Wish (The Cure album)
Template:Short description Template:Use dmy dates {{safesubst:#invoke:Unsubst-infobox||$params=italic_title,name,type,longtype,artist,cover,border,alt,caption,released,recorded,venue,studio,genre,length,language,label,director,producer,compiler,chronology,prev_title,prev_year,year,next_title,next_year,misc|$extra=italic_title,longtype,border,caption,language,director,compiler,chronology,year,misc|$aliases=italic title>italic_title,Italic title>italic_title,Name>name,Type>type,image>cover,Cover>cover,Border>border,Alt>alt,Caption>caption,Longtype>longtype,Artist>artist,Released>released,Recorded>recorded,Venue>venue,Studio>studio,Genre>genre,Length>length,Language>language,Label>label,Director>director,Producer>producer,Compiler>compiler,Chronology>chronology,Misc>misc|$flags=override|$B={{#ifeq:{{#invoke:Is infobox in lead|main|[Ii]nfobox [Aa]lbum}}|true|{{#if:Template:Has short description | |{{#if: 21 April 1992 | Template:Short description}}}}}}{{#invoke:Infobox|infobox}}Template:Template otherTemplate:Category handlerTemplate:Main other{{#invoke:Check for unknown parameters|check|unknown=Template:Main other|preview=Page using Template:Infobox album with unknown parameter "_VALUE_"|ignoreblank=y|italic_title |type |name |image |cover |border |alt |caption |longtype |artist |released |recorded |venue |studio |genre |length |language |label |director |producer |compiler |prev_title|prev_year|next_title|next_year|chronology|year|misc}}{{#if:{{#invoke:String|match|error_category=Music infoboxes with Module:String errors|A|1=Entreat1991Show1993studioWishTheCureWish.jpgthe Cure21 April 1992Fall 1991 – January 1992<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>The Manor (Shipton-on-Cherwell, England)* Alternative rock
- gothic rock<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
- jangle pop<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation
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- shoegaze<ref>https://therockreview.net/the-cure-wish-eng/</ref>66:23Fiction* David M. Allen
- Robert Smithx|2=</?t[drh][ >]|nomatch=}}|Template:Main other}}Template:Main other}}
Wish is the ninth studio album by the English rock band the Cure, released on 21 April 1992<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> by Fiction Records in the United Kingdom and Elektra Records in the United States.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Wish was the most commercially successful album in the band's career, debuting at number one in the UK and number two in the US.
On 25 November 2022, a remastered 30th-anniversary deluxe edition of Wish was released, containing four previously unreleased demos with vocals, instrumental demos, the Lost Wishes instrumental cassette and remix versions.<ref name=":0">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Recording
The record is the final studio album by the Cure to feature drummer Boris Williams and the first to feature guitarist/keyboardist Perry Bamonte, who previously worked as a roadie for the band,<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> as well as being the last album to feature guitarist Porl Thompson for sixteen years.<ref name="notes">Template:Cite AV media notes</ref>
Whilst retaining their trademark gothic rock sound and mood on some tracks, Wish often found the band emphasizing the lighter, broader guitar-driven alternative rock direction that was hinted on their previous three records. After recording several demos in early 1991, the official recording sessions for the album commenced in September 1991 and lasted around six months. According to Thompson, Wish was recorded on 48 tracks and "almost everything was used".<ref name="musicfanclubs.org">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Robert Smith also revealed the hit song "Friday I'm in Love" was accidentally sped up a quarter-tone sharp on the tape, halfway between D and E-flat. Smith commented on the speeding up of the tape of the song in a 1993 interview: "[…] that was an accident. I was playing with the vari-speed and forgot to turn it off. But the whole feel changed, and the fact that it's the only song on Wish that's not in concert pitch really lifts it out and makes it sound different. After working on the record for months, hearing something a quarter-tone off makes your brain take a step backwards."<ref name="musicfanclubs.org"/> Smith also revealed that the "detuning" of the guitars played a role in the unique "sound" of the album, as did the subliminal overdubs and the extensive use of feedback.<ref name="musicfanclubs.org"/> "A lot of things on our record that sound like heavy chorusing are actually just detuned instruments. The only drawback to that is onstage it's very confusing sometimes, especially with lots of phasing effects going on. It turns into this overwhelming pulsing sound, and you can't hear anything."<ref name="musicfanclubs.org"/>
Smith also revealed that the songs "Mesmerise" by Chapterhouse and "Human" by The Human League were an influence on the album, commenting on both songs in 1993: "For every album we do, I assemble a bunch of songs that have something that I'm trying to capture. For Wish, I would listen to 'Mesmerise' by Chapterhouse for its feeling of abandon and 'Human' by The Human League. You couldn't spot anything sonically or structurally that would influence anything we did, but there's an indefinable something that I'm trying to capture. One night I must have played 'Mesmerise' 20 times, drinking and turning it louder and louder, putting myself into a trance."<ref name="musicfanclubs.org"/>
Release
The album's lead single was "High", released on 16 March 1992.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> The single peaked at number eight on the UK Singles Chart, number 42 on the US Billboard Hot 100, and number one on the Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart.<ref>Official Charts</ref><ref name="billboard100">Template:Cite magazine</ref><ref name="modernrocktracks">"[[[:Template:BillboardURLbyName]] The Cure Album & Song Chart History]" Billboard Alternative Songs for The Cure. Nielsen Business Media</ref> The album's second single, "Friday I'm in Love", was released on 15 May 1992, a Friday,<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> later reaching number six on the UK Singles Chart, number 18 on the Billboard Hot 100, and number one on the Modern Rock Tracks chart.<ref name="uksingles">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="billboard100"/><ref name="modernrocktracks"/> The final single was "A Letter to Elise", issued on 5 October 1992.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> This song reached number twenty-eight in the UK and number two on the Modern Rock Tracks chart.<ref name="uksingles"/><ref name="modernrocktracks"/>
Wish was released on 21 April. It received positive reviews upon release, including a four-star review in Rolling Stone that stated: "For its cult of millions, the Cure offers the only kind of optimism that makes sense."<ref name="RS"/> Wish was also the band's overall highest-charting album, and most commercially successful in the band's career. Upon release, Wish would soon debut at number one on the UK Albums Chart, and number two on the US Billboard 200.<ref name="uksingles"/><ref name="allmusic.com award">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> It also reached number one on Cash BoxTemplate:'s Top 200 Pop Albums chart in the US on 16 May 1992.<ref name="cashbox"/> Wish was nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Alternative Music Album in 1993.
On 16 November 1993, a limited-edition EP titled Lost Wishes was released on cassette with four new tracks on it.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> In 1995, Q included Wish in its publication "In Our Lifetime: QTemplate:'s 100 Best Albums 1986–94", a list compiled to celebrate its 100th issue.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> In 2000 it was voted number 646 in Colin Larkin's All Time Top 1000 Albums.<ref name="Larkin">Template:Cite book</ref>
Reissues
On 13 April 2018, in an interview with BBC Radio 6 Music, Robert Smith confirmed that the deluxe edition of Wish had been finished.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> On 28 July 2022, the band announced a remastered and expanded 30th-anniversary deluxe edition of Wish, releasing it on 25 November 2022. The 30th-anniversary edition contains 24 previously unreleased demos, out-takes, the Lost Wishes EP and a collection of 12-inch remixes of all three singles from the Wish period.<ref name=":0" /> The recordings were remastered by Smith and Miles Showell at Abbey Road Studios.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Track listing
All songs composed by the Cure (Perry Bamonte, Simon Gallup, Robert Smith, Porl Thompson, Boris Williams). Template:Track list
2022 deluxe edition
Template:Track listing Template:Track listing
Personnel
All credits taken from liner notes <ref name="notes"/>
The Cure
- Robert Smith – vocals, guitars, six-string bass, keyboards
- Perry Bamonte – guitars, keyboards, six-string bass on "Friday I'm In Love" and "A Letter to Elise"
- Porl Thompson – guitars
- Simon Gallup – bass, keyboards
- Boris Williams – drums, percussion
Additional musicians
- Kate Wilkinson – viola on "To Wish Impossible Things"
Production
- Producers: Dave Allen, the Cure
- Engineers: Dave Allen, Steve Whitfield
- Assistant engineer: Chris Bandy
- Mixing: Mark Saunders
- Mixing assistants: Andy Baker, William Parry, Danton Supple, Mark Warner
- Album cover: Parched Art (Porl Thompson and Andy Vella)
Charts
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Weekly charts
| Chart (1992) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Belgian Albums (IFPI)<ref name="MM-1992-05-30">Template:Cite magazine</ref> | 2 |
| Danish Albums (Hitlisten)<ref name="MM-1992-05-30"/> | 7 |
| European Albums (Music & Media)<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> | 6 |
| Finnish Albums (Suomen virallinen lista)<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> | 18 |
| Irish Albums (IFPI)<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> | 2 |
| Italian Albums (Musica e dischi)<ref>Template:Cite magazine Select "Album" in the "Tipo" field, type "Cure" in the "Artista" field, type "Wish" in the "Titolo" field and press "cerca".</ref> | 7 |
| Portuguese Albums (AFP)<ref name="MM-1992-05-30"/> | 7 |
| Spanish Albums (AFYVE)<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> | 17 |
| US Top 200 Pop Albums (Cash Box)<ref name="cashbox">Template:Cite magazine</ref> | 1 |
| Chart (2022) | Peak position |
|---|
Year-end charts
| Chart (1992) | Position | |
|---|---|---|
| Canada Top Albums/CDs (RPM)<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> | 62 | |
| European Albums (Music & Media)<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> | 28 | |
| German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation | CitationClass=web
}}</ref> |
35 |
| New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation | CitationClass=web
}}</ref> |
32 |
| UK Albums (OCC)<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> | 82 | |
| US Billboard 200<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> | 55 |
Certifications and sales
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