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The Cult (album)

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This article is about the eponymous album by The Cult. For other uses, see The Cult (disambiguation).

The Cult
Studio album by
The Cult
Released10 October 1994 (1994-10-10)
Recorded1993–1994
StudioWarehouse Studios, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Genre
Length61:39
LabelBeggars Banquet, Sire
ProducerBob Rock
The Cult chronology
Live Cult
(1993) 		The Cult
(1994) 		High Octane Cult
(1996)
Singles from The Cult
  1. "Coming Down (Drug Tongue)"
    Released: 26 September 1994[3]
  2. "Star"
    Released: 1994
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[4]

The Cult is the sixth studio album from English rock band The Cult. It was released in October 1994 on Beggars Banquet Records and is the band's last album on Sire Records in the US. The album is the band's second release with producer Bob Rock and is commonly referred to as the "Black Sheep" record, due to the image of a Manx Loaghtan black sheep on the front cover. The album also features a rare occasion of Ian Astbury and Billy Duffy sharing a writing credit with another band member, as bassist Craig Adams is credited as co-writer of "Universal You".

Musical style and reception

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The style of music on the album is more reminiscent of the grunge and alternative rock music popular at the time, and of noise rock, with its use of distortion and feedback. Vocalist Ian Astbury referred to the record as "very personal, and very revealing" songs about his life, with the subject matter ranging from sexual abuse at the age of 15, to the death of Nigel Preston (friend and former drummer for The Cult), to his directionless years spent in Glasgow in the late 1970s.

Upon release, the album reached no. 69 on the US charts and no. 21 in the UK, before quickly falling off the charts. Reportedly, it reached number one on the charts in Portugal, but quickly dropped off there as well. The single "Coming Down (Drug Tongue)" (UK#51) was released with the band going on tour in support of the new album. Only one more single, "Star" (UK#65), was officially released. That song began life in 1986 as "Tom Petty" before being dropped by the band during rehearsals. In 1993 the song was resurrected once again as "Starchild", and was finally completed for the record in 1994 as, just simply, "Star".

"Be Free" was also released as a single both in Canada, as a promotional CD with a purchase of a party pack of Labatt Genuine Draft, and in France by Virgin Records as an extremely rare edited version along with the edit of "Coming Down (Drug Tongue)". "Sacred Life" was released as a promotional only single in Spain and the Netherlands, and "Saints are Down" was released as a promotional single in Greece.

"Gone" was released as a limited edition (only 2000 made) 7 inch vinyl single with artwork and handwritten lyrics by Ian Astbury.

The Australian version contains an extra CD, with nine songs recorded live at the Marquee Club in London in November 1991.

The album peaked at #64 on the US Cashbox charts.[5]

Track listing

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All tracks are written by Ian Astbury and Billy Duffy, except where noted.

No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Gone" 3:50
2."Coming Down (Drug Tongue)" 6:36
3."Real Grrrl" 4:25
4."Black Sun" 6:23
5."Naturally High" 4:23
6."Joy" 4:46
7."Star" 5:02
8."Sacred Life" 5:47
9."Be Free" 3:48
10."Universal You"Astbury, Duffy, Craig Adams5:17
11."Emperor's New Horse" 4:22
12."Saints Are Down" 6:54
Total length:61:39

Personnel

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The Cult[6]
Additional personnel[6]
  • Bob Rock – fender and string bass (track 2), acoustic guitar (tracks 3, 8, 12), rhythm guitar (tracks 7, 11), mixing, producer
  • Scott Humphrey – keyboards, programming
  • Jim McGiueray – percussion
Technical

Charts

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Chart (1994) Peak
position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[7] 7
Canada Top Albums/CDs (RPM)[8] 12
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[9] 61
Finnish Albums (The Official Finnish Charts)[10] 6
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[11] 45
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[12] 8
Scottish Albums (OCC)[13] 31
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[14] 21
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[15] 30
UK Albums (OCC)[16] 21
UK Rock & Metal Albums (OCC)[17] 3
US Billboard 200[18] 69
Chart (2023) Peak
position
Scottish Albums (OCC)[19] 24
UK Independent Albums (OCC)[20] 11
UK Rock & Metal Albums (OCC)[21] 3

Certifications

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Region Certification Certified units/sales
Canada (Music Canada)[22] Gold 50,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References

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  1. ^ Sputnikmusic review
  2. ^ "Looking back: The Cult – the Cult". 7 September 2020.
  3. ^ "New singles". Music Week. 24 September 1994. p. 41.
  4. ^ Allmusic review
  5. ^ "CASH BOX MAGAZINE: Music and coin machine magazine 1942 to 1996". worldradiohistory.com. Retrieved 14 December 2020.
  6. ^ a b The Cult (liner notes). The Cult. Virgin Records. 1994. 7243 8 39970 2 2.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  7. ^ "Australiancharts.com – The Cult – The Cult". Hung Medien. Retrieved April 27, 2025.
  8. ^ "Top RPM Albums: Issue 2640". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved April 27, 2025.
  9. ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – The Cult – The Cult" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved April 27, 2025.
  10. ^ Pennanen, Timo (2006). Sisältää hitin – levyt ja esittäjät Suomen musiikkilistoilla vuodesta 1972 (in Finnish) (1st ed.). Helsinki: Kustannusosakeyhtiö Otava. ISBN 978-951-1-21053-5.
  11. ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – The Cult – The Cult" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved April 27, 2025.
  12. ^ "Charts.nz – The Cult – The Cult". Hung Medien. Retrieved April 27, 2025.
  13. ^ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved April 27, 2025.
  14. ^ "Swedishcharts.com – The Cult – The Cult". Hung Medien. Retrieved April 27, 2025.
  15. ^ "Swisscharts.com – The Cult – The Cult". Hung Medien. Retrieved April 27, 2025.
  16. ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved April 27, 2025.
  17. ^ "Official Rock & Metal Albums Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved April 27, 2025.
  18. ^ "The Cult Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved April 27, 2025.
  19. ^ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved April 27, 2025.
  20. ^ "Official Independent Albums Chart Top 50". Official Charts Company. Retrieved April 27, 2025.
  21. ^ "Official Rock & Metal Albums Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved April 27, 2025.
  22. ^ "Canadian album certifications – The Cult – The Cult". Music Canada.
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