21 for 21: #8—The Cure, "Kiss Me, Kiss Me, Kiss Me"

Now we're getting into some rarified air as we closer to the top of my 21 favorite CDs from my collection. These are all classic albums, any of which could appear at the top of anyone else's collection. My #8 pick is 1987's "Kiss Me, Kiss Me, Kiss Me" by The Cure.

This was their first top 40 album in America and the first one to get heavy prime-time airplay on MTV, mainly on the strength of their singles "Why Can't I Be You?" and "Just Like Heaven." This was the album that first brought The Cure to my attention, and although I enjoyed their songs, I wouldn't really appreciate this album until the nineties.

I was too immersed in MTV pop and hair metal in the eighties to truly appreciate the genius of The Cure. This is not a perfect album by any measurable standard; there are a few throwaway tracks, but that's to be expected on what was originally a vinyl double album. But the classic tracks are so good, they make the whole album a magnificent work of musical artistry.

The album opens with the dissonant, screeching guitars of "The Kiss," then transitions to the mellow bounce of "Catch." "Torture" gives more high-energy guitar work, then it slows down again with the Middle-Eastern flavored exotica of "If Only Tonight We Could Sleep." Robert Smith's unique vocals, that screechy whine that still resonates with power and passion, governs it all with skill and assurance.

The album kicks into high gear with the brassy horns and bebop syncopation of "Why Can't I Be You?" Next comes the second-best song on the album, the French-flavored ode to a lost love and their magical day in Paris, "How Beautiful You Are." Two track later is the best song ever recorded by humans, "Just Like Heaven."

This song is a perfect miracle, building so simply with just acoustic guitar and drums, layering each instrument one by one until the guitar theme plays ahead of Smith singing, "Show me, show me, show me how you do that trick..." Found within its three verses is the perfect song of love and loss. It is, quite simply, my favorite song of all time.

Last of the best tracks is "Hot Hot Hot!!!", a strutting, preening peacock of a song that could be the cure for every empty dance floor in the world. Smith's vocals on this track sound like a snake charmer's invitation, and the balance between the bass line and the funk guitar gives the song it's perfect tension.

You can listen to the rest of the tracks if you like—they're basically a bunch of B-sides (go ask someone old enough to remember vinyl singles if you don't know what that means)—but just the songs I've mentioned are strong enough to justify the number eight spot for me. "Just Like Heaven" alone would have put it in the top ten. Robert Smith said he considers "Just Like Heaven" to be one of the band's strongest works, and called it "the best pop song The Cure have ever done." Who am I to argue with genius?