Pearl Thompson

Pearl Thompson (born on 8 November 1957) is an English musician and artist best known for being the former guitarist of The Cure.

Pearl Thompson
Thompson performing with The Cure in Sweden in 2007
Background information
Born (1957-11-08) 8 November 1957
Surrey, England
OriginWimbledon, England
GenresPost-punk, gothic rock, new wave, alternative rock, psychedelic rock, lo-fi, experimental
Occupation(s)Singer-songwriter, musician, poet, artist
InstrumentsGuitar, bass guitar, synthesizer, keyboard, piano, saxophone, kazoo, banjo, vocals
Years active1976–present
Associated actsThe Cure
Page and Plant
Shelleyan Orphan
Babacar
Malice
Easy Cure
The Glove
Gonjasufi
Websitepearl113.com

Career

Thompson was a member (alongside Robert Smith, Michael Dempsey and Lol Tolhurst) of the Easy Cure, which was a precursor to The Cure.[1] Thompson left Easy Cure to go to art college;[2] his style did not mesh well with Smith's approach to songwriting.[1] Thompson went on to become of member of The Exotic Pandas and occasionally played with The Glove, a collaboration between Siouxsie and the Banshees’ Steven Severin and Smith.[1] Thompson joined The Cure in 1983, playing saxophone. He helped record the album The Top. During the Top tour, he played keyboard as well as guitar and saxophone, and also performed with The Glove when they appeared on television.

In 1994 Thompson left The Cure to play with Jimmy Page and Robert Plant of Led Zeppelin during the Page and Plant tour of 1995. He also played with Babacar, a band formed by Boris Williams. Later, Thompson formed another project called Quietly Torn. Thompson continued working with Robert Plant, joining the singer's group for the 2002 release Dreamland.

In June 2005 Thompson rejoined The Cure,[3] and was with the band for the recording of the live DVD The Cure: Festival 2005; for the recording of the band's 13th studio album, 4:13 Dream; and for the band's 2007-2008 4Tour.[4]

In 2007, Schecter Guitars released a Pearl Thompson Signature model featuring graphics by the British artist Kev Grey. The guitar was featured in the book 108 Rock Star Guitars by photographer Lisa S. Johnson.[5][6]

Thompson is featured on the album Callus by Gonjasufi, released in August 2016.[7]

As an artist

Thompson and background designer Andy Vella were the co-founders of Parched Art. Parched Art produced many of the record sleeves found on The Cure's albums. The most recognisable record sleeves were primarily drawn, painted, or photographed by Thompson.[8][9]

In 2002, Thompson also had an exhibition of paintings in Cornwall, UK and Canada titled "100% SKY".

In March 2015, Thompson's first US painting exhibition of abstract landscape paintings was held at Mr MusicHead Art Gallery on Sunset Boulevard in Los Angeles, California. The exhibition was entitled "...Through the eyes of birds". The work was inspired by remote Malibu canyons and desert landscapes.[1] Also in 2015, Thompson announced that he would focus her endeavors on her art work.[10]

Personal life

Close friends had long used "Pearl" as a nickname. Thompson's first name was legally changed to "Pearl" in 2011.[10][11]

Pearl is noted for being reclusive and private.[12] Pearl was married to his former bandmate Robert Smith's sister Janet Smith.

Discography
The Cure
Gonjasufi
Page and Plant
Robert Plant
Shelleyan Orphan
  • Humroot (1992)
Babacar

References
  1. "The Cure Guitarist Pearl Thompson's Art Goes on Display". The Hollywood Reporter.
  2. Ten Imaginary Years - ISBN 0-946391-87-4
  3. "Triviahead: Can anyone rival the Fall for lineup changes?". the Guardian. 9 February 2007. Retrieved 31 January 2021.
  4. "Porl Thompson | Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved 31 January 2021.
  5. "Figure 2: The Bayesian Inference (BI) phylogenetic trees of T9SS protein components (PorK, PorL, PorM, and PorN)". dx.doi.org. Retrieved 31 January 2021.
  6. "The Cure 2007". www.picturesofyou.us. Retrieved 31 January 2021.
  7. Patrin, Nate (18 August 2016). Gonjasufi - Callus (review), Pitchfork
  8. lorenashleigh (2 May 2013). "Parched Art". LorenAshleigh. Retrieved 31 January 2021.
  9. "Andy Vella design interview". Retrieved 31 January 2021.
  10. (8 March 2015). The Cure Star Legally Changes His Name As He Leaves The Music World For Art, Contact Music
  11. (23 September 2014). Ex-Cure star to exhibit art for the first time, Express
  12. Davroy, Gabrielle (10 April 2016). Let's Talk About Sex : Porl Thompson The Cure, RTBF


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