Curepedia: An A-Z of The Cure by Simon Price

Curepedia: An A-Z of The Cure Reviews

• 
  Alex Sarll

  Simon Price's previous band book, Everything, covered the Manic Street Preachers, a group who, at least back then when they'd barely begun their trudge into middle-aged mediocrity, very much had a Story. The Cure, on the other hand, have been around for so long that, while they've made many excellent records (including one of the best albums ever, IDST) and got into plenty of scrapes, all of that would risk being overwhelmed by lists of tours and recording sessions if you tried to cover it by following them steadily through the years. So if chronological won't work, what's the other obvious organising principle? Exactly. Everything did have interstitial chapters on aspects worthy of thematic consideration, but this takes that to the next level, inevitable inclusions (albums, key songs, personnel) joined by some more surprising ones - the entries on associated (and indeed Associates) acts weren't too much of a shock, or even Alcohol, but I was not expecting Pissing. Not all of them can transcend the plainly informative, but that has its uses too, and there's almost always some flourish, wider angle or terrible joke to make this work for linear reading as well as reference. It goes wider than just the band, of course, through digging into their hinterland and the wider ecosystem around them; one notion that keeps cropping up is that their worldwide success comes down to the fact that while there is, mercifully, only one Crawley, there are an awful lot of places like Crawley. Among the peripheral entries that most interested me was that for Flexipop, a magazine of whose existence I was aware and whose headline gimmick is self-explanatory, but of whose scurrilous vibe and general deal I had been utterly ignorant. The hardback is beautifully put together, and though the alphabetical order does wobble here and there (Tim Pope is after Pornography, as it were), the facts, as far as I can ascertain while being by no means the most hardcore Cure fan in the world (hardCure?), are solid; the worst I spotted was two Crow films conflated and a passing lumping-in of Judge Dredd as a superhero. Which is better than Amazon Music can say - after Curepedia reminded me how much I like Blue Sunshine and I gave that a play, Bezos' 'informative' Chart Show-style pop-up claimed the Glove was Robert Smith and Siouxsie! Honestly. The surprises in the book, on the other hand, come more from the real world than bizarre inventions; I'd had no idea the archetypal goths shared members with the Thompson Twins and Johnny Hates Jazz, two eighties acts where even I draw the line, and nor was I aware of the generally low esteem in which Wild Mood Swings is held, when for me it's firmly ensconced as the last good album.
  
  And yes, there is something for every letter, with only a little reaching. If anything, I was surprised at the distribution - R is only a few paragraphs longer than Q!
• 
  MKF

  So much information to take in so I just skimmed it and read bits and pieces and some of the sections of interest.
• 
  Debby

  Curepedia by Simon Price is a must have for fans of the Cure.
  
  I was excited to read this book as my husband has been a super fan since the early 1980's and I've spent the last forty something years listening to their music.
  
  Anything I'd ever want to know about Robert Smith and the rest of the band seems to be answered and answered well! I'll be spouting trivia now like a pro.
  
  If I have any complaints, it's that this books isn't filled with photos - at least the ARC I received wasn't. Their look is such a huge part of the band, it seemed odd that it wasn't photo filled.
  
  I'll be buying this to gift to my husband upon release.
  
  Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC. All opinions are my own.
• 
  Leonardo

  I want to thank Netgalley and the author for providing me with an advanced review copy of this book.
  
  This book is an extremely detailed book about the Cure. It's literally an encyclopedia-like publication as the name implies. Inn many places it has quite interesting insights into the lives and experiences of the group and its members. However, as any reference book, it is really designed to be read in snippets as opposed to in the manner of a novel or long style story.
  
  Recommended for the true Cure afficionado. More of a curiosity for the casual reader.
• 
  Lisa Davidson

  I would have loved this more if it had tried harder to be a real coffee table book. Instead of an easy-to-read layout with pictures, this really is like an encyclopedia with fact after fact after fact, and I'm too old for this kind of print. That doesn't mean I don't think Cure fans should read it! They really are a legend and everything about them is fascinating. Thanks to NetGalley for letting me read this
• 
  Booksandcoffeemx

  I love music, and I jumped when I saw this beauty on my book mail. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗖𝘂𝗿𝗲 is a band that I listened for so many years, I still do.
  It was one of my first live concerts during my high school years and I had the best time!
  
  This book is a complete treasure, you’ll find everything you need to know about the band. A must have for every Cure fan or if you want to know more about them.
  
  Thank you Dey Street Books for this fantastic book.
  
  𝗖𝘂𝗿𝗲𝗽𝗲𝗱𝗶𝗮 by Simon Price released December 12, 2023.
  
• 
  Pennie

  I was very excited when I found out that I won this through a Goodreads giveaway. I was however disappointed some. I expected it to be a tad different. The outside is gorgeous. The inside reads exactly like an encyclopedia, which was great, but I felt it fell short on photos and facts. Some were a tad inaccurate.
• 
  Stephanie

  I didn't read every single page of this, because it literally is a dictionary. I love Robert Smith as much as the next misunderstood 80s girl, but dang. It was really cool to flip through, though! I'm gonna keep this in mind in case I get covid again... 😆♥️
• 
  brianna

  me and my mom were equally excited for this book
  ( just wished it had pictures😞 )
• 
  Chris Breitenbach

  This was fun until it became exhausting-- the minutia and repetition are a lot, though I suppose this wasn't made to be a linear read and was intended more as a work of reference.
• 
  Mel

  Definitely an unofficial book....
  
  Reads like an encyclopedia and there are no pictures :/
• 
  Laurence

  There are a few minor errors but this is a very interesting, insightful and fun read. Very well written and enjoyable.
• 
  Killian

  
  https://nomoreworkhorse.com/2023/11/0...