The Cure Album: “Staring at the Sea: The Singles”

"Staring at the Sea" is a collection of singles from the band's albums from "Three Imaginary Boys" (released in America as "Boys Don't Cry," with a few variations) in 1979 up through "Head on the Door" in 1985. This album provides a fine panorama of the Cure's progression from a power (punk) trio (Killing an Arab, Boys Don't Cry), through the heavily synthesized sounds of Faith (Other Voices), the gothic, drum machine of Pornography (The Hanging Garden), to the Cure's most complex (and commercially successful) arrangements in Head on the Door (Inbetween Days, Close to Me). New fans will instantly fall in love with Boys Don't Cry, Love Cats, Caterpillar, Inbetween Days and Close to Me. "Killing an Arab" was the band's first single, and despite its name, is merely an adaptation of Albert Camus' "The Stranger," not a reflection of any racial animosity. "Charlotte Sometimes" is a gem on this album. It was never released on a full-length album, yet it is a favorite of many Cure fans; the studio version is a bit sluggish, though, and fans will find that songs like "Let's Go to Bed," "The Walk," and "Charlotte" (though cleverly appealing as mid-80s antiquities) are literally transformed by the performances of these songs in the live CDs "Show" and "Paris." This compilation is outstanding, though. New fans are encouraged to check out "Galore," which is a collection of more recent singles that most people are more familiar with, but when you are ready to fall in love with the Cure, and you will, this album should immediately become part of your CD collection.

Pro: It culls all of The Cure's singles from their early period.

Con: If you want stuff like "Lovesong", "Just Like Heaven", and "Friday I'm In Love", it aint on here. That's all on "Galore", which picks up where this leaves off, chronologically.

Pro: Their early singles are excellent.

Con: But a lot of The Cure's best songs are non-singles. Buy this first. If you like it, buy all of the studio albums in which these songs come from.

So yes, this is an excellent compilation album. If you're new to the band, buy this and "Galore". It covers pretty much every single the band put out, even the ones that tanked.

"Staring at the Sea" is the better of the two, as their earlier singles are stronger overall (even though the band's most well known/successful singles came later in their career). From the Middle Eastern flavored punk of "Killing an Arab" to the shimmering, nocturnal pop of "A Night Like This", and everything in between.

And like a sandwich, there's some good stuff in between. The pure pop bliss of "Boys Don't Cry" and "Close To Me". The goth/new wave/pop masterpiece, "A Forest". The tribal gloom of "Other Voices". The tin pan alley, music hall romp of pop perfection that is "The Lovecats". The downbeat punk of "Play For Today" and "Primary". The minimalistic goth of "The Hanging Garden". The dated-but-still-fun synth pop of "Let's Go To Bed" and "The Walk". The jangly new-wave/punk mashup of "Jumping Someone Else's Train". And so forth..

With 17 songs, all of which range from 'good' to 'masterpiece', you can't really go wrong here. I would still recommend just buying all their studio albums, but this is a good place to start if you're not sure..

Best of the Best: A Forest, Primary, Charlotte Sometimes, The Lovecats, Jumping Someone Else's Train, Other Voices, Close To Me.

The original tape (yes I said tape as in cassette - released in 1986) had all of these songs merely as Side A. Side B had 12 bonus b-side tracks which can be found on Join the Dots, released 19 years later. Until then, the analog version of Staring at the Sea was the only place to find such tracks as New Day, I'm Cold, Throw Your Foot and and Mr. Pink Eyes other than tracking down the original 45s and 12" records. This CD is The Cure in it's prime, but for an old fan feels like only buying half an album - and only the half I already have at that. If you want the B side of the tape, go buy Join the Dots instead.

God, I love this album. Everytime I pop it in, I can sing every song and match the expressions Robert's voice makes (i.e. "I miss you.. HISS.. oh lovecats...babbadabbdabba). This album defines the late 70's-80's Cure and the raw intensity that makes this band a legend. Galore has influence, but not as romantic and simplistic as the groove and hush of the Cure's older music. "Faith" and "In Your House" are two songs that could easily have made the cut on this album (a little darker of course)...

This album, while some fans I'm sure would argue, can make a true Cure fan out of you. It's beginning years are somewhat darker, but lead up to "Head On The Door" tracks which are lighter yet still swelled with emotive power.

Open your ears and feel the breeze...

This was the 1st Cure album I had bought, and I really wasn't sure what to expect. The only songs I was familiar with were "Boys Don't Cry", "In Between Days", & "Close To Me". Wow! Everysong is great, and very diverse styles & moods as the album goes on. After that I had gone out & purchased just about all of their albums. My only gripe is that it needs to be remastered! How about a 20th Anniversery re-release???