Three Imaginary Boys (studio album)
by The Cure

Three Imaginary Boys by The Cure
Year: 1979
Overall rank: 1,521st   
Average Rating: 
76/100 (from 434 votes)
     
Accolades:
Award Top albums of 1979 (26th)
Award Top albums of the 1970s (294th)
Award Best albums of all time (1,521st)

Listen on Spotify Spotify
Product Details
Availability

eBay
eBay
The Cure Rare Three Imaginary Boys Cassette Album 1979 - Fiction
Condition: Good


eBay
eBay
The Cure Boys Don’t Cry Live 1979–1996 10 CD Box Set Limited Edition Rare
Condition: New


eBay
eBay
THE CURE - BOYS DON'T CRY NEW CD
Condition: Brand New


  My favourite store:  

The Cure bestography

Three Imaginary Boys is ranked 9th best out of 40 albums by The Cure on BestEverAlbums.com.

The best album by The Cure is Disintegration which is ranked number 30 in the list of all-time albums with a total rank score of 26,214.

The Cure album bestography « Higher ranked (1,107th)
Songs Of A Lost World
This album (1,521st)
Three Imaginary Boys
Lower ranked (1,796th) »
Boys Don't Cry

(N.B. Bestographies include all albums by an artist (and their variations), but do not include albums ranked outside the top 100,000).

Upcoming concerts

Dec
27
Sat
19:30
DEPECHE MODE + THE CURE + YAZ + ERASURE TRIBUTES
Gaslamp Long Beach, Long Beach, United States. United States
Tickets from Ticketmaster Get tickets
 
Jan
03
Sat
20:00
DURAN DURAN vs. THE CURE Featuring: Double Duran &The Gathering Gloom
The Fillmore Silver Spring, Silver Spring, United States. United States
Tickets from Ticketmaster Get tickets
 
Feb
07
Sat
19:00
Magic Bag Presents: Re-Cure
The Magic Bag, Ferndale, United States. United States
Tickets from Ticketmaster Get tickets
 
Discover more upcoming concerts

Listen to Three Imaginary Boys on YouTube

Loading content from YouTube...

Three Imaginary Boys track list

   The tracks on this album have an average rating of 77 out of 100 (all tracks have been rated).

Sort by
#
Track
Rating/Comments
1.
Track pick (860 - 139 votes)
Average Rating: 86 (139 votes)Comments: View 3
  • Amazon Music
  • iTunes
  • Spotify
2.
Average Rating: 78 (85 votes)Comments: View 0
  • Amazon Music
  • iTunes
  • Spotify
3.
Average Rating: 79 (87 votes)Comments: View 1
  • Amazon Music
  • iTunes
  • Spotify
4.
Average Rating: 78 (79 votes)Comments: View 1
  • Amazon Music
  • iTunes
  • Spotify
5.
Average Rating: 77 (77 votes)Comments: View 0
  • Amazon Music
  • iTunes
  • Spotify
6.
Average Rating: 79 (81 votes)Comments: View 3
  • Amazon Music
  • iTunes
  • Spotify
7.
Average Rating: 70 (75 votes)Comments: View 2
  • Amazon Music
  • iTunes
  • Spotify
8.
Average Rating: 73 (74 votes)Comments: View 2
  • Amazon Music
  • iTunes
  • Spotify
9.
Average Rating: 73 (74 votes)Comments: View 1
  • Amazon Music
  • iTunes
  • Spotify
10.
Average Rating: 81 (85 votes)Comments: View 1
  • Amazon Music
  • iTunes
  • Spotify
11.
Average Rating: 76 (71 votes)Comments: View 0
  • Amazon Music
  • iTunes
  • Spotify
12.
Average Rating: 83 (84 votes)Comments: View 2
  • Amazon Music
  • iTunes
  • Spotify
13.
Average Rating: 71 (66 votes)Comments: View 1
  • Amazon Music
  • iTunes
  • Spotify

Track pick (1000 - 100 votes) Top-rated track as rated by BestEverAlbums.com members.

Three Imaginary Boys rankings

Rankings summary
Overall rank: 1,521st | 1970s rank: 294th | 1979 rank: 26th

Three Imaginary Boys collection

Three Imaginary Boys ratings

Average Rating: 
76/100 (from 434 votes)
   Help Average Rating = (n ÷ (n + m)) × av + (m ÷ (n + m)) × AV
where:
av = trimmed mean average rating an item has currently received.
n = number of ratings an item has currently received.
m = minimum number of ratings required for an item to appear in a 'top-rated' chart (currently 10).
AV = the site mean average rating.

Showing latest 5 ratings for this album. | Show all 434 ratings for this album.

Sort by
RatingDate updatedMemberAlbum ratingsAvg. album rating
 
50/100
 !
11/13/2025 00:07 NYAndreas   1,43243/100
 
90/100
 !
10/28/2025 14:49 yotamdude   1488/100
 
40/100
 !
09/03/2025 15:07 wizardalien   76047/100
 
70/100
 !
08/29/2025 13:57 markl73   48979/100
 
55/100
 !
08/20/2025 00:05 Ilovesuicide   32268/100

Rating metrics: Help Outliers can be removed when calculating a mean average to dampen the effects of ratings outside the normal distribution. This figure is provided as the trimmed mean. A high standard deviation can be legitimate, but can sometimes indicate 'gaming' is occurring. Consider a simplified example* of an item receiving ratings of 100, 50, & 0. The mean average rating would be 50. However, ratings of 55, 50 & 45 could also result in the same average. The second average might be more trusted because there is more consensus around a particular rating (a lower deviation).
(*In practice, some albums can have several thousand ratings)

This album is rated in the top 6% of all albums on BestEverAlbums.com. This album has a Bayesian average rating of 75.6/100, a mean average of 74.7/100, and a trimmed mean (excluding outliers) of 75.7/100. The standard deviation for this album is 13.9.

Please log in or register if you want to be able to leave a rating

Three Imaginary Boys favourites

Showing latest 20 members who have added this album as a favourite | Show all 47 members

Three Imaginary Boys comments

Showing latest 10 comments | Show all 17 comments |
Most Helpful First | Newest First | Maximum Rated First | Longest Comments First
(Only showing comments with -2 votes or higher. You can alter this threshold from your profile page. Manage Profile)

Rating:  
40/100
From 09/03/2025 15:11 | #310802
A slightly different sound to what I'm used to from this band. A decent album but lacking real high-points. Object is my favourite track.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
80/100
From 09/06/2023 21:54 | #299009
One of those debuts where all the pieces are there, and there are even a few strong highlights, but there's plenty of room for improvement. Luckily, we know just how much room The Cure is able to find moving forward. Relative to their highs, it's hard not to see Three Imaginary Boys as much more than a footnote even for the debut of one of the most consequential bands of the 1980s. On its own, it's still a notable post punk record worth a few spins.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
90/100
From 11/02/2022 06:55 | #290979
My favourite Cutre album from their best era imo
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
80/100
From 06/12/2022 16:09 | #286299
This album is good new wave effort, but nothing very original. I love its instrumentals and vocals a little less. I also think that its best tracks are great and it shows future potential of this band.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
70/100
From 01/10/2022 11:12 | #278967
Kinda boring new wave
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
65/100
From 03/09/2019 12:44 | #233275
Best track: "Another Day"
Weakest track: "Foxy Lady"
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | -1 votes (0 helpful | 1 unhelpful)
Rating:  
60/100
From 01/11/2018 21:58 | #205282
Highs: Grinding Halt, Fire in Cairo, Subway Song, Three Imaginary Boys, 10:15 Saturday Night, Accuracy

Lows: Meathook
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
85/100
From 11/04/2017 04:14 | #200609
Best Tracks: 10:15 Saturday Night, Fire In Cairo
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | -1 votes (0 helpful | 1 unhelpful)
Rating:  
70/100
From 12/30/2016 01:40 | #181266
Favoritas: Three Imaginary Boys, Another Day, Object, Fire In Cairo
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | -1 votes (0 helpful | 1 unhelpful)
Rating:  
75/100
From 06/06/2016 17:06 | #168047
The first Cure album is a great punky rock'n'roll record. 10:15 Saturday night, accuracy, grinding halt, and, fire in Cairo, are all superb. The cure really were a proper band at this moment and they would never again sound so energetic, punchy, and outright enjoyable. Good album.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Please log in or register if you want to be able to add a comment

Your feedback for Three Imaginary Boys

Anonymous
Let us know what you think of this album by adding a comment or assigning a rating below!
Log in or register to assign a rating or leave a comment for this album.
Best Albums of 1979
1. London Calling by The Clash
2. The Wall by Pink Floyd
3. Unknown Pleasures by Joy Division
4. Fear Of Music by Talking Heads
5. Off The Wall by Michael Jackson
6. Entertainment! by Gang Of Four
7. Breakfast In America by Supertramp
8. Rust Never Sleeps by Neil Young & Crazy Horse
9. Highway To Hell by AC/DC
10. Reggatta De Blanc by The Police
11. Tusk by Fleetwood Mac
12. Damn The Torpedoes by Tom Petty And The Heartbreakers
13. Ambient 1: Music For Airports by Brian Eno
14. Metal Box by Public Image Ltd.
15. The B-52's by The B-52's
16. Armed Forces by Elvis Costello And The Attractions
17. Specials by The Specials
18. 154 by Wire
19. Singles Going Steady by Buzzcocks
20. Setting Sons by The Jam
Back to Top