Editor’s Note: The Albumism staff has selected what we believe to be the 50 Greatest Live Albums of All Time, representing a varied cross-section of genres, styles and time periods. Click “Next Album” below to explore each album or view the full album index here.
THE CURE | Entreat
Fiction (1991)
Selected by Rayna Khaitan
A crystalline capsule of The Cure’s 1989 Prayer Tour, Entreat shimmers with beauty, delivering a cosmic view of a band prancing into their prime. I’ll always be jealous of the fans who were there—the ones who watched Disintegration unfold live those special inaugural times. It must have been transcendent.
I discovered Entreat a year before I saw my first Cure show in 1996. It quickly became an obsession. Recorded during their homecoming gigs at London’s Wembley Stadium, Entreat’s eight songs sound immediate, vivid and effortlessly gorgeous. The quality is pristine, and the deviations from the studio album only deepen its level of intrigue. While undoubtedly a thrilling party favor for those elders I envy, this 47-minute Disintegration showcase outstretches like a promise, committing to fans old and new that to see The Cure is to feel alive.
