The story goes that upon turning up to record their debut album, Three Imaginary Boys, the producer, Chris Parry despised the guitar. The Top 20 model was in fact made in Japan by the Teisco company and sold by Woolworth’s as an entry-level guitar in the UK. Robert Smith’s first guitar was purchased from the British discount department store Woolworth’s. Here’s a list of some of the more notable instruments used by Smith in his decades-long career. Bear this in mind when thinking about what era of tone you’re trying to recreate! After that Smith switched to predominantly humbucker-equipped instruments. Up until around 1990, much of The Cure sound was made with single-coil equipped guitars. In reality, he’s only ever really been seen with a handful of guitars. Guitarsįor a career that’s spanned more than four decades, you might think Smith would have a huge guitar collection. He’s famously gone on record to say that he only ever sets his amps and effects to 0, 5 or 10. We’re going to break this down into three categories: Smith’s guitars, his amplifiers, and his effects. It’s also super important to understand Smith’s approach when it comes to guitar tone. So we here at Gearnews thought it was high time that we acknowledged this iconic musician and his choice of gear through the years. And if that wasn’t enough, Smith also enjoyed a brief stint with goth legends Siouxsie and The Banshees!

Sift through your own record collection and you’re sure to find bands directly influenced by The Cure. Robert Smith’s guitar tone and playing style has influenced a myriad of goth and alternative bands through the decades. Importantly though, Smith is a criminally underrated guitarist in his own right. Undoubtedly, Smith’s aesthetic influenced generations of fans and the goth scene in general. When you think of The Cure, what’s the first thing that comes to mind? It’s probably Robert Smith’s iconic look of scraggly hair, makeup and gothic gloominess.

Robert smith guitar rig