The Cure Then: In 1976, Robert Smith, Lol Tolhurst and Michael Dempsey came together as the Easy Cure. Playing dark, nervy guitar-pop, they caught the attention of Polydor Records with the Albert Camus-inspired "Killing an Arab." The demo was released on indie label Small Wonder at the end of 1978 under the band name The Cure. The single was later re-released on the new Fiction label in '79 and the band began its first U.K. tour with Siouxsie and the Banshees. At this time their debut album, Three Imaginary Boys, spawned the singles "Boys Don't Cry" and "Jumping Someone Else's Train." After adding Matthieu Hartley (keyboards), they released two more albums and began their first world tour. Smith spent most of '83 touring and recording with the Banshees. He also formed Glove with Banshees bassist Steve Severin. Smith returned to the Cure the next year for The Top album. That year's Standing on A Beach: The Singles collection established the band as a major presence in the U.S. The double-length Kiss Me, Kiss Me, Kiss Me gave the band its first U.S. top-40 hit, "Just Like Heaven," in 1987. The group's next album, 1989's Disintegration, went top 20 in the U.S., where "Love Song" became a huge hit (#2 US) and sent the band to American stadiums. Now: 1992 saw the release of Wish, which went to #2 in the U.S. and spawned "High" and a U.S. Top 20 hit "Friday I'm in Love." A lawsuit against the band by Tolhurst, who had left the group, stalled the Cure for the next few years. Wild Mood Swings was finally released in 1996 but didn't receive much notice. In 1997, the Cure released another compilation, Galore, which featured a new song, "Wrong Number" and toured clubs to promote it. They also headlined the fifth annual HFSmas Nutcracker concert in December of '97. In 1999, the Cure released Bloodflowers and after their supporting tour Smith announced it would be the last for the band. by CLB