Close to Me (The Cure song)

"Close to Me"
Song

"Close to Me" is a 1985 single by The Cure from their album The Head on the Door. The song was used as the theme music for the BBC sitcom The Smoking Room, for the BBC food programme A Taste of My Life presented by Nigel Slater and plays over the closing credits for the 2007 film Son of Rambow. On its original release, the single was most successful in Ireland, peaking at #4, also reaching #7 in Australia. It was remixed in 1990, which itself was released as a single, peaking at #13 on the UK singles chart.

History

There are two versions of "Close to Me", one with a brass section and one without. The version without the brass section is the original album version on The Head on the Door while the version with brass instruments is a remix that was released as a single and appears on Staring at the Sea: the Singles. The instrumental brass section appearing on the single versions is actually adapted from a traditional New Orleans funeral march. The 12" extended mix contains an extended arrangement of the brass section, featuring original material not found on other versions. The versions with brass instruments also include a long creaking sound of a door closing at the beginning. This sound comes from the beginning of the music video that was shot for "Close to Me", which features the band trapped in a wardrobe that is falling off of a cliff into an ocean. The lyrics contain the words "If only I was sure/that my head on the door was a dream", which inspired the title for the album.

Track listing

7" Single

1. "Close to Me" (Robert Smith)
2. "A Man Inside My Mouth"

12" Single

1. "Close to Me [Extended]"
2. "A Man Inside My Mouth"
3. "Stop Dead"

Personnel

• Robert Smith - vocals, keyboards
• Lol Tolhurst - keyboards
• Porl Thompson - keyboards
• Simon Gallup - bass
• Boris Williams - drums, percussion

Music video

The music video, written and directed by the band's frequent music video director Tim Pope, was featured on a compilation of the best music videos on VH1. It consists of the band all inside a wardrobe on the edge of a cliff. Following the musical scheme of the song, which builds up instrumentally (starting with just drums, then adding the bass, then keyboard etc etc), all the band members are inside the wardrobe, but not playing the instruments they would actually be playing, for obvious reasons. Boris Williams is simply clapping to the beat, keyboardist Lol Tolhurst is playing a very small, handheld keyboard, and Porl Thompson on the top shelf is plucking a comb to represent the short high sounds in the song. Bassist Simon Gallup does not play, and instead appears to be tied up and gagged. (Tim Pope later revealed that Gallup had a light bulb in his mouth to create a "lit from within" feel, and the cloth was there to hide the wire. Robert Smith then comes from the back of the wardrobe and sings, also playing with finger puppets, which appear to be voodoo dolls of the band members, as when he moves them, the corresponding member moves. He then becomes more violent with the dolls, shaking them around heavily, which in turn causes the band members to hit into the sides of the wardrobe, which eventually results in the wardrobe falling off the cliff and into the sea. As they go into the sea, the wardrobe fills up slowly with water, like a capsized ship, but the band members continue to play their "instruments." The video ends with the wardrobe full of water and a band member pushing a rubber duck across the screen.

The music video was rated 13th on "20 to 1 Amazing Moments in Music" aired on Australia's Nine Network 4 March 2007. Essentially the show rated the most distinctive music videos (won by Peter Gabriel's Sledgehammer)).

Close to Me · Remix

"Close to Me"
Song

"Close to Me · Remix" is the name given to the remixed version of the "Close to Me" single, released in 1990 to promote the album Mixed Up. It was made available in two different versions, the "Closer Mix" included on the 12" and the limited edition CD single, and the "Closest Mix" included on the 7" and the regular edition CD single. Both versions were available together on the cassette release. The "Closest Mix" was also included on the singles compilation Galore in 1997.

Chart positions: #13 (UK); #97 (USA)

Track listing

7" single

1. "Close to Me" (Closest Mix)
2. "Just Like Heaven" (Dizzy Mix)

12" single

1. "Close to Me" (Closer Mix)
2. "Just Like Heaven" (Dizzy Mix)
3. "Primary" (Red Mix)

Regular edition CD single

1. "Close to Me" (Closest Mix)
2. "Just Like Heaven" (Dizzy Mix)
3. "Primary" (Red Mix)

Limited edition CD single

1. "Close to Me" (Closer mix)
2. "Just Like Heaven" (Dizzy mix)
3. "Why Can't I Be You?" (Extended mix)

• This release also included a free poster.

Cassette single

1. "Close to Me (Closer Mix)"
2. "Just Like Heaven (Dizzy Mix)"
3. "Close to Me (Closest Mix)"
4. "Primary (Red Mix)"

Music video

There was also a music video for the version of the song that appeared on Mixed Up. The video picked up where the original video ended, with the wardrobe crashing down the cliffside and sinking to the bottom of the sea. Robert exits first and is attacked by an octopus (seen playing the horns later in the video). After his struggle, the other band members try to flee as well, and are attacked by a starfish. The video ends without any of the band members reaching the surface, though they could see a boat overhead.

Cover Versions

French recording act -M- recorded a cover version of the song on his album Je dis aime in 1999. The lyrics were translated into French, with the exception of the words "close to me" which were kept in English. A high-octane, up-tempo live performance of this version appears on the -M- album Le Tour de M. The song was also recorded by The Get Up Kids and is on their compilation album Eudora. Buck 65, the Canadian hip-hop artist, has been known to freestyle over this song at his live show. Indie rock/rap band Why? has recently covered the song, which can currently be found on their myspace page, and I Was A Cub Scout covered the song on the single 'The Hunters Daughter'

The song "So Human" by Lady Sovereign has sparked controversy by using so much of the track but not calling it a cover, though it's getting a lot of airplay in the UK.