FEATURE:
From Utah Saints and Natalia Kills Through to The Organon Mix
IN THIS PHOTO: Kate Bush shot in February 1979/PHOTO CREDIT: Gered Mankowitz
Kate Bush’s Catalogue and the Sampling and Remixing Potential
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WE got to experience some Kate Bush songs…
PHOTO CREDIT: Trevor Leighton
remixed on The Other Sides in 2019. Listening to those got me thinking about her work in general and how it has been reworked and repurposed by other people. Not to strip and pick through Bush’s catalogue for any song that can be sampled or remixed, but looking at the list of those who have sampled some of her tracks makes for amazing reading! I was not aware of the artists who have spliced in Kate Bush music into their songs, but I feel there is even more room for some of her great songs to work into modern tracks – and across all genres of the modern scene. Among those who have sampled Kate Bush, we have Wuthering Heights in Free by Natalia Kills (2011); Cloudbusting in Something Good by Utah Saints (1992); Wow in Slaves by Rum & Black (1991); Feel It in Feel It by Scroobius Pip (ft. Natasha Fox) (2011), and Houdini in Join the Groove by Mad Riley (2015). It is good to see that Bush gives clearance so that artists can use her music. Looking at the list of the ninety-four that have sampled her, and there are a lot of lesser-known and obscure artists on the list. That suggests that the cost of getting clearance is quite low but, more than anything, I wonder how many people have heard a lot of the songs that contain Kate Bush samples.
I guess Something Good by Utah Saints is the most known and heard – but I have never been a big fan of that song at all; it is not quite as good a track as it could be! It may step on the heels of a recent feature where I discussed how there should be a Kate Bush tribute album….it has been a while since one was done and, with so many artists owing a debt, there would be enough demand for a fresh album. I think the days of prolific sampling are gone, just because it is hard to get clearance and rights to use songs; many estates and artists will charge a lot to those who which to sample their songs. There has been some widespread sampling of Bush’s songs, but the fact there are many small artists doing it, perhaps, means there is not the sort of recognition and understanding as there could be. I think it would be wonderful if larger artists were to sample her work. I feel Hip-Hop is a genre that samples less than it did in the 1980s and 1990s and, with artists like Big Boi name-checking Bush as influential, it would be marvellous to hear one of her tracks infused into one of his songs! Although some of the underrated Bush tracks have been sampled, there are whole swathes of her work that, if sampled, would sound cool in a new context - but it would also be a nice way of introducing her work to new people.
On every album, there are tracks that are almost born to be sampled; intriguing cuts that have a great sound and flavour. From The Kick Inside, Them Heavy People stands out as one that has huge potential. The chorus seems like a mantra and has a rolling, hypnotic quality. Full House off of Lionheart is a quirky and energetic song that could give a new song a real kick and, in the process, people would be made aware of one of Bush most-underrated albums! Never for Ever’s Blow Away (For Bill), and The Wedding List are songs that are rarely played and, as they are unique and full of nuance, I am surprised more people have not used these tracks and worked them into their own. The Dreaming is packed with unusual and eclectic sounds that, to me, are ripe for sampling! I will reiterate my point when I say people shouldn’t pillage Bush’s work; only that there are so many of her songs that have this magic that could be infused into a modern song and give them extra spice and quality. Sat in Your Lap, Pull Out the Pin, Night of the Swallow, and Get Out of My House are extraordinary songs that have multiple passages and moments that could be taken from The Dreaming and reworked beautifully. I don’t think any album is sacred but, even with a record as good as Hounds of Love, I think artists can sample from it without denting its impact – so long as they use the sample effectively and tastefully. From that album, The Big Sky from the first side seems evocative and perfect; Waking the Witch, and Jig of Life from The Ninth Wave are such rich and interesting songs that one would love to hear them in a new form.
Not only can samples of Kate Bush’s music open her catalogue to new people but, on lesser-celebrated albums, others can take songs/sounds from them and we can see them in a new light. The Red Shoes is one such album and, whilst songs such as Why Should I Love You? have been sampled already, Rubberband Girl, Eat the Music, and Top of the City are full of life and colours that I feel would sound wonderful integrated into an original song! Even though Aerial, and 50 Words for Snow are calmer and more contemplative in their tone, there are gorgeous songs from those albums that would inject purity, beauty and a fresh lease to other people’s songs. King of the Mountain, How to Be Invisible, Prelude, and Aerial Tal from the former stand out; Misty, and Wild Man from the latter are brilliant. I have been thinking a lot about the golden age of Hip-Hop and how, a) not many of Bush’s songs pre-1989/1993 were used by artists in this genre and b) how improved and excellent it would have been to hear a track like Moving (from The Kick Inside), or All the Love (from The Dreaming) adding something immense to a Hip-Hop song! Maybe there is a sense from modern artists that touching Bush’s work would be disrespectful or that the original tracks are best left untouched. People cover her songs as a way of affection and respect, so there is not a lot of difference using a sample.
When Hip-Hop and Rap albums contained a lot of different samples – everyone from Beastie Boys to De La Soul did it -, the listener heard this clash of sounds and artists and, in the process, they were introduced to music they might not have otherwise discovered. Also, I think samples give songs new layers and add an almost filmic touch. There are conversations happening in the background and one can hear new nuance and resonance when an older sample is united with a contemporary track. Maybe 2021 will see more Kate Bush samples being used but, as I said at the start, most of the artists who have sampled Bush are quite minor and don’t get played a lot. The same logic applies to remixes. There have been some remixes through the years but, in the same way as artists cover Kate Bush songs to give them their own stamp, I would love to hear certain tracks remixed. I don’t think the fanbase would be disappointed and, if anything, we would get to hear particular tracks in a new light. I will not do a list of the songs that would sound good remixed, but there are songs from Never for Ever, and The Sensual World that spring to mind. There has been a lot of time and admiration for Bush’s music through 2020 and, whilst there have not been a load of covers – oddly, Radiohead seems to be one of the most-covered major acts this year! -, there have been a few. Some fans are uneasy about hearing covers and feel they do not add much to the original and, whilst I feel some of the ‘acclaimed’ Bush covers are overrated, it is always nice hearing artists add their own interpretation to a particular song – and how different artists have differing angles on the same song! In the feature I recently wrote about a Kate Bush tribute album, I think a lot of those artists could sample Kate Bush and it would be incredible. From Guy Garvey, to Solange, through to St. Vincent and Tricky, these celebrated artists could bring some of Kate Bush’s lesser-exposed songs…
IN THIS PHOTO: St. Vincent/PHOTO CREDIT: Scandeberg for GQ
TO the mainstream.