Happy birthday to Laurence “Lol” Tolhurst, born on this day in 1959. Tolhurst is a founding member and the former drummer of The Cure, from 1976-1989. Other members consisted of Robert Smith on piano, Michael “Mick” Dempsey on guitar, Marc Ceccagno on lead guitar, and Alan Hill on bass.
In 1982 Tolhurst switched from drums for keyboards, but has found his way back to the kit over the years. Post-Cure, Tolhurst has worked with bands such as Malice and Presence, and his current project, Levinhurst, is with his wife Cindy Levinson (hence the portmanteau).
In 2011, Tolhurst joined up with The Cure for a brief spell, performing a number of reunion shows. And in 2016, Tolhurst published his first book, Cured: The Tale Of Two Imaginary Boys.
Celebrate the unique style that Tolhurst championed, its at times wild and tribal undulations, and others its minimal and robotic precision, which can sound like a drum machine.
And let us also, for a brief moment, recognize how poetic it is that a band known for its songs of lost love and sadness has a drummer named Lol.
“Seventeen Seconds”
“Boys Don’t Cry”
“Pornography”
“All Cats Are Grey”
A Levinhurst cover of The Cure’s song.
“Primary” (1981)
“10:15 Saturday Night”