"The Love Cats" (sometimes rendered as "The Lovecats") is a song by English
rock
Rock most often refers to:
* Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids
* Rock music, a genre of popular music
Rock or Rocks may also refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...
band
the Cure
The Cure are an English rock band formed in 1978 in Crawley, West Sussex. Throughout numerous lineup changes since the band's formation, guitarist, lead vocalist, and songwriter Robert Smith has remained the only constant member. The band's ...
, released as a stand-alone single in October 1983.
It was the band's first Top 10 hit in the UK, peaking at number 7.
[ It also reached number 6 on the Australian chart in early 1984.][ The single later appeared on the compilation album '']Japanese Whispers
''Japanese Whispers'' is the second compilation album by British group The Cure. It was released in late 1983 by Fiction Records.
It includes the singles "Let's Go to Bed", "The Walk" and "The Lovecats". The other tracks are the B-sides of the ...
'', released in December 1983.
Inspiration and recording
At the time the song was written, Robert Smith was very interested in the work of Australian author Patrick White. According to a number of his fans, Smith was inspired to write "The Love Cats" after reading White's novel '' The Vivisector'' (1970), although this claim is difficult to verify. In the novel, the protagonist, Hurtle, is appalled when his lover's husband drowns a sack of stray cats. White draws a parallel between the way in which the cats are discarded, and the treatment of certain characters in the book; by extension, the cats symbolise the most innocent and vulnerable members of society, and the casual cruelty with which they sometimes meet their fate.
The recording session took place in Paris at Studio Des Dames after the band had played a one-off concert in the west of France, in Brittany
Brittany (; french: link=no, Bretagne ; br, Breizh, or ; Gallo: ''Bertaèyn'' ) is a peninsula, historical country and cultural area in the west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known as Armorica during the period ...
, in the commune of Saint-Jacut-les-Pins in August 1983. The band recorded other songs there also in jazz rock style, "Speak My Language" and "Mr. Pink Eyes": both ended up on the b-side of the 12-inch vinyl. A fourth track ("A Hand Inside My Mouth (Des Dames Studio Demo 8/83)") also recorded in the same session, surfaced in 2006 on '' The Top'' deluxe CD reissue.
Music video
The music video features a number of cats and a large lampshade falling on the head of bassist Phil Thornalley
Philip Thornalley (born 5 January 1960) is an English songwriter-producer who has worked in the music industry since 1978. He is perhaps best known for co-writing (with Scott Cutler and Anne Preven) the song " Torn" (made famous by Natalie Im ...
. There are many shots of a mansion which the band told a vendor they were interested in buying. They returned the keys in the morning. Real cats were supposed to be used but after proving to be troublesome, taxidermied ones were used instead. Smith said of the video: "'The Love Cats' is far from being my favourite song: composed drunk, video filmed drunk, promotion made drunk. It was a joke." The video features an early rough mix of the song done in Paris which is different from the one released on vinyl (the latter was done in London).
Track listing
; 7"
#"The Love Cats" (3:33)
#"Speak My Language" (2:39)
;UK & US 12"
#"The Love Cats (Extended Version)" (4:37)
#"Speak My Language" (2:39)
#"Mr. Pink Eyes" (2:45)
Charts
Weekly charts
Year-end charts
Personnel
* Robert Smith – vocals, guitar, keyboards, harmonica on "Mr. Pink Eyes"
* Lol Tolhurst – vibraphone
*Phil Thornalley
Philip Thornalley (born 5 January 1960) is an English songwriter-producer who has worked in the music industry since 1978. He is perhaps best known for co-writing (with Scott Cutler and Anne Preven) the song " Torn" (made famous by Natalie Im ...
– double bass
* Andy Anderson – drums
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lovecats, The
The Cure songs
1983 singles
Songs written by Robert Smith (musician)
1983 songs
Songs about cats
Fiction Records singles
Music videos directed by Tim Pope
Song recordings produced by Phil Thornalley