The Same Deep Water as You (The Cure song)

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"The Same Deep Water as You"
Song by the Cure
from the album Disintegration
Released2 May 1989
RecordedNovember 1988 – February 1989
Studio Hookend Recording Studios (Checkendon, Oxfordshire)
Genre
Length9:19
Label Fiction
Songwriters
Producers Robert Smith, David M. Allen
The Cure singles chronology
"Prayers for Rain"
(1989)		"The Same Deep Water as You"
(1989)		"Disintegration"
(1989)

"The Same Deep Water as You" is a song by English rock band the Cure, appearing as the ninth track on their eighth studio album, Disintegration (1989). At 9 minutes and 19 seconds, it is the longest track on the album and is noted for its somber, immersive production that includes sound effects of a thunderstorm and falling rain. [1]

Contents

Background and composition

Frontman Robert Smith wrote the song during a period of introspection leading up to his 30th birthday. The track was recorded at Hookend Recording Studios (also known as Outside Studios) and mixed at RAK Studio Three. [2]

The song is characterized by its slow tempo and dense layers of instrumentation. It features a prominent Fender Bass VI melody played by Smith, supported by Simon Gallup's "sorrowful drone" of a bassline and a hypnotic, wave-like drum pattern by Boris Williams. [3] Lyrically, the song uses the metaphor of drowning to explore themes of devotion, shared despair, and a relationship reaching its literal or figurative "depths."

Critical reception

The song is frequently cited as a definitive example of the band's "gothic" and atmospheric style. Pitchfork described the album's appeal as "comforting, practically womblike," with "The Same Deep Water as You" serving as a "soundtrack to that feeling that everything around you is meaningful." [4] Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic praised the track's role in the album's "alluring" gloomy soundscapes. [1]

Live performances

"The Same Deep Water as You" has been performed live over 130 times. It was a centerpiece of the 1989 **Prayer Tour**, with a notable live recording appearing on the live album Entreat (1991). [5] During the band's **Reflections** and **Disintegration 30th Anniversary** shows, the song was performed in full, often accompanied by blue-hued atmospheric lighting and strobe effects to simulate a storm.

Personnel

References

  1. 1 2 Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Disintegration – The Cure | Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic . Retrieved 20 December 2025.
  2. ↑ "The Cure – Disintegration (Credits)". Discogs . Retrieved 20 December 2025.
  3. ↑ "The Art of Disintegration – Album Review for the Cure". Mississippi School of the Arts. 2 January 2021.
  4. ↑ Ott, Chris (10 June 2010). "The Cure: Disintegration [Deluxe Edition]". Pitchfork . Retrieved 20 December 2025.
  5. ↑ "The Same Deep Water as You by The Cure song statistics". setlist.fm. Retrieved 20 December 2025.
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