"I'm a Cult Hero" is a single released by an extended lineup of

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 ...

under the name Cult Hero.

History

The single was conceived by Robert Smith (singer/guitarist of the Cure) and

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 ...

(then bassist of the Magspies) as a way to test their musical compatibility. Smith was considering Gallup as a prospective replacement for

Michael Dempsey Michael Stephen Dempsey (born 29 November 1958) is an English musician, best known as the bassist for the Cure and The Associates (band), the Associates. Biography Dempsey was born in Salisbury, Southern Rhodesia (now known as Harare, Zimbabwe ...

(the Cure's bassist at the time), "whose personality and ambitions for the band were seriously at odds" with those of Smith.'' Seventeen Seconds Deluxe Edition'' liner notes. The songs were written for, and feature on vocals, local

Horley Horley is a town in the borough of Reigate and Banstead in Surrey, England, south of the towns of Reigate and Redhill. The county border with West Sussex is to the south with Crawley and Gatwick Airport close to the town. It has its own econ ...

postman Frank Bell, who is also depicted on the single's artwork. They also feature Malice/ Easy Cure guitarist Porl Thompson and Magspies keyboardist Matthieu Hartley amongst an extended lineup of friends and family, including Robert's sisters Janet and Margaret and local band the Obtainers.

After Cult Hero

Following the recording of the single in 1979, Gallup left the Magspies and joined the Cure, replacing Dempsey. At the same time, Matthieu Hartley also left the Magspies and joined the Cure as the group's first keyboardist. Hartley ultimately left the Cure in 1980, after only one album, '' Seventeen Seconds,'' and its subsequent tour. Gallup also left the Cure in 1982, but then rejoined the band in 1984 and remains a member to the present day. Porl Thompson also rejoined the Cure between 1983 and 1992, and then again from 2005 to 2011.

Releases

"I'm a Cult Hero" was originally released in December 1979 in the UK with the song "I Dig You" on the B-side. Upon release in 1980 in

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

, and in 1981 in

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

, the tracks were flipped, with "I Dig You" as the A-side. The track "I'm a Cult Hero" was also included in the

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

compilation album A compilation album comprises Album#Tracks, tracks, which may be previously released or unreleased, usually from several separate recordings by either one Performing arts#Performers, performer or by several performers. If the recordings are from ...

''Britannia Waives the Rules'' in 1981. Both tracks are included in their original order in the 2005 deluxe edition of ''Seventeen Seconds''. Also included are previously unreleased live recordings of both tracks, but in reverse order.

Track listing

(Both tracks written by Robert Smith) ;UK single #"I'm a Cult Hero" – 3:00 #"I Dig You" – 3:24 ;Canadian/New Zealand single #"I Dig You" – 3:24 #"I'm a Cult Hero" – 3:00

Personnel

*Frank Bell –

vocals Singing is the art of creating music with the voice. It is the oldest form of musical expression, and the human voice can be considered the first musical instrument. The definition of singing varies across sources. Some sources define sing ...

* Robert Smith –

guitar The guitar is a stringed musical instrument that is usually fretted (with Fretless guitar, some exceptions) and typically has six or Twelve-string guitar, twelve strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming ...

* Porl Thompson – guitar *

–

bass Bass or Basses may refer to: Fish * Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species Wood * Bass or basswood, the wood of the tilia americana tree Music * Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in th ...

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 ...

–

drums The drum is a member of the percussion instrument, percussion group of musical instruments. In the Hornbostel–Sachs classification system, it is a membranophones, membranophone. Drums consist of at least one Acoustic membrane, membrane, c ...

–

keyboard Keyboard may refer to: Text input * Keyboard, part of a typewriter * Computer keyboard ** Keyboard layout, the software control of computer keyboards and their mapping ** Keyboard technology, computer keyboard hardware and firmware Music * Mus ...

* Matthieu Hartley – keyboard *Janet Smith – keyboard *Margaret Smith – backing vocals *The Obtainers – backing vocals

References

*Apter, J. (2009). Never Enough: The Story of The Cure. United Kingdom: Omnibus Press. https://www.google.ru/books/edition/Never_Enough_The_Story_of_The_Cure/Y6O0Pv8aG44C?hl=en&gbpv=0 *Price, S. (2023). Curepedia: An Immersive and Beautifully Designed A-Z Biography of The Cure. United Kingdom: Orion. https://www.google.ru/books/edition/Curepedia/VKb-DwAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=0 *The Cure: Every Album, Every Song. (2025). (n.p.): Sonicbond Publishing. https://www.google.ru/books/edition/The_Cure/LQJjEQAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=0 *https://www.radiox.co.uk/features/x-lists/the-best-band-aliases-and-pseudonyms/ *https://drownedinsound.com/in_depth/4151608-the-fangasm--pornography-by-the-cure *https://web.archive.org/web/20170917224500/http://dangerousminds.net/comments/im_a_cult_hero_the_cure_side_project_that_featured_an_eccentric_postman {{DEFAULTSORT:I'm A Cult Hero 1979 songs 1979 singles The Cure songs Songs written by Robert Smith (musician) Fiction Records singles