EVERYONE plays this track every day, and its ubiquity speaks to its greatness. Well played, Mr. Sweet. Well played.
“Fabulous” by Happyhead: Here’s the top comment for this track, a #7 MRT hit for Happyhead: “Overlooked gem. I could play it over and over again. And I do.” The thing is, I could see playing this one over and over again. It’s got an earworm quality to it that makes it stick around long after it’s been played. The same can’t really be said of the band, who lacks any real internet presence (nothing on Wikipedia, weirdly). Still, solid track.
“Visions of You” by Jah Wobble’s Invaders of the Heart: This one stood out based on the band’s name, not realizing that Jah Wobble briefly played bass in Public Image Ltd. and that this track features Sinead O’Connor. The top YouTube comment on this #10 MRT chart track: “Tremendously ethereal and a reminder of how Sinead is missed. Those sinewy baselines are hypnotic from Jah.” This might be the most accurate comment of all, as the bass line on this track is really terrific, and it works well with O’Connor’s distinctive voice.