FEATURE:
Slowly Trudging Up That Hill
IN THIS PHOTO: Kate Bush in 1985/PHOTO CREDIT: Guido Harari
If a New Kate Bush Album Dropped, Which Radio Stations Would Play It?
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APOLOGIES to once more…
PHOTO CREDIT: lookstudio via freepik
play on Running Up That Hill (A Deal with God) for the title of this feature, but I think it is apt in this case! I think it is only going to be a matter of months before Kate Bush announces new music. That might be a bit of a guess or big prediction, but I feel that she will announce an autumn album by the time we are just about to get to summer. I am thinking ahead to the fact and a subject that I like to address when it comes to Bush. With every passing day, it is apparent that Running Up That Hill (A Deal with God) is the go-to song for stations. Radio loves to play that 1985 track. That has always been the case, but it has been amplified after it appeared on Stranger Things last year. If that Netflix show helped introduce a new generation to Kate Bush’s music, it unfortunately created this fixation with the song that sacrificed most of her other songs. Sure, you might get a few other singles played now and then but, from Greatest Hits Radio to BBC Radio 2, even to BBC Radio 6 Music, you can bet that Running Up That Hill (A Deal with God) is going to be played a lot more than any other song. In fact, I think the last five times I have heard Kate Bush played on the radio, it has been that Hounds of Love track.
I do feel that there needs to be greatest appreciation of her music beyond what is seen as obvious and popular. The thing is that people do not need to hear that song so much anymore. It is in the wider world and is not going to be fresh to so many people. Radio stations seem to get it into their head that, as the song exploded last year, this is what we associate with Kate Bush – a song that defines her and is going to be the most sought after. Even if something is sought after and popular, ramming it down throats assumes that people only would listen to Kate Bush because of that song. Playlists in general are very narrow; but consider their demographics and objectives. Very few radio stations are age-specific. I know BBC Radio 1 appeals to a ‘young’ reach, but they do feature artists in their mid-thirties and forties. It is rare, but why would someone as relevant as Kate Bush not feature? I suspect they play her a fair bit, but would her new music feature on the playlists, seeing as she has undoubtably resonated with a generation who listen to BBC Radio 1? I will come to that. BBC Radio 2 is quite broad in its remit, and even BBC Radio 6 Music is very narrow regarding Kate Bush plays. Unless listeners request something deeper than the obvious singles, the scope includes maybe six or seven of her tracks (and Babooshka and The Red Shoes might be in there).
For an artist who has released ten studio albums and well over a hundred songs, it is a huge disservice to her genius and variety. There are artists that are given the same sort of short shrift and lack of real appreciation. It is great that a song like Running Up That Hill (A Deal with God) impacted and connected with so many people, but if that is the song you lean on when it comes to Bush, what are you trying to say? This is what she is known for and synonymous with, so this is all we are going to play?! It is a little sad! There are songs and almost entire albums that are not being played. Since when did we hear anything from Lionheart that wasn’t Wow? Something from Never for Ever besides Babosohka, Army Dreamers or Breathing? Anything off of The Dreaming past Sat in Your Lap? A song on Hounds of Love from the first side that isn’t Cloudbusting, Running Up That Hill (A Deal with God) or Hounds of Love? What about things beyond The Sensual World’s title track and This Woman’s Work? Do you get much from The Red Shoes beyond the title track? Aerial’s King of the Mountain is played, but not much else from that double album is. If radio stations limit artists to the singles and neglect deeper cuts, then that creates a very bleak rule! Kate Bush will never be ignored or forgotten, but her legacy is being defined and reduced to only a few songs. I know people (pedants) will leap in and list occasions when deeper cuts have been played - but is a very rare occasion!
It sounds like I am picking on BBC Radio 1, but should an artist in their sixties be seen as a legacy act or irrelevant to playlists?! I know they aim to a young demographic and want music that is cutting-edge and will appeal to them, but there are no rules about featuring artists who have been in the music business for years. I wonder why, for women, there are few artists over thirty-five on the playlist. I guess even male artists have a certain time limit on that station – though it does not seen as strict when compared to female artists. If we want to discuss relevance and importance, new Kate Bush music would definitely be up there. If listeners of BBC Radio 1 hear Running Up That Hill (A Deal with God) on the station because that and a couple of others are what they might easily identify with, would they ever know about her new music and buy the album?! Legends like Madonna won’t appear on certain stations, so how does a younger generation know about her albums and contemporary brilliance if they are only being fed ‘classics’? Are women over a certain age only seen as being able to connect with young listeners through their older music? Let us not forget that Bush released Running Up That Hill (A Deal with God) when she was in her twenties.
PHOTO CREDIT: Nicholas Githiri/Pexels
When a new album is announced – I am very hopeful we are not talking about 2011’s 50 Words for Snow being her final album -, the likely scenario is this regarding promotion. She will speak with BBC Radio 2, BBC Radio 6 Music and maybe some international stations. Perhaps MOJO and The Guardian might get interviews. Bush might also talk to a couple of smaller music websites. That might be about it. I realise that I have not mentioned stations like BBC Radio 1, but this should not mean that no promotion with them equals no airtime. The stations who will play songs from that album are likely to only be BBC Radio 2 and BBC Radio 6 Music (from the main stations) and, to be fair, I think the latter may only play a single for the first time it will fade out quickly. What should happen is that a new single should be seen as a wonderful thing we all need to embrace! I have the horrible feeling that Bush’s new music will soon be replaced with her hits. I know stations can only play a single for a certain amount of time, but I don’t think they can only play singles. They can dip into an album. I think there is a reason why this is not done more. If you get into a habit of playing singles or, in this case, Running Up That Hill (A Deal with God), it gets harder and harder to break that cycle the more you play it. People are used to this song being played, so there is the feeling they will balk or tune out if another/album track is played.
IN THIS PHOTO: Kate Bush performing on stage at The Secret Policeman's Ball, in aid of Amnesty International, at the London Palladium, March 1987/PHOTO CREDIT: Getty Images
In terms of new music, it might be more of a case of trudging up that hill for recognition and exposure. Age seems to preclude a lot of artists. It is this thing that an artist is only worthy of being in the playlist if they fit into a demographic or are cool and cutting. You will find that the listenership of stations like BBC Radio 1 is not as discerning and rigid as their playlists would suggest. They would actually embrace Kate Bush’s new music, but one feels she is not going to be on their playlists. A song that appeared on an album nearly forty years ago is seen as more significant and relevant than anything brand-new. Of course, I am making predictions. Stations may surprise us, though if history is anything to go by, Bush’s new music will be confined to a certain audience and schedule. It is a sad thing to realise! Whilst this one song is played the vast majority of the time, there is a whole body of work going un-explored and heard. I do think that 2023 is a year for new Kate Bush music. I do realise that 50 Words for Snow featured longer tracks, so they wouldn’t have been suitable for radio (even though Among Angels is perfectly doable in that sense). Look at Aerial for instance. That 2005 album is largely neglected. Bush reissued her lyrics book, How to Be Invisible, with a new foreword. Many fans were lucky enough to get a signed copy. That song (from Aerial) is almost ironic given that so many of her songs are overlooked. An artist who has inspired so many young artists coming through and has influenced so many others deserves more radioplay and a wider selection of her tracks featured. That is particularly relevant when it comes to the possibility of new music. When that great day arrives, Kate Bush shouldn’t have to be limited to a couple of radio stations. She shouldn’t have to learn…
HOW to be invisible.