The Cure | 1981
The illusion is shattered
This wouldn't be a true Stormset blog without including loads of stuff about my ultimate fav band The Cure - in particular circa 1981 'Faith' era. If I could zip back in time, my ultimate dream gig would be to see The Cure play during The Picture Tour, 1981. My friend Mary saw them play live in their early days at the Arkaba Hotel in Adelaide (back in her young pub rock days) and she used to tell me how she remembered Robert Smith asking the audience to please give back his old school blazer after someone had stolen it off the stage during their set. Everything else she recalled of her gig memory had been filtered through pretty hazy party mist.
I'd built up this whole picture in my mind of her story being about one of the early 'Faith' shows. After all, Mary's recollections had been sparked by the sight of my much loved hand painted 'Faith' t-shirt (a painting I'd done of the misty cover image on a black long sleeved top), and was proudly wearing while on a horticulture excursion to the Botanic Gardens... (the very same excursion where one of the other students who mostly didn't wish to be there, tried to set fire to a heritage listed tree filled with baby possums). Anyway, then many years later I found out the Adelaide Show of The Picture Tour, originally booked for Thebarton Theatre, had been cancelled due to the band being completely exhausted. So it turns out they'd never even made it to my home town on The Picture Tour (mind you, I wouldn't have been even close to being old enough to go in the first place)... It was actually the 1980 tour when The Cure had played at the Arkaba Hotel that my friend had seen (which still would've been an awesome show).
- Ah the illusion is shattered.
The Picture Tour - Tour Brochure 1981
Still, I definitely wouldn't swap that experience in a million years for the experience of having actually met RS and given him my very own hand painted 'Faith' t-shirt as a present (2000 Blood Flowers Tour)... Now that really was the ultimate Cure adventure story.
By the way, apparently Robert did get his blazer back.
P.S. Still glad I never purchased that overpriced Picture Tour t-shirt off e-bay on the rebound after missing out on tickets to the Vivid Live Reflections - Trilogy show last time round.
