"Fascination Street" is a song by English rock band

the Cure The Cure are an English Rock music, rock band formed in Crawley in 1976 by Robert Smith (musician), Robert Smith (vocals, guitar) and Lol Tolhurst (drums). The band's current line-up comprises Smith, Perry Bamonte (guitar and keyboards), Reev ...

from their eighth studio album, '' Disintegration'' (1989). It was issued as a single only in North America, as the band's American record company refused to release the band's original choice, "

Lullaby A lullaby (), or a cradle song, is a soothing song or piece of music that is usually played for (or sung to) children (for adults see music and sleep). The purposes of lullabies vary. In some societies, they are used to pass down cultural knowl ...

", as the first single (it was the lead single in the UK and was released in the US later). The song became the band's first number-one single on the US ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

'' then-newly created

Modern Rock Tracks Alternative Airplay (formerly known as Modern Rock Tracks between 1988 and 2009, and Alternative Songs between 2009 and 2020) is a music chart published in the American magazine ''Billboard'' since September 10, 1988. It ranks the 40 most-playe ...

chart, staying on top for seven weeks. An extended mix, notable for its lengthy 4:00 instrumental introduction, was produced by Robert Smith, Chris Parry and Mark Saunders and released as the lead track on the 12-inch vinyl and maxi-CD singles. A shorter radio edit of the remix was used for the 7-inch vinyl and cassette single releases. The extended mix was later included on the Cure's 1990 remix album '' Mixed Up'', and the short remix has since been released worldwide on 1997's '' Galore (The Singles 1987-1997)''.

Background

"Fascination Street" was inspired by an alcoholic night in New Orleans. In the liner notes for the compilation ''Galore'', Robert Smith describes “Fascination Street” as:

A ‘generic’ song about the (often cynical) delights of exploring a new city nightlife; based loosely on one particular ‘band adventure’ in New Orleans 1985 – Bourbon Street, the cliche perhaps.

Track listings

7-inch and cassette: Elektra / 7 69300; 9 469300 # "Fascination Street" (remix) (4:17) # "Babble" (4:16) 12-inch: Elektra / 96 67040 (CDN) # "Fascination Street" (extended remix) (8:48) # "Babble" (4:16) # "Out of Mind" (3:51) 12-inch: Elektra / 0-66704 # "Fascination Street" (extended remix) (8:48) # "Babble" (4:16) # "Out of Mind" (3:51) CD: Elektra / 66702-2 # "Fascination Street" (remix) (4:17) # "Babble" (4:16) # "Out of Mind" (3:51) # "Fascination Street" (extended remix) (8:48)

Personnel

Band *

Simon Gallup Simon Johnathon Gallup (born 1 June 1960) is an English musician who is best known as bassist for The Cure, which he first joined in 1979 and for which he has played through most of the band's history. Gallup is the second-longest-serving member ...

– bass guitar * Robert Smith – lead guitar, keyboards, vocals, producer, engineer *

Porl Thompson Pearl Thompson (born Paul Stephen Thompson,Chris Gerrard (2021)The Cure FAQ: All That’s Left to Know About the Most Heartbreakingly Excellent Rock Band the World Has Ever Known. Backbeat, ISBN 9781493053988, p. 155 8 November 1957) is an Engl ...

– guitar *

Boris Williams Boris Peter Bransby Williams (born 24 April 1951) is an English musician, best known as the drummer for The Cure from 1984 until 1994, and for forming the band Babacar (band), Babacar in the late 1990s. Biography Williams was born in 1951 (som ...

– drums *

Roger O'Donnell Roger O'Donnell (born 29 October 1955) is an English keyboardist best known as a longtime member of The Cure, which he first joined in 1987 and for which he has served three different tenures. O'Donnell has also performed as a touring and sessio ...

– keyboards *

Lol Tolhurst Laurence Andrew Tolhurst (born 3 February 1959) is an English musician, songwriter, producer, and author. He was a founding member of the Cure, for which he first played drums before switching to keyboards. He stayed a member of the Cure until ...

– other instruments Production * Mark Saunders – remix * Robert Smith – remix, producer, engineer * Chris Parry – remix * David M. Allen – producer, engineer

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

References

{{Authority control 1989 songs 1989 singles The Cure songs Elektra Records singles Song recordings produced by David M. Allen Songs written by Boris Williams Songs written by Lol Tolhurst Songs written by Porl Thompson Songs written by Robert Smith (musician) Songs written by Roger O'Donnell Songs written by Simon Gallup