"A Head with Wings" is one of the more upbeat tracks on Morphine's Cure for Pain, though its D minor tonality and surreal lyrics maintain the album's characteristic atmosphere of dark whimsy. Dana Colley's baritone saxophone solo is a highlight, his playing injecting a burst of raw energy into the song's middle section. The solo balances jazzy phrasing with punk-rock intensity, Colley's deep-toned horn honking and wailing with an abandon that reflects the song's playful yet unsettling lyrical imagery. Mark Sandman's two-string bass provides the harmonic foundation with its distinctive, buzzing tone, while Jerome Deupree's drumming drives the track forward with crisp precision. The interplay between bass, sax, and drums on this track epitomizes the tight, three-way musical conversation that made Morphine's live performances so compelling. The band's refusal to include guitar in their lineup was both a creative constraint and a liberation, forcing each member to fill more sonic space and resulting in a sound that was simultaneously sparse and full. Cure for Pain was produced by the band with Paul Q. Kolderie and Sean Slade at Fort Apache Studios in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and the recording captures the trio's raw, unpolished energy with remarkable clarity.
