Lol Tolhurst admittedly has a vivid memory—especially when it comes to his years as co-founder of The Cure.
That came in handy when he recalled The Cure’s history and his friendship with singer Robert Smith for his book “Cured: The Tale of Two Imaginary Boys.” He’ll sign copies at Zia Records’ Camelback location in Phoenix on Sunday, November 6.
“For some reason, despite my alcoholic affliction, I was blessed with a very good memory,” Tolhurst says. “I found memories are like dominoes; once you start to excavate a couple, they all sort of fall together. Memories are slippery things. We’re remembering memories of memories.”
The book, which was released on October 11, traces The Cure’s run, from the time Smith and Tolhurst became friends at age 5, through the band’s formation in 1976. Tolhurst, who left in 1989 and reunited in 2011, and The Cure sold more than 27 million units worldwide and earned 40 platinum and gold records in the Unites States, Europe and Japan.
Tolhurst says his book tour has been “better than my wildest expectations.” The questions—even the “zingers”—have been fascinating.
“Cure fans are very dedicated,” Tolhurst says. “They study things immensely.
“I think it’s because they feel that we’re just as committed on our side of the equation as they are. This is true of the very first time The Cure came to California and the West Coast. We played a lot of small clubs and colleges. That made people accept us because they saw us in the same way as local bands—except we came from 5,000 miles away.”
Tolhurst says writing “Cured” was a “complete revelation,” but something he’s always wanted to do.
“I have a tattoo on my right shoulder—two quills, crossed,” he says. “I must have been thinking about it then. I’ve been an avid reader my whole life and always wanted to write.
“This was the right time for the book. Enough time had passed between the events in the book—most of them, anyway. I wanted to reflect on them in a reasonable way.”
He did his due diligence before penning the book, reading Stephen King’s “On Writing-A Memoir of the Craft,” and autobiographies.
“I read all of the memoirs and autobiographies that I could get my hands on,” Tolhurst says. “Some of them—not naming names—seemed like score-settling exercises. They set the basic premise in the beginning, and then for the next 100 pages share how they hate the other guys in the band or the judge who gave them a bad rap. That’s something I didn’t want to do.”
The books he enjoyed were those that were straightforward and honest, like Steve Martin’s “Born Standing Up” and Duff McKagan’s releases.
“I thought I’m going to make it as honest in that way,” he says. “You don’t do yourself any favors if you try to hide stuff. You can tell they’re hiding something. Like Pete Townshend; there were some things that we kind of know, everybody knows, but Pete doesn’t mention them. It’s a bit weird.”
He says writing “Cured” was the “most wonderfully creative process since I left The Cure.” Tolhurst wanted to explain his life to himself and, in the process, help others.
“I heard from someone in Detroit who has a sober recovery center,” he says. “They put my book on the list of recommended reading—already. That blows my mind. That was my deep purpose.
“I didn’t want to be ‘Behind the Music Part 58.’ It’s always the same bloody story. It never changes.”
Lol Tolhurst, Zia Records, 1850 W. Camelback Road, Phoenix, 602.241.0313, ziarecords.com, 7:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Sunday, November 6.
