The Cure first appeared in the year-end Billboard Hot 100 top 100 in 1989, when “Lovesong” finished at No. 68.
“Lovesong” was released as the third single from The Cure’s eighth studio album, Disintegration, on August 21, 1989. The song became one of the band’s strongest American pop successes, helping introduce their dark, atmospheric sound to a much broader audience.
The year-end chart is different from Billboard’s weekly Hot 100. A weekly peak measures a song’s highest position during one week, while the year-end list reflects sustained performance across the calendar year. “Lovesong” also reached No. 2 on the weekly U.S. Billboard Hot 100, but its year-end position was No. 68.
This milestone is sometimes confused with The Cure’s U.K. chart history, where the band had major singles earlier. In the United States, however, 1989 is the key year: “Lovesong” was their first year-end Billboard Hot 100 entry.