The Cure's Robert Smith and Jason Cooper join forces with Noel Gallagher on new version of Pretty Boy

Robert Smith of The Cure performs at OVO Arena Wembley on December 12, 2022 in London, England
(Image credit: Burak Cingi/Redferns)

We already know Noel Gallagher was very excited about Robert Smith's remix of his recent single Pretty Boy because he said so, and now we can judge for ourselves.

And it's no real suprise that the Cure legend has done a marvellous job at taking the track to a lushly layered level  – even adding his own psychedelic guitar solo to take it up another notch.

It makes us wonder what a whole Smith-produced Noel album would sound like. 

I had a lot of fun slowing it down and spacing it out


"I was surprised and delighted when Noel asked me to remix this gorgeous song," says Smith. "And I had a lot of fun slowing it down and spacing it out. Cure drummer Jason Cooper gave me a great vibey drum track to play along with – and the rest phased into place under the starry sky of my distant moon."

The collaboration was as simple as Noel asking Smith via e-mail. “I asked if he’d get involved and sent him the track and he loved it,” Gallagher previously explained to Huw Stephens of BBC Radio Wales. “He did the remix. And I loved it. I’d never met him before. I’d never conversed with him. But I was always a fan of the Cure and the remix sounds exactly like the Cure. Yeah, it turns out he is a bit of a dude!’”

Gallagher was prompted to reach out when he heard parallels between his song and the Smith's work with the Cure. 

 “Pretty Boy as it was unfolding became reminiscent of the golden age of The Cure,” Gallagher said. “And it was just one of those crazy ideas that one tends to have in the middle of the night, thinking, ‘I wonder if Robert Smith [would] get involved. I wonder if I can get hold of him.’”

Now we're also wondering if Noel will repay the favour if the new Cure album ever sees the light of day this year. 

Rob Laing
Guitars Editor, MusicRadar

I'm the Guitars Editor for MusicRadar, handling news, reviews, features, tuition, advice for the strings side of the site and everything in between. Before MusicRadar I worked on guitar magazines for 15 years, including Editor of Total Guitar in the UK. When I'm not rejigging pedalboards I'm usually thinking about rejigging pedalboards.