The Cure
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Phil Thornalley | |
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| Birth name | Philip Thornalley |
| Born | 5 January 1960 |
| Origin | Worlington, Mildenhall, Suffolk, England |
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| Years active | 1978–present |
Philip Thornalley (born 5 January 1960) is an English songwriter, musician, and producer who has worked in the music industry since 1978. He produced the album Pornography by The Cure and was later their bass player. He began releasing his own music in 1988 and briefly joined the band Johnny Hates Jazz. In later years he worked principally as a songwriter, and is perhaps best known for co-writing the song "Torn" (made famous by Natalie Imbruglia) and for writing two UK number one hits for Pixie Lott. Starting in the 2010s he released more solo music under his own name and as Astral Drive.[1][2]
Thornalley was born in Worlington, Suffolk. He began working as a recording engineer in 1978 at RAK Studios in London for producers Mickie Most, Steve Lillywhite and Alex Sadkin.[2] His first major role as a producer was for the 1982 album Pornography by The Cure.[1][3] The following year, he produced the non-album Cure single "The Love Cats" and contributed a distinctive double bass performance on the song.[4] Since the Cure lacked an official bassist at the time, Thornalley joined the band for a short tour of the US and some television appearances, and in 1984 he appeared in videos for songs from the band's album The Top though he did not play on the studio recordings due to being involved with producing and mixing other artists. He also performed on the ensuing tour, and helped the Cure fill its vacant drummer position by recruiting two musicians with whom he had worked in previous studio sessions – temporary touring drummer Vince Ely, followed by Boris Williams who joined the band officially.[1]
After about 18 months with the Cure, Thornalley left the band and resumed working as a songwriter and producer.[5] He was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Engineered Album, Non-Classical in 1984 for Into the Gap by the Thompson Twins and released his first solo album, Swamp, in 1988.[2][6] Also in 1988, he joined the pop band Johnny Hates Jazz, which included his friend Mike Nocito, on lead vocals and various instruments,[7] and appeared on their 1991 album Tall Stories.[8] Just before the album was released, Thornalley and bandmate Calvin Hayes were involved in a serious car accident, and their inability to tour caused the album to stall. Thornalley left the band the following year.[1]
Since leaving Johnny Hates Jazz, Thornalley has focused mostly on songwriting and producing for other artists. In 1991, Thornalley co-wrote, with Scott Cutler and Anne Preven, the song "Torn" which later appeared on the 1995 debut album by American alternative rock band Ednaswap.[2] In 1997, Thornalley was hired to produce some songs for Natalie Imbruglia, and her cover of "Torn" became an international hit and is often listed as one of the best pop songs of its era.[9][10][11] Thornalley has also written hit songs for BBMak,[12] and in the early 2010s he wrote two UK number one singles – "Mama Do" and "Boys and Girls" – for Pixie Lott.[13][14] He has also served as an engineer or producer for a wide variety of artists including Duran Duran, XTC, Sting, Edwyn Collins, Prefab Sprout, Junior Giscombe, John Martyn, Ash, Kiki Dee, Kim Wilde, and Cyndi Lauper.[15]
In 2016, Thornalley joined the touring band for Bryan Adams and wrote songs for the albums Get Up and Shine a Light.[16] In 2018 he launched a solo project called Astral Drive and released three albums under that name.[17] In 2022 he returned to recording under his own name and released the album Now That I Have Your Attention.[18]
In 2022, Bass Player magazine listed Thornalley's performance on "The Love Cats" by The Cure as the 23rd bass line of all time, though it was the first time he had ever played an upright bass .[4] The National Portrait Gallery includes his portrait by photographer Julian Anderson where he is listed as "songwriter".[19]
Thornalley's influences are Todd Rundgren, The Beatles, and Pink Floyd. Soul singer Reggie Sears has named Thornalley as his favourite singer and credits Thornalley's 1988 release Swamp as the main driving force for wanting to be a singer and musician.[20]
