{{Infobox song | name = If Only Tonight We Could Sleep | type = song | artist = [[the Cure]] | album = [[Kiss Me Kiss Me Kiss Me]] | released = 26 May 1987 | genre = *[[Neo-psychedelia]] *[[raga rock]] | length = 4:50 | composer = *[[Robert Smith (musician)|Robert Smith]] *[[Simon Gallup]] *[[Porl Thompson]] *[[Boris Williams]] *[[Lol Tolhurst]] | lyricist = Robert Smith | producer = *[[David M. Allen]] * Robert Smith }}
"'''If Only Tonight We Could Sleep'''" is a song by English rock band [[the Cure]]. It is fourth song on the band's seventh studio album ''[[Kiss Me, Kiss Me, Kiss Me]]'' (1987). Mike Turner of ''[[God Is in the TV]]'' found the song saw the band "returning to the Indian-inspired textures and tones" present on the band's fifth studio album ''[[The Top (album)|The Top]]'' (1984) and disputed the perception that the song's lyrics address suicide finding this to be dismissed by the line which asks for a "deathless spell".<ref>{{Cite web |date=2023-02-09 |title=Just Like Heaven: The Cure - Kiss Me Kiss Me Kiss Me - God Is In The TV |url=https://www.godisinthetvzine.co.uk/2023/02/09/just-like-heaven-the-cure-kiss-me-kiss-me-kiss-me/ |access-date=2025-07-19 |language=en-US}}</ref>
Frontman and singer Robert Smith listed the song in a list of songs he felt would be appropriate for ''[[Songs of a Lost World]]'' (2024), stating that he enjoys playing the song live and there's "lovely kind of moods to it when it’s played well."<ref>{{Cite web |last=Branniganpublished |first=Paul |date=2024-10-16 |title=“Again, a bit of doom and gloom.” Robert Smith selects one song from every Cure album which reflects the mood of their new record Songs of a Lost World, and reveals which Cure album is his least favourite |url=https://www.loudersound.com/news/robert-smith-curated-cure-playlist |access-date=2025-07-19 |website=Louder |language=en}}</ref>
== Composition and themes == Ned Raggett, reviewing for [[AllMusic]], felt it was representative of the album's [[Schizophrenia|schizophrenic]] nature, describing it as an "extreme, narcotic track, a slow mood-out that brings the Cure's [[Psychedelic music|psychedelic]] tendencies to the fore" which is followed by the "ripping pop blast" of "[[Why Can't I Be You?]]". He described [[Boris Williams]]' drums as "trancy, slow semi-tribal drums", calling it "one of Williams' most creatively snaky drum performances".<ref>{{Cite web |last=Quietus |first=The |date=2017-04-24 |title=Just Like A Dream: The Cure's Kiss Me Kiss Me Kiss Me Revisited |url=https://thequietus.com/opinion-and-essays/anniversary/the-cure-kiss-me-kiss-me-kiss-me-review-anniversary/ |access-date=2025-07-20 |website=The Quietus |language=en-GB}}</ref> He noted the song "conjures up images of sleeping "on a bed made of flowers" and wanting to "slide into deep black water," the heavy echo and reverb on his vocals making everything sound even more like an [[opium den]] come to life."<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Cure – "If Only Tonight We Could Sleep" |publisher=AllMusic |url=https://www.allmusic.com/song/if-only-tonight-we-could-sleep-mt0007353766 |access-date=2025-07-19 |language=en}}</ref>
Andrew Unterberger of ''[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]'' noted the song "dips into Eastern instrumentation", with use of electronically emulated sitars which he felt "proved an invaluable texture in the song’s rich psychedelic stew".<ref>{{Cite web |last=Unterberger |first=Andrew |date=2019-03-29 |title=The Cure’s 40 Best Songs: Critic’s Picks |url=https://www.billboard.com/music/rock/the-cure-best-songs-hits-list-8504417/ |access-date=2025-07-19 |website=Billboard |language=en-US}}</ref> [[BBC]] described the song as "sheer elegance",<ref>{{Cite web |last=Wade |first=Ian |title=BBC - Music - Review of The Cure - Kiss Me, Kiss Me, Kiss Me |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/music/reviews/hr8c/ |access-date=2025-07-19 |website=www.bbc.co.uk |language=en-GB}}</ref> while Jon Kean of ''God Is In The TV'' felt the song "breathes a sense of exoticism" and admired how the song "embrace[s] the notions of 'blissful' and 'tortured' simultaneously".<ref>{{Cite web |last=Kean·Opinion· |first=Jon |date=2023-02-03 |title=The Cure: Starting XI - God Is In The TV |url=https://www.godisinthetvzine.co.uk/2023/02/03/the-cure-starting-xi/ |access-date=2025-07-19 |language=en-US}}</ref>
== Legacy == The song is featured on the band's double live video album ''[[The Cure: Trilogy|Trilogy]]'' (2003) as an encore along with "The Kiss".<ref>{{Citation |title=The Cure - Trilogy |date=2003 |url=https://www.discogs.com/master/32227-The-Cure-Trilogy |access-date=2025-07-20 |language=en}}</ref>
In 2004, American [[Heavy metal music|heavy metal]] band [[Deftones]] covered the song on the band's ''[[MTV Icon]]'' special.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Staff |first=Revolver |title=See Deftones Cover the Cure's "If Only Tonight We Could Sleep" on 'MTV Icon' |url=https://www.revolvermag.com/music/see-deftones-cover-cures-if-only-tonight-we-could-sleep-mtv-icon/ |access-date=2025-07-19 |website=Revolver |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=2004-09-20 |title=The Cure take the icon test |url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/3672350.stm |access-date=2025-07-19 |language=en-GB}}</ref>They also covered the song again in 2018 when they performed at Robert Smith's curated [[Meltdown (festival)|Meltdown Festival]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Trendell |first=Andrew |date=2018-06-21 |title=Deftones cover The Cure and air rarities at Robert Smith's Meltdown |url=https://www.nme.com/news/music/deftones-cover-cure-air-rarities-robert-smiths-meltdown-2341996 |access-date=2025-07-19 |website=NME |language=en-GB}}</ref>
== Personnel == * [[Robert Smith (musician)|Robert Smith]] – guitar, keyboards, vocals * [[Simon Gallup]] – bass guitar * [[Porl Thompson]] – guitar, keyboards * [[Lol Tolhurst]] – keyboards * [[Boris Williams]] – drums, percussion
== References == {{Reflist}}
{{The Cure}}
[[Category:The Cure songs]] [[Category:1987 songs]] [[Category:Raga rock songs]] [[Category:Neo-psychedelia songs]]