A Letter to Elise
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| "A Letter to Elise" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Single by The Cure | ||||
| from the album Wish | ||||
| Released | 5 October 1992 | |||
| Format | 7", 12" | |||
| Genre | Alternative rock | |||
| Length | 4:34 | |||
| Label | Fiction Records | |||
| Producer | Robert Smith David Allen |
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| The Cure singles chronology | ||||
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"A Letter to Elise" is the third and final single taken from the album Wish from The Cure in 1992. It was made public for the first time on MTV's Cure-"Unplugged" show in 1991 and had very different lyrics from the later version to be released as a 7".
The B-side "The Big Hand" was planned as an A-Side single early in 1993 but the idea was scrapped, largely due to Boris Williams not wanting it to appear on the album but having no qualms about it appearing as a B-side (from KROQ radio interview with the band in 1992). "The Big Hand" is one of the few B-sides to be played live, although very rarely. It was first played in 1991, performed a few times during the Wish Tour in 1992, then revived at the Ultra Music Festival in 2007, and popped up, though rarely, during the band's 4Tour World Tour 2007-08. Letters to Felice by Kafka was a huge influence when Robert Smith wrote the lyrics of the track.
"A Letter to Elise" itself was revived by the band's new Smith/Gallup/Thompson/Cooper lineup in 2005 after being played sparingly, if ever, during the Smith/Gallup/Bamonte/Cooper/O'Donnell era. Like "The Big Hand", it was not played very often, and was usually a pleasant surprise to fans when it popped up in setlists.
Contents |
[edit] Track listing
7" single
- "A Letter to Elise"
- "The Big Hand"
12" single
- "A Letter to Elise"
- "A Letter to Elise" (Blue Mix)
- "The Big Hand"
- "A Foolish Arrangement"
A Promo features yet another longer unreleased mix, with phaser on Robert Smith's voice. An instrumental version on Cassette is also known to exist.
[edit] Personnel
- Robert Smith - bass, guitar, keyboard, vocals, 6 string bass
- Perry Bamonte - 6 string bass, guitar, keyboard
- Simon Gallup - bass, keyboard
- Porl Thompson - guitar
- Boris Williams - percussion, drums
[edit] Chart performance
| Chart (1992) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Ireland (IRMA)[1] | 23 |
| New Zealand (RIANZ)[2] | 13 |
| Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)[3] | 39 |
| UK Singles (The Official Charts Company)[4] | 28 |
| US Hot Modern Rock Tracks (Billboard)[5] | 2 |
[edit] Covers
- Aaron Sprinkle covered this song on his Really Something EP.
- blink-182 covered this song for the MTV Icon show for The Cure.
- Sense Field recorded a cover of this song on their 2003 album Living Outside.
[edit] References
- ^ "Chart Track". Irish Singles Chart. Irish Recorded Music Association.
- ^ "Charts.org.nz – The Cure – A Letter To Elise". Top 40 Singles. Hung Medien.
- ^ "Swedishcharts.com – The Cure – A Letter To Elise". Singles Top 60. Hung Medien.
- ^ "Chart Stats – The Cure – A Letter to Elise" UK Singles Chart. Chart Stats.
- ^ "The Cure Album & Song Chart History" Billboard Alternative Songs for The Cure. Nielsen Business Media.
