Three Imaginary Boys

The record company chose the songs, the running order and the cover artwork without Smith's consent. Since then he has made sure he has full creative control of every Cure album before it goes on sale. The Foxy Lady soundcheck, with Michael Dempsey on lead vocals, was never meant to be on the record and was dropped from the American version. Smith said Object, World War and the Foxy Lady cover were Parry's choices.

In a 1987 Spin interview Smith said he was never happy with it. He described himself as angst-ridden and dislocated at the time, said the production was rushed and said he wrote lyrics while singing them. It reached number 44 in Britain. In the United States, Canada and Australia it appeared with a different tracklist as the compilation Boys Don't Cry. The band released the single Boys Don't Cry in June 1979.

Reviews were warmer than Smith's own. Sounds gave it five stars, and Smash Hits called it a brilliant, compelling debut, while NME's Paul Morley was unconvinced. Later AllMusic called it a very strong debut and Pitchfork's Nitsuh Abebe called it spiky post-punk. The Guardian ranked 10:15 Saturday Night eighteenth and the title track sixteenth in its 2024 list of the band's best songs. The 2004 reissue added a second disc of unreleased material, including Easy Cure recordings with Porl Thompson. An archive.org item holds a Marquee Club show in London from 11 March 1979, described as probably the earliest circulating Cure recording, in which the first eight songs of the then-unreleased album come in studio order.