According to interviews in the booklet for the Deluxe Edition of Three Imaginary Boys, the demo to the song is what caught Chris Parry's attention in 1978 and led him to sign the band to his newly founded record company, Fiction. The track was written by Robert Smith at the age of 16 one evening while sitting at the kitchen table feeling "utterly morose" watching the tap dripping and drinking his dad's home made beer. It was first performed as part of the Easy Cure set around the band's local area of Crawley.
This song was covered by Australian punkabilly band The Living End on their 1996 EP It's For Your Own Good. It was also sampled on "Man Next Door" by Massive Attack.
10:15 Saturday Night
The Cure Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
10.15
Saturday night
Saturday night
And the tap drips
And the tap drips
Under the strip light
Under the strip light
And I'm sitting
In the kitchen sink
In the kitchen sink
And the tap drips
And the tap drips
Drip drip drip drip drip drip drip drip
Drip drip drip drip drip drip drip drip
Waiting
Waiting
For the telephone to ring
For the telephone to ring
And I'm wondering
And I'm wondering
Where she's been
Where she's been
And I'm crying
And I'm crying
For yesterday
For yesterday
And the tap drips
And the tap drips
Drip drip drip drip drip drip drip drip
Drip drip drip drip drip drip drip drip
It's always the same
It's always the same
"10:15 Saturday Night" by The Cure is a melancholic and haunting song describing the emotions of a man waiting for his girlfriend’s phone call. The song begins with the singer sitting in the kitchen sink of his apartment, listening to the constant dripping of a leaky tap under the flickering light of a nearby strip light. The repetitive sound of the tap is symbolic of the singer’s restlessness and frustration as he waits and wonders where his girlfriend has been.
The song captures the sense of anxiety and heartache that one feels while waiting for a loved one to call, knowing that they might not. The singer remembers the previous day, which left him in tears, and he’s desperate to hear from his girlfriend. The song is a poignant representation of how our thoughts can spiral when we are waiting for news from someone we care about.
Overall, "10:15 Saturday Night" is a powerful song that captures the emptiness and despair of waiting for a loved one to call. The repetitive dripping of the tap and the spare, haunting music add to the sense of isolation and anxiety that the singer is feeling.
Line by Line Meaning
10.15
The song starts with a narration of a specific time which is 10:15, possibly to give the listener an idea of how early it is in the night.
Saturday night
The setting of the story is on a Saturday night, a time of the week when people usually go out to have fun.
And the tap drips
This line introduces the sound of a dripping tap which creates a repetitive background sound throughout the song.
Under the strip light
The character is sitting under a strip light, which could be a way of indicating a sparse, dimly lit environment.
And I'm sitting
The main character is sitting down, possibly with nothing else to do in that lonely, boring hour of the night.
In the kitchen sink
The character is either sitting inside a kitchen sink or on one, which could indicate the lack of better places to sit in the dull kitchen.
Drip drip drip drip drip drip drip drip
This line reiterates and emphasizes the sound of the dripping tap, which could be associated with monotony, boredom or even loneliness.
Waiting
The main character is waiting for something to happen, either the phone to ring or something else to break the monotony of the night.
For the telephone to ring
The character is awaiting a phone call, possibly from someone they are hoping to spend the night with.
And I'm wondering
The character is wondering about the whereabouts of the person they are expecting a call from, possibly worried or nervous about the outcome.
Where she's been
The character is curious about the whereabouts and activities of the person they are expecting a call from.
And I'm crying
The character is crying, possibly because of a recent event or memory that has been triggered by the night's solitude.
For yesterday
The character is reminiscing about a past event that could have caused them to feel sad or upset.
It's always the same
The song ends with a repetition of a phrase that could indicate that the character is going through a routine or pattern of behavior that has led them to their current situation.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: LAURENCE ANDREW TOLHURST, MICHAEL STEPHEN DEMPSEY, ROBERT JAMES SMITH
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@mickzammit6794
I'm 71 now and I still love it. I play this stuff for grand children who sit wide eyed and speechless. They think grand dad may have used substances. Yep.
@MoonlightingJames
Yep. But that's ok. And The Cure did a great version of "Purple Haze"..
@wildechild5
The cool Grandpa...right on...I wish we were Neighbors that way we could Jam together because when I listen to music the whole neighborhood listens to it...Fuckkkkk this was my jam back in the eaarly 80's... I still have it on vinyl...☮
@samanthaharman6982
Yes grandad 😂😂😂
@CrisLifeCoach
🤘🤘🤘👊👊👊✊✊✊ i’m 50 and can’t get tired of this pure jewel
@pariahthistledown540
Damn, Pappy! Cheers! Awesomesause!
@cherry-qw6iu
I don't understand why this song is not more popular! It's one of the best cure songs, it represents that feeling when you can't wait to see someone you love and everything around you is exaggerated...i like how the sound of the water dripping is so realistic. Only the cure can make such original and yet minimalistic music
@mullafacation
What are you looking at? The views? Remember this isn't the only place people listen to music. I know a lot of people judge popularity that way.
(This point has been made before by someone else on YouTube who I do not remember unfortunately)
@wildechild5
Fuckkkkk this was my jam back in the 80's... I still have it on vinyl...
@404x_NotFound
If good music was popular the world would be a better place...