FEATURE:
You’ve Sold Us “a Dud”
IN THIS PHOTO: Kate Bush in London in 1978/PHOTO CREDIT: George Wilkes/Hulton Archive/Getty Images
Kate Bush: The Star That Almost Got Away
_________
IF you have heard…
IN THIS PHOTO: Kate Bush in 1978/PHOTO CREDIT: Gered Mankowitz
Kate Bush’s phenomenal debut album, The Kick Inside, you would imagine that this appeared after full faith from the record label, EMI. It is my favourite album ever and I will always love it. I am writing features around the album as it is coming up for its forty-seventh anniversary. We mark that on 17th February. I will explore it from different sides. Going even further back and discussing the demos and earlier songs from Kate Bush. There was this transition period between Kate Bush signing her record deal and heading into the studio. In 1975, there was this stipulation that she would be an artist for EMI but would need a couple of years to have real-world experience and focus on education and other things. By 1977, Kate Bush was determined to get into the studio. Impatient to prove herself. Someone who you imagine had always dreamed of making an album, Bush knew what she wanted. However, there was almost this moment when EMI got cold feet. Knowing that Bush was definitely distinct and unique. Outside of playing with the KT Bush Band, Bush had enrolled herself into dance classes at Covent Garden. Bush came to Bob Mercer’s office and performed in front of him. Going straight to the label and putting songs in front of them. Many think that it was a case of her having all these songs and she just strolled into the studio and put the chosen thirteen on The Kick Inside, that was not how it worked. In the first case, there was this enormous pile of songs that were cut right down. Producer Andrew Powell listening to a lot of Bush’s early songs and narrowing it down. However, there still needed to be the demos stage. Getting a taste of the songs before they were recorded for the album.
Perhaps it is good that the power of a talent Kate Bush overcame label hesitation. EMI were definitely not completely on board when they heard demos. These demos took place at studios like De Wolfe and Lane Lea in Soho. Rather than EMI giving an emphatic thumbs-up and green-lighting Bush, there was this feeling that she was not up to much. David Gilmour was the one who helped get Bush a record deal and put up the money for her to record professionally. When she stepped into AIR studios in June 1975, Gilmour was the one who made it happen. In 1977, EMI gave some negative feedback to him. They felt that he had sold them “a dud”. I am not sure what they were expecting or what specific songs they heard. However, if you look at decisions EMI were making around the album, they were really not attuned to Kate Bush and how good her music was. Not seeing the potential in Wuthering Heights as a single and preferring James and the Cold Gun. Kate Bush’s tenacity winning the day. Maybe the extraordinarily hot summer of 1976 had done damage to the decision-making portion of Bob Mercer’s brain! David Gilmour, in a 1987 radio interview, recalled how Mercer felt he had sold this dud. Conned them into making one song sound really good. Perhaps they were referring to The Man with the Child in His Eyes. One of a few songs recorded at AIR studios in June 1975. Thinking that all the other songs were substandard, it was a tense situation. They were bereft. Feeling that nothing was going write and this promising star was not quite what they envisaged. It was just a case of matching her with the right producer. Andrew Powell produced Bush in June 1975 and was reunited with her in July 1977. Gilmour always knew Bush was talented and was angry EMI felt Bush was a one-song wonder. With Jon Kelly – who would co-produce Never for Ever (1980) with Kate Bush – at the desk engineering, it was a lot smoother going forward.
The song list was whittled down to a smaller amount. Days before heading into the studio to record her debut, Bush arrived at Andrew Powell’s flat and played him Wuthering Heights. EMI almost made a huge mistake when they felt Kate Bush was a dud. Perhaps with no other artists like her and comparisons, it is almost forgivable they ere a bit nervous. However, the fact that The Kick Inside had no set or restricted budget showed they had faith in her after all. With producer Andrew Powell bringing in some experienced studio players, they and Kate Bush bonded immediately. Bush was always offering tea and bringing the sort of kindness and domesticity from her family into the studio. The more experienced musicians were aware of Kate Bush’s gifts. On one occasion, drummer Stuart Elliott yelled at the other musicians to stop playing because he wanted them to properly hear Bush’s sensitive and beautiful lyrics. Bush inhabited so many characters and was recording songs like nothing else around them. Going on to be a hugely popular album that was among the bestsellers of 1978, it takes me back to those demos recordings and Bob Mercer frustrated at an overrated artist. He did click and fall in line soon enough, though it is hard to believe he was dissatisfied or regretful. Maybe it was the professionalism and experience of Andrew Powell that brought everything into focus. It is amazing that Bush developed so quickly. Even though she was signed a long time before recording began for The Kick Inside, there was that brief bump when the demos were recorded. How magic came when Bush and her musicians started worked in July 1977. EMI quickly understanding what a special artist they had and how consistent she was. Thanks once again to a recent edition of PROG for details and information that have gone into this feature. As they note, once Bush’s debut album sold so well and she was an instant success, there truly was…
NO looking back.