There’s a disconnect between the post title and hero image because, well, these old Guitar Player (RIP) covers have nothing to do with the editorial team at gear marketplace Reverb.com. But seeing the latter’s recent feature on The Cure, I was reminded that for a player with the longevity, influence, and distinctiveness that Robert Smith has, he’s never really gotten his due in the world of guitar-related press. As a devoted collector of guitar magazines for nigh on 20 years, I can recall Smith featuring on covers just twice (a stat backed up by this fan press archive) and non-cover features thrice more, and only once in the UK press which, until very recently, had three long-running monthly guitar-centric mags.
Scans, and some transcriptions, of those articles exist online so for a walk down memory lane (at least it was for me), here’s some links:
- Guitar Player September 1992, circa Wish (plain text)
- Guitar World June 1996, circa Wild Mood Swings
- Guitar Player April 2000, circa Bloodflowers (plain text)
- Total Guitar Summer 2003
- Guitar World November 2004, circa The Cure
And while not an interview with Smith, Australia’s Mixdown ran a feature last Summer about his gear through the years – not completely thorough, as he’s used a lot of different equipment since the late 1970s, but certainly a decent overview
And finally, back to that Reverb piece that set this whole thing off. It’s a video that attempts to recreate some of the band’s signature sounds via readily-available effects pedals. Not actually that difficult, since Smith’s gear choices have been decided proletarian over the years – the man loves his Boss. But it’s a fun feature that reinforces the fact that you don’t need a lot to do a whole lot.
How To Sound Like The Cure | Potent Pairings @ Reverb.com
