Seventeen Seconds [Original recording remastered]

The Cure | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (April 4, 2006)
• Original Release Date: 1980
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Original recording remastered
• Label: Elektra / Wea
• ASIN: B000ENC72W
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Audio Cassette  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (91 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #14,144 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #48 in Music > Alternative Rock > Goth & Industrial > Goth
  • #90 in Music > Alternative Rock > New Wave & Post-Punk > Post-Punk

Editorial Reviews

The Cure, Seventeen Seconds

Originally a goth-flavored post-punk outfit, The Cure evolved into one of the truly seminal bands of the '80s, and ultimately one of modern rock's most celebrated and influential acts. Guided by creative visionary Robert Smith, The Cure's signature sound balances dreamy pop savvy and poetic lyricism with a dark, brooding intensity. The band's first four groundbreaking albums-newly remastered-are a series of masterpieces that laid the groundwork for their phenomenal and enduring popularity. Fusing superbly crafted songs with charged emotional depth from the very beginning, The Cure's early catalogue, as upgraded by Rhino, is ready to be revisted.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

43 of 45 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An Incredible Album., June 25, 2000

By 

Christopher R. Cicatelli "cicatelli" (bethesda, md) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: 17 Seconds (Audio CD)

I first heard the eerie notes of Seveneteen Seconds back in the winter of 1983...it was then I became hooked on The Cure. This album is so tight, so fresh, so well done, any music collection would be incomplete without it. The next two albums after this one- "Faith" and "Pornography"- are excellent albums (I have a review of "Pornography") but this one...this one just has that magical and mysterious sound that glows on a dark night. Perfect listening setting? A cold, late December night, a light snow falling, a slight breeze bringing the naked tree limbs to life. Just slap on the headphones and start walking. Before you know it, you're floating. One thing I have always loved about this CD is that it comes off so smooth...the music is so smooth and crisp it just slides through your ears.

Top tracks on "Seventeen Seconds"? The classic "A Forest", "In Your House", "The Final Sound", and of course "Play For Today". Every track is great, but if I had to pick'em, there they are.

There are some eerie sounds....dark lyrics...but there are also hints of the quirk-Cure too....it's just not as obvious....there are layers and layers for your musical being to explore. It's a treat for any music lover. "Seventeen Seconds" is one of the most intense and visually stimulating records ever made.

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wrapped up in perfect cover art, May 5, 2005

By 

N. P. Stathoulopoulos "nick9155" (Brooklyn, NY) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Seventeen Seconds [Deluxe Edition] (Audio CD)

This is an awesome, moody little album that fits right in today with the slew of bands going after the early-80s 'post-punk' sound. This disc marks the first of a masterful trilogy that continues with Faith and Pornography.

The Cure are famous for being gloomy, and this album backs it up, but it's not heavy or depressing and it never gets to be too much. Quite the opposite. Some songs are slower, like In Your House, while other like Play For Today (the first track after the instrumental opening) open up with an electronic calling in the back and a punchy little rhythm, immediately catchy, and the perfect length. Three, meanwhile, has the feeling of a dark jingle. At Night has a slow, fuzzy opening and a steady beat, sounding a little like a dark Police. The classic track A Forest sounds even richer in the remastered format. There's the classic Cure guitar, the bobbing basslines, some swishy help from the keyboards in the background to lend that gray atmosphere...it sounds like 1980, it's spot-on. The whole trilogy is accompanied by perfect album art--they each sound like the covers. A wash of muted colors on what looks like a blurry windshield here, to the mysterious gray, faint scribbling of Faith, to the tortured Scream-like cover of Pornography.

An addictive album of good songs, with Smith's voice never overbearing, nor never too much whining, and some very fine singing. Pornography would bring the band to a darker place, with its far more depressed quality. Seventeen Seconds is getting there, but it's minor-key pop with some very good production. Cure addicts may break it down more in terms of band lineups, but I find the whole release an excellent effort.

Quite frankly, better than most of the bands out there who were in diapers when this was released, you may as well check out the original thing. And at 30-odd minutes, it's the old style of complete, quality beginning-to-end albums perfect for a slow day at home, preferably in the middle of the week when it's raining.

The new Cure remastereds are excellent, a real value for fans. For one, the sound is vastly improved--just compare any track on here, but especially 'A Forest', with your old AAD disc--big difference. The bass is bigger, punchier, the sounds are all clearer and brought up front. The older, unremastered rock albums really do suffer with the original CD format--everything is flattened right out to the middle, while the new discs bring much-needed oomph to everything. The second disc is full of goodies, from demos to live versions of nearly the entire album in great sound quality. And of course, nice liner notes with actual notes, old pictures, the whole job. Quality re-release in this era of downloading, however, it must be said that these sets are BIT on the pricey side, but will likely be a must for fans of this album (and the following two).

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars stark, hauntingly seductive--the Cure's first masterpiece, June 22, 2006

By 

Dave "missing person" (United States) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Seventeen Seconds (Audio CD)

Robert Smith explains in the 2005 2 CD deluxe edition reissue of "Seventeen Seconds" that this is "the first record I felt was really The Cure", and although I feel this statement is pushing it a bit, it's still very understandable. Although Smith was just turning 21 around the time of "Seventeen Seconds"' initial release in April of 1980, the Cure had already made their first masterpiece. (It has now been reissued in single CD form in April of 2006.)

It shouldn't be overlooked though that The Cure's 1979 debut "Three Imaginary Boys", a strong album in its own right, did point the way toward "Seventeen Seconds", in particular on tracks like "Another Day" and especially the title track. There's no denying though that "Seventeen Seconds" marks a major turning point for The Cure--the sound here is more thoroughly haunting, more claustrophobic, with an incredibly icy snare drum sound throughout, and with Smith's vocals often being pushed WAY back in the mix and never as upfront as on many of the songs from "Three Imaginary Boys".

Smith also explains in the deluxe edition liner notes that the group made virtually no modifications to their 'basic set-up' throughout the album's entire 10-day recording session, and quite frankly, this method proved to be an absolute blessing. For one thing, it allowed the band to work quickly and affordably since they were still relatively low on money at the time. At the same time, it also accounts for the album's consistent sound which gives it an irresisible, mesmerizing flow. There don't appear to be that many overdubs at all on the album, which could be attibuted to the lack of time and money the band had at their disposal, but again, this proved to be an advantage--the starkness of the album is absolutely arresting.

It appears that Smith pretty much had in mind exactly what he wanted when the band went into the studio to record "Seventeen Seconds". As the saying goes, there doesn't appear to be a note out of place anywhere on the entire album--the overall level of craftsmanship is astonishing. The performances themselves are nearly as precise--the only time the band sounds a bit 'off' is on the intro portion of "Play For Today" where Lol Tolhurst's bass drumming seems to be a tad behind the beat. Tolhurst's lack of technical proficiency on the drums has been well-documented, but aside from this extremely minor gripe, his limitations don't hinder the album whatsover. Frankly, on most of the songs you could almost swear the band was using a drum machine opposed to a real living drummer.

Keyboardist Matthieu Hartley joined the band for just this one album before leaving. "Play For Today", "In Your House", "M", "A Forest", and the title track all use synthesizers in a mind-blowingly unobtrusive manner that enhances their moody feel.

Every song here is in a minor key, and even with such a strong emphasis on 'mood', the band still managed to pile in catchy hooks and/ or arresting melodies into pretty much every song. Much of this is thanks to Smith's guitar work, which is brilliant throughout--check out his superbly 'rubbery' rhythm work on "Play For Today"; his dreamy arpeggios on "In Your House"; and his ingeniously dissonant chords on "At Night". "A Forest" is a thrilling uptempo epic that culminates in Smith's cathartic, frantic riffing, and the 8-note guitar riff that appears on the intro leaves such an impression that you might not even realize that it never reappears after the first minute & a half of this nearly-6-minute song.

Like Pink Floyd before them, the Cure prove themselves to be masters of pacing. There are three instrumentals/ near-instrumentals here, and they each work as links in the chain as opposed to just album fillers. The album starts off with the gentle, yet creepy and contemplative instrumental "A Reflection". "Three" has a robotic kind of repetitiveness to it, and is basically an instrumental, although there are some extremely buried vocals that seem to be mostly spoken and are almost totally inaudible. The atonal, haunted house-style "The Final Sound", which is less than a minute, perfectly sets up "A Forest".

There's just so much musical invention here... Smith's guitar kind of takes a backseat on "Secrets" which has a prominent, memorable bass line and extremely distant-sounding piano chiming. The beginning part of "Play For Today" features brilliant interplay between Gallup's bass and Smith's expert use of guitar harmonics.

The only track on the album that comes up a little short is the album-closing title track. It's not BAD--it does have a neat build-up and build-down, but it feels a bit too sketchy and melodramatic, as if they couldn't quite figure out how to bring the album to a satisfying conclusion.

The Cure would go on to make more elaborately-produced recordings later on, but "Seventeen Seconds" remains a key touchstone in their discography, and a phenomenal record in its own right.