Seventeen Seconds Songwriting Credits by The Cure

Seventeen Seconds marks the point where Robert Smith took fuller creative control of The Cure, co-producing the album with engineer Mike Hedges. Smith wrote all of the lyrics, while the music was credited to the band, with contributions from Simon Gallup, Matthieu Hartley and Lol Tolhurst on tracks such as 'A Forest.' Recorded quickly at Morgan Studios in London on a small budget, the album trades the debut's nervy pop for a colder, more atmospheric sound that pointed toward gothic rock. It is the first Cure album to clearly reflect Smith's singular vision rather than producer-led curation.