Album
Sonic Temple
Sonic Temple is the fourth studio album by The Cult, released in April 1989 on Sire Records. It followed Dreamtime, Love and Electric, and it was produced by Bob Rock. Guitarist Billy Duffy summed up its approach as rock music from a European perspective with the sensibilities of punk, a fair description of a record that sits comfortably in hard rock while keeping an alternative edge.
It contains some of the band's best-loved songs, among them "Fire Woman" and "Edie (Ciao Baby)". It also marks a changing of the guard: session drummer Mickey Curry appears for the first time, and it was the last album made with longtime bassist Jamie Stewart, who left in 1990. Ceremony followed in 1991. For anyone tracing the band's story, this is the place to hear them at a turning point.
Sonic Temple: tracklist, credits and charts
11 tracks · 57:07Tracklist
- 1Sun KingIan Astbury and Billy Duffy6:09
- 2Fire WomanIan Astbury and Billy Duffy5:11
- 3American HorseIan Astbury and Billy Duffy5:19
- 4Edie (Ciao Baby)Ian Astbury and Billy Duffy4:47
- 5Sweet Soul SisterIan Astbury and Billy Duffy5:08
- 6Soul AsylumIan Astbury and Billy Duffy7:26
- 7New York CityIan Astbury and Billy Duffy4:41
- 8Automatic BluesIan Astbury and Billy Duffy3:52
- 9Soldier BlueIan Astbury and Billy Duffy4:36
- 10Wake Up Time for FreedomIan Astbury and Billy Duffy5:18
- 11Medicine TrainIan Astbury and Billy Duffy4:40
- Produced by
- Bob Rock
- Recorded at
- Little Mountain Sound (Vancouver), A&M Recording Studios
- Recorded
- September–November 1988
- Mixed at
- Little Mountain Sound, A&M Recording Studios
- Engineered by
- Mike Fraser
- Labels
- Sire Records, Beggars Banquet, Sire
- Length
- 57:07
Line-up
- Mickey Curry · drums (drum set)
- Billy Duffy · guitar
- Jamie Stewart · bass
- John Webster · keyboard
- Ian Astbury · lead vocals
- Iggy Pop · background vocals · guest
Singles
- “Fire Woman” · 20 March 1989
- “Edie (Ciao Baby)” · 26 June 1989
- “Sun King” · 6 November 1989
- “Sweet Soul Sister” · 26 February 1990
Peak chart positions
| Chart | Peak |
|---|---|
| UK Albums Chart · 1989 | 3 |
| US Billboard 200 · 1989 | 10 |
| Canadian Albums · 1989 | 2 |
| UK Rock & Metal Albums · 2019 | 4 |
| Finnish Albums (The Official Finnish Charts) · 1989 | 5 |
| New Zealand Albums · 1989 | 6 |
| UK Independent Albums · 2019 | 12 |
| Australian Albums (ARIA) · 1989 | 13 |
| Italian Albums (Musica e Dischi) · 1989 | 13 |
| Swedish Albums · 1989 | 13 |
All 15 charts
| Swiss Albums · 1989 | 19 |
| Dutch Albums · 1989 | 23 |
| Scottish Albums · 2019 | 26 |
| German Albums · 1989 | 39 |
| Spanish Albums · 2019 | 50 |
Certifications
| Region | Certification |
|---|---|
| Australia · 1990 | Gold |
| Canada · 1989 | 2× Platinum |
| United Kingdom · 1989 | Gold |
| United States · 1990 | Platinum |
From MusicBrainz, Wikipedia and Wikidata. Only what the sources record is shown.
74.0
Popularity (0–100, vs the whole vault)
2.9k
ListenBrainz listeners
69k
Wikipedia views, last 12 months
9.5k
Deezer fans (all editions)
Released the same week
Also released on 10 April
Every year →
More from The Cult
Full discography →
Dreamtime
1984
Dreamtime: Live at the Lyceum
1985
Love
1985
Revolution E.P.
1985
Electric
1987
The Manor Sessions
1988
Rain / Revolution
1991
Wild Hearted Son
1991
Singles Collection 1984-1990
1991
Spiritwalker / Go West
1991
Resurrection Joe / She Sells Sanctuary
1991
Love Removal Machine / Lil’ Devil
1991
Wildflower / Live 1986-1987
1991
Fire Woman / Edie (Ciao Baby) / Sun King
1991
Sweet Soul Sister / Live 1987-1989
1991
Ceremony
1991
Heart of Soul
1992
The Witch
1993
Live Marquee London MCMXCI
1993
Pure Cult: For Rockers, Ravers, Lovers and Sinners
1993
The Cult
1994
The | Southern | Death | Cult
1996
High Octane Cult: The Ultimate Collection 1984-1995
1996
The White EP
1997
Pure Cult: The Singles 1984–1995
2000
Beyond Good and Evil
2001
Born Into This
2007
The Cult Capsule 1 2010
Capsule 1
2010
Embers / Until The Light Takes Us | Capsule II
2010
Choice of Weapon
2012
Hidden City
2016
Under the Midnight Sun
2022
The best of 1989
All of 1989 →
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The Cure · 1989
Bleach
Nirvana · 1989
Mother’s Milk
Red Hot Chili Peppers · 1989
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Pixies · 1989
Pretty Hate Machine
Nine Inch Nails · 1989
The Real Thing
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Pump
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Blew
Nirvana · 1989
Steel Wheels
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Trash
Alice Cooper · 1989
The Offspring
The Offspring · 1989
Hot in the Shade
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More on Sire Records
The label →
Ramones
Ramones · 1976
The Top
The Cure · 1984
Road to Ruin
Ramones · 1978
End of the Century
Ramones · 1980
Leave Home
Ramones · 1977
Love
The Cult · 1985
Meltdown With the Ramones
Ramones · 2014
ΚΕΦΑΛΗΞΘ
Ministry · 1992
Pleasant Dreams
Ramones · 1981
Electric
The Cult · 1987
The Land of Rape and Honey
Ministry · 1988
Too Tough to Die
Ramones · 1984
Releases and pressings
How we know the release date wikipedia 1989-04-10 vs 1989-04-12 (musicbrainz)
| Source | Date | Note |
|---|---|---|
| MusicBrainz | 12 April 1989 | |
| Wikipedia infobox | 10 April 1989 | |
| Wikidata | 1989 | |
| US release | 1989 | earliest US date |
| UK / Europe release | 1989 | earliest UK or European date |
16 editions
| Date | Country | Label | Barcode | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| — | XW | Beggars Banquet | 607618009809 | other |
| — | XE | Beggars Banquet | 077778678120 | other |
| 1989 | US | Sire Records | 075992587112 | other |
| 1989 | CA | Beggars Banquet | 042283812321 | other |
| 1989 | DE | Beggars Banquet | 5012981779221 | other |
| 1989 | US | Reprise Records | other | |
| 1989 | US | Sire Records | 075992587129 | other |
| 1989 | SU | Beggars Banquet | other | |
| 1989 | US | Sire Records | 075992587129 | other |
| 1989 | GB | Beggars Banquet | 5012093009827 | other |
| 12 April 1989 | JP | Victor | 4988002176397 | original |
| 1991 | BR | Beggars Banquet | other | |
| 21 April 1997 | GB | Beggars Banquet | 607618009823 | other |
| 2019 | XW | Beggars Banquet | 607618215125 | deluxe |
| 6 September 2019 | US | Beggars Banquet | 607618215118 | other |
| 13 September 2019 | XW | Beggars Banquet | 607618215163 | deluxe |
Cover art sources
deezer · native: native 1800x1800
| Source | Size | Verdict |
|---|---|---|
| deezer ✓ | 1800×1800 | native: native 1800x1800 |
| coverartarchive | 2859×2814 | cropped |
| fanarttv | 1000×1000 | upscaled |