FEATURE:
Kate Bush’s Remarkable and Varied Albums
IN THIS PHOTO: Kate Bush in an outtake from the Hounds of Love cover shoot/PHOTO CREDIT: John Carder Bush
Will Hounds of Love Always Top the Critical Lists?
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IT is understandable that…
IN THIS PHOTO: Kate Bush in a promotional image for 50 Words for Snow/PHOTO CREDIT: John Carder Bush:
there are going to be new features ranking Kate Bush’s albums. As 2022 was a year when she was thrust back into public consciousness in a very unexpected way, her albums are being picked up by a new generation. Not that I am focusing on Hounds of Love specifically, but I have it in mind as it does seem to be the album that always tops the critical polls. To be fair, as Running Up That Hill (A Deal with God) has come back into focus and topped charts, its parent album is going to enjoy new acclaim and discovery. I am compelled by a December feature from the excellent Pink News. They arranged Bush’s ten studio albums from least essential to the best. They placed Director’s Cut last. That album saw Bush rework songs from The Sensual World (1989) and The Red Shoes (1993) in 2011. Here is what they had to say about these albums:
“It won’t come as a surprise to many Bush fans that Director’s Cut, her 2011 re-recording of songs from The Sensual World and The Red Shoes, is bottom of the list.
Bush was apparently unhappy with how some of the songs that ended up on those two albums turned out, so she decided to revisit them. The tracks that come out the best are those from The Red Shoes, but stripped-back versions of songs like “This Woman’s Work” and “Moments of Pleasure” were never going to replace the originals.
The obvious standout is “Flower of the Mountain”, where Bush finally gets to sing the song originally known as “The Sensual World” as she always intended – using James Joyce’s words from Ulysses”.
“It’s a testament to Bush’s talent that even her worst album of original songs still has a lot of merit.
Lionheart was rushed out just nine months after her debut The Kick Inside in a desperate bid to capitalise on Bush’s early success. It’s largely made up of songs that didn’t make the cut for her debut.
Some of those songs are pop perfection, and they point to Bush’s more transgressive leanings. On “Symphony in Blue”, she sings about finding purpose in life through sex. On “Wow”, she throws in a sly nod to gay sex, and on “Kashka from Baghdad” she sings about a gay couple “living in sin”.
The album also features some of her worst songs: “In Search of Peter Pan” and “Oh England My Lionheart” are low points in her back catalogue. Good songs are aplenty, but there’s no denying Lionheart is Bush’s least interesting album. Everything she did well here, she did better elsewhere”.
I guess a lot of polls will place Director’s Cut last, simply because the songs are already known. It is a bit of a gamble re-working tracks that many had no issue with to start with. Bush wanted to give certain tracks more space, strip them out and recorded them as they perhaps should have been. I can see why Director’s Cut may not be essential, but I always argue against those who feel Lionheart should be placed that low. Of course, it is a subjective view, but I will always fight for Lionheart and its many merits!
Pink News are massive fans of Kate Bush, so I respect their placings and vantage points. They know her albums inside out, so you can’t quibble against their expertise. They placed The Dreaming ahead of The Kick Inside in second, and Hounds of Love claimed the top spot. This corresponds with other ranking features which have said the same thing:
“Years after its release, Bush described The Dreaming as her “I’ve gone mad” album, and it’s hard to argue with that.
The Dreaming marked Bush’s first time producing an album entirely by herself, and the result is an experience, to say the least. The record has so many layers that you’ll still hear new things years after that first listen.
That’s both a good and a bad thing, of course. The Dreaming didn’t get the best reception from critics at the time, who were largely baffled. The album also yielded no hit singles, which put Bush in her label’s bad books.
Despite those challenges, The Dreaming has always had a cult following among Bush fans. Today, it continues to capture the attention of old and new fans alike for its complexity and imagination.
Highlights from The Dreaming include “Pull Out the Pin”, which touches on the Vietnam war, and “Get Out of My House”, a song sung from the perspective of The Overlook Hotel in The Shining (there’s also braying donkeys, in case you were wondering).
What else could be number one? Hounds of Love is not only Bush’s best album, but it’s also one of the best albums ever recorded.
Hounds of Love was in some ways borne out of necessity. After The Dreaming in 1982 proved a commercial disappointment, Bush knew she had to come up with some hits. She retreated to a farmhouse in the countryside, built a state-of-the-art studio at her family home and got to work.
The result is an album of two halves. The first part is full of hits that also happen to be some of Bush’s all-time best songs. It’s home to “Running Up That Hill”, “Hounds of Love”, “The Big Sky” and “Cloudbusting”.
The second side – titled The Ninth Wave – is its own concept album about a woman lost at sea. Starting with “And Dream of Sheep”, the collection of seven songs charts the character’s desperation as she slips into fretful dreams in the water.
With Hounds of Love, Bush showed how technology, most of all the Fairlight CMI, enabled her to create soundscapes that she previously could never have dreamed of. It’s a masterful feat from an artist who has spent her entire career defying labels and expectations.
A testament to its success is that Hounds of Love could just as easily have been released yesterday. It’s a timeless record, and it’s one that’s destined to delight and thrill all those who hear it for years to come”.
I am not going to argue against the fact that Hounds of Love is a masterpiece! In terms of production, songwriting quality and Bush’s vocals, there is nothing to fault. It has a side of mostly singles and more accessible cuts, with the second side consisting of a suite of tracks that form this amazing concept. I love the fact Bush took that approach and decided to do something ambitious. Entirely different from 1982’s The Dreaming, she was in a much healthier and happier headspace by the time she started to plot and record Hounds of Love around 1983. Maybe there is the sense that one cannot deny the majesty of Hounds of Love. Sacrilege to put it lower than number one! It is one of Bush’s own favourite albums of hers, and it is the most acclaimed of her career. I think there is a new legion of fans picking up the album for the first time. Not to argue against anyone placing Hounds of Love at the top of the pile when it comes to Kate Bush’s albums, but I wonder whether there is this easy tendency to put it there without really digging into her other albums. I could make a case that albums like The Dreaming, The Kick Inside and Aerial could challenge for that top spot. Maybe rather than trying to depose Hounds of Love or get people to not follow like sheep, I guess I want folk to consider her other albums.
More album rankings will come soon enough. It is great to hear and see people take the time to explore her albums and dive in. I open articles that rank her albums and can pretty much predict the order straight away. Aside from one or two surprises, most people say the same thing. Thais could either mean that everyone is right and they are on the same page, or there is a case of people placing the albums without giving them a fresh listen. I have done rankings of her albums before and, whilst I always put my favourite The Kick Inside at the top, others have shifted around. I have alternately put The Red Shoes and Director’s Cut at the bottom. I have put Lionheart higher than ever the last year or two , and I have sort of struggled to place Aerial as high up the rankings as a lot of people. The Dreaming was forty last year, and that sort of hovers between being her fourth or fifth-best. Never for Ever, an album that never scores as highly as it should, has definitely revealed new layers and brilliance. Will Hounds of Love always be queen? There have been new documentaries about Kate Bush recently. Absolute Radio broadcast Kate Bush: The Strangest Thing, on 28th December. It was a tribute to her and the fact that she continues to inspire and be relevant. They looked at her concerts and songs. It was a celebration that saluted a true original. I wonder whether there are enough deep dives and documentaries around the studio albums.
It does sound like I am gunning for Hounds of Love or calling it overrated. Neither is true. I do think that there is an impression nothing comes close to that 1985 album. The slight predictability of the album ranking lists leads me to think that there needs to be a greater awareness and re-investigation of her other studio albums. If you judge them on their singles alone, then Hounds of Love will always come on top! Listen to the likes of The Sensual World, Never for Ever, or 50 Words for Snow, and there is this nuance, depth and real sense of genius that comes when you listen to thew album the way through. I do like any features that discuss Bush’s albums, but I hope this year is a time when the media and fans give her whole body of work a proper study. Not to say Hounds of Love will be lower than number one in future album rankings, but I would bet on the fact albums that have always been placed lower will now be higher up the list. Perhaps knowing more about their history and story would change perspective. The Kick Inside is forty-five next month, so go back to that debut and give it a good listen. Lionheart (1978) and The Red Shoes (1993) are stronger than many people give it credit for, and Never for Ever is always that album that is placed somewhere in the middle of the pack or lower. It would be interesting to debate people about album rankings and why some place great albums lower. Pink News’ one-two is a pretty fair shout, but I do wonder if there is a blind acceptance that Hounds of Love is best. Maybe other albums will usurp it one day. Although, if we are honest, Bush’s epic and timeless fifth studio album is…
HARD to ignore.