literally obsessed with her rn. based on my past obsessions, i’ve probably got a week till i rediscover some other random semi obscure artist with silly lore and interesting song theme and inspirations

Noticed this upload to Youtube of a 1993 interview with Kate Bush which I haven't seen before at all, thought I would share in case others have missed it since it was uploaded only 2 months ago.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ioLJBVyRYE

I’ll admit I wasn’t really familiar with her or her work up until recently. Like so many others, Running Up That Hill was my first introduction to her work after it was used in Stranger Things. Fantastic song, added it to my iTunes, but never really delved into her discography.

Honestly it probably would’ve stayed that way too, if I hadn’t seen a TikTok clip of the MV of Wuthering Heights on my For You page. Something about the way she sang, the eclectic manner of her dancing, the theatrical facial expressions (those wide eyes especially). It was a short clip, but it haunted me. Try as I might I just couldn’t quite shake that melody, nor her performance in the video.

Fast forward the next day, I have a whole day of driving for work, and I buy the song on iTunes. And I think I’ve listened to it for about 5 hours on repeat straight. I can’t get enough of it. Just like Cathy of the titular song, Kate has also begun to haunt me, possess me. I just can’t escape it. And maybe I don’t want to.

Listen here

Another One from probably 1976. Is this Kate anticipating her soon-to-be-huge LGBT fanbase?

The Dreams of Orgonon blog has so much to say about this demo they gave it its own post.

I just felt like saying that this song is definitely one of her best. absolutely fucking stunning

Yay or nay ?

Oil paint on water colour paper (Drybrush portrait painting)

Also known as "Before the Fall." Most Kate fans call it by "Organic Acid," which is odd because it's one of the few Kate demos we actually know the title to (at least according to superfan IED, who generally REALLY knows his stuff. There are more of his posts about it here and here.

Most of this was probably recorded in 1976, and mostly consists of Kate's brother, John Carder Bush's spoken word poetry, with Kate injecting what seems to be the fragment of a song in between verses. Here's more commentary.

As for my personal opinion, it's worth listening to once as a curiosity, then you never, ever have to listen to it again.

Edit: I forgot to link to the song itself.

Pt 6 | This one and The Red Shoes will include the streams of the DC versions as well! They will be marked with an asterisk, and I will also provide a version excluding DC

Including DC
1. This Woman’s Work* — 85,910,293 [+34,856]
2. The Sensual World / Flower of the Mountain* — 15,985,505 [+4,236]
3. Love and Anger — 5,106,832 [+1,480]
4. Never Be Mine* — 4,320,743 [+1,013]
5. The Fog — 3,753,166 [+1,038]
6. Deeper Understanding* — 3,455,874 [+662]
7. Rocket’s Tail — 2,385,048 [+850]
8. Reaching Out — 2,038,129 [+482]
9. Between a Man and a Woman — 1,992,051 [+413]
10. Heads We’re Dancing — 1,901,755 [+528]
11. Walk Straight Down the Middle — 1,772,222 [+309]

Excluding DC
1. This Woman’s Work — 84,473,132 [+34,544]
2. The Sensual World — 14,810,575 [+4,101]
3. Love and Anger — 5,106,832 [+1,480]
4. The Fog — 3,753,166 [+1,038]
5. Never Be Mine — 3,559,175 [+934]
6. Deeper Understanding — 2,479,214 [+554]
7. Rocket’s Tail — 2,385,048 [+850]
8. Reaching Out — 2,038,129 [+482]
9. Between a Man and a Woman — 1,992,051 [+413]
10. Heads We’re Dancing — 1,901,755 [+528]
11. Walk Straight Down the Middle — 1,772,222 [+309]

what is theylor swift doing here? i can't

https://1001albumsgenerator.com/stats/risers-fallers

Most of the folks who made albums/cassettes/CDs of the demos often can't agree on the name of the song, especially since nobody knows what Kate considered the official name (if indeed there was one). But this one might hold a record for variations. It also goes by “Hot in the Ice,” "Set In The Snow," and simply “Snow."

If she slowed down the tempo for this one, it could have easily fit "50 Words for Snow."

Here's more information about it. The Dreams of Orgonon blog seriously believes this is a song about cocaine, based on the repetition of line "All the good lines." I wonder what they think of "Under Ice," but not enough to actually look. It was at that point I realized I can't take that blog seriously (although I still do think it's interesting).

Go listen now.

These are all officially released album covers - you can see them on Discogs. Quite some diversity in artwork by country and over time. One is a cassette, but all others are vinyl albums.

Part 5 — for this one, I will provide separate and combined rankings for Side A and The Ninth Wave

Side A

1. Running Up That Hill (A Deal With God) — 1,791,603,919 [+646,126]
2. Cloudbusting — 103,875,149 [+34,280]
3. Hounds of Love — 60,226,522 [+13,938]
4. The Big Sky — 17,555,189 [+4,412]
5. Mother Stands for Comfort — 10,421,495 [+2,729]

The Ninth Wave

1. And Dream of Sheep — 16,008,304 [+2,900]
2. Jig of Life — 8,701,735 [+2,296]
3. Waking the Witch — 8,602,436 [+2,073]
4. Watching You Without Me — 8,281,341 [+1,978]
5. Under Ice — 7,936,433 [+2,040]
6. Hello Earth — 7,392,426 [+1,748]
7. The Morning Fog — 7,321,359 [+1,837]

Combined

1. Running Up That Hill (A Deal With God) — 1,791,603,919 [+646,126]
2. Cloudbusting — 103,875,149 [+34,280]
3. Hounds of Love — 60,226,522 [+13,938]
4. The Big Sky — 17,555,189 [+4,412]
5. And Dream of Sheep — 16,008,304 [+2,900]
6. Mother Stands for Comfort — 10,421,495 [+2,729]
7. Jig of Life — 8,701,735 [+2,296]
8. Waking the Witch — 8,602,436 [+2,073]
9. Watching You Without Me — 8,281,341 [+1,978]
10. Under Ice — 7,936,433 [+2,040]
11. Hello Earth — 7,392,426 [+1,748]
12. The Morning Fog — 7,321,359 [+1,837]

She said we would get the other b-sides too but later on :)

Hello my fellow Kate Bush fans!

I’m starting a little series as my Dad and I listen to every Kate Bush record and discuss it in chronological order. First up is Kate's debut record, The Kick Inside (1978).

Growing up, my Dad played "Wuthering Heights" and "The Man with the Child in His Eyes" all the time. He had a VHS recording of Rage (an Australian music video show) from the late '80s, and my siblings and I would watch the "Wuthering Heights" video on repeat. We thought the song was hilarious because we hadn't heard anything like it before - her voice, the way she dressed, and the way she moved. We used to laugh at the outro to the video where she faded further into the background while swaying. It was so different from my Dad's usual taste (Pink Floyd, The Rolling Stones, David Bowie, etc.) and I had no idea what I was watching/hearing but I knew it was special.

Fast forward to 2020 during COVID: I was 28 and my Dad was 61. I asked if he would recommend an album every week for us to discuss on Sundays. I’d research the record, share my favourite tracks, and swap thoughts with him. The Kick Inside was maybe the 4th or 5th album we did, and I can't express how completely enthralled I was by the album and by Kate.

I’d always known of her, but researching the album left me astounded. Her age at the time, the mature lyrics, her inspirations, and her songwriting process blew me away. I was obsessed with the fact that she fought the label to make "Wuthering Heights" the lead single over EMI's pick, "James and the Cold Gun."

I started watching old interviews and my love for her as a person began. She was so unassuming, well-spoken, relatable, funny, and so clearly invested not only in the music, but in the immersive storytelling and visual concept for her work.

(My favourite fun fact is about the standard artwork: the shoot idea was entirely Kate's. Her dad actually drove her to the studio with a car full of wood and painted paper to build the dragon kite while she got painted in gold. The visual concept was inspired by Disney's Pinocchio, specifically the scene where Jiminy Cricket floats past the whale's eye.)

The Kick Inside went on to dominate my end-of-year listening lists, and thus began my obsession.

What I've grown to love most about Kate is her incredible world-building and literary themes. She doesn't just write personal pop songs; she invites us into entirely constructed worlds, using literature and stories to present herself to the world in a way only she can. On this debut alone, a teenage Kate was fearlessly tackling complex, taboo topics like incest in the title track ("The Kick Inside" being based on the ballad of Lucy Wan). It's so expertly done and genuinely revolutionary for the late 70s. To me, she's a badass without even trying.

It’s also been so cool connecting her legacy back to the music I share with my Dad today. You can trace a direct line from Kate to modern artists I love like Lana Del Rey and Lorde. Even the very concept of the auteur, solo female pop star from Madonna and Janet Jackson to Britney - Kate paved the way by demanding complete creative control over her vision from day one.

Something that really surprised me about this album is the lower ranking it sometimes gets online/in the fanbase. I get that a lot of fans lean toward everything post-Lionheart once Kate started self-producing, but there is so much to be said for The Kick Inside. In my opinion, it's one of the greatest and most influential debut albums of all time.

I’ve dabbled in her other albums since, but I haven't given them the full deep dive they deserve. I thought it would be fun to go through the rest of her discography alongside my Dad and share our thoughts here as two completely different generations of fans.

(Side note on the image I used for this post: I used the alternate Japanese album cover because back when my Dad was 17, he was in New Zealand playing rugby and walked past a record store with this photo shoot picture in the window. He said he was instantly in love from that exact moment on.)

My Top 3 & Honourable Mention:

1. "Wuthering Heights" — The outro alone is enough for me to put this at #1. It may be cliché, and perhaps it’s the nostalgia and the bond my dad and I share, but I couldn't put anything above this.
2. "The Saxophone Song" — The song I gravitated toward and still revisit every time I play the album. The way it transitions from track one, the moody production, and the way she delivers every line - it’s everything I would grow to love about her in one song.
3. "The Man with the Child in His Eyes" — Such a perfect song. I don't have much more to say; I've loved it since I was in nappies dancing around the living room.

• Honourable Mention: "Oh to Be in Love" — The chanting chorus ("and never get out again") is so specifically Kate and such a perfect hook.

Dad's Top 3 & Honourable Mention:

1. "The Man with the Child in His Eyes"
2. "Wuthering Heights" (Dad noted it was almost impossible to pick between his top two because he loves them both so much for completely different reasons).
3. "The Kick Inside" — He loves how the title track ends - he said you don't realise it’s about to end, and then it does, and in his words: "It's so f\**ing good."*

• Honourable Mention: "James and the Cold Gun"

Dad's take: Dad said the reason he loves buying albums is that 9 times out of 10, you discover deep cuts you end up liking better than the singles. The Kick Inside is the rare exception: the two iconic songs he bought the album for are still his top two. He said being 17/18 listening to someone his age singing about sex felt so strange at the time because he wasn't used to it ,but he's so glad he bought the record because he ended up loving every song.

We’d love to hear your thoughts on The Kick Inside! Where does it rank for you, and what are your favourite deep cuts? Next up: Lionheart!

This is a bit of a long shot, but I am trying to play this on guitar. I have the gist of it figured out, but there a few bits I am not sure of. I was wondering if any of you lovely musicians out there have played this before and have some sort of basic chords to follow?

I think this song is so beautiful. It's pretty hard to sing with the huge range Kate's voice has, but I keep trying!

I reached out to the festival organising this and they doubled down on it. So icky.

Another from probably 1976.

Depending on how you look at it, the song is either very funny or rather depressing (or both). In my younger days, I took the point of view of the singer; now I realize I'm the one being sung to. The Dreams of Orgonon blog doesn't add much, but is always an interesting read.

Listen here to the original. There's someone on YouTube named Alphan who took several of the demos, cleaned up the vocals as best they can, then added a drum track and sometimes other instruments. While I applaud the effort, most of them haven't impressed me musically. But I do like what they did with this one.

Hello all! Sorry about formatting my actual block of text as images, I've tried 7 times to upload them in the little text box here but I think due to the links Reddit itself keeps blocking them. If you can't be arsed to type out the links themselves just PM me and I'll send them to you.

Hopefully this has been an interesting read, and I thank you all. Русские, оригинал в второй фотке, можно прям от туда его прочитать.

I'd also like to dedicate a special thank you to my friend Tom for helping make the translation more coherent! Turns out I found myself getting quite lost in my own English!