Audio: Hear the Cure’s ‘A Forest’ from ‘Kats Karavan: The History of John Peel’ box set

For fans of The Cure, the highlight of the forthcoming 4CD box set Kats Karavan: The History of John Peel on the Radio no doubt is the previously unreleased version of “A Forest” to be included in the retrospective set.

As previously reported, the 73-track collection comes next week in the UK, but for those who want to hear a sample the Cure’s contribution, this contest page, as pointed out by A Chain of Flowers, has a 1:35 clip of the song and Peel’s lead-in that’s posted here for your aural pleasure.

This recording of “A Forest” was made March 3, 1980, at the BBC’s Maida Vale 4 studios and broadcast seven days later, along with the rest of the session: “17 Seconds,” “Play for Today” and “M.” At the time, the band consisted of Robert Smith, Simon Gallup, Lol Tolhurst and Matthieu Hartley.

The Kats Karavan box set features singles, album cuts and Peel Session recordings by some of the DJ’s favorite artists, and features a number of rarities, including previously unreleased Peel Session recordings by Elvis Costello (“High Fidelity”) and Soundgarden (a cover of The Beatles’ “Everybody’s Got Something To Hide Except Me And My Monkey”).

AUDIO: The Cure, “A Forest,” Peel Session version recorded 3/3/80

PREVIOUSLY ON SLICING UP EYEBALLS

• The Cure’s ‘Disintegration’ gets 3CD deluxe reissue in 2010, plus ‘In Orange’ on DVD
• Rhino Records gutted by layoffs; future of The Cure’s reissue series in doubt?
• John Peel box set to feature unreleased session tracks by The Cure, Elvis Costello
• Morrissey, The Cure, Depeche Mode, Pixies top first 6 months of Slicing Up Eyeballs
• Video: P.S. 22 Chorus covers The Cure’s ‘Pictures of You’
• The Cure’s Robert Smith counts down Top 30 songs of the ’80s on Sirius XM
• Coachella pulls the plug on The Cure’s curfew-busting set mid-song
• The Cure warms up for Coachella in Las Vegas, cuts show short