FEATURE:
Kate Bush: The Deep Cuts
Leave It Open
_________
I have written about this…
track a few times before. Usually when marking the anniversary of The Dreaming. Kate Bush’s fourth studio album was released in 1982. Although it reached number three in the U.K., EMI felt it was slightly underwhelming. Many still feel that this album is too inaccessible and weird. Too much experimentation and not enough quality. Deeper and more layered than anything she released previously, this was Kate Bush producing solo. Utilising the studio and technology like the Fairlight CMI. With various sonic inspirations blending together, this was a bold and brilliant new direction. An artist clearly growing in ambition and scope. Kate Bush was only twenty-four when The Dreaming came out. It seems even more remarkable when you hear the brilliance of the songs on the album. A song that was not released as a single and one I don’t think I have heard on the radio, Leave It Open is certainly a deep cut. I may retread some information I put into previous features. There is no doubting the fact that Leave It Open is a deep cut. A song that many people are unaware of. I will go into the track in a bit. First, and thanks to the Kate Bush Encyclopedia, we have examples of when Bush discussed one of her most intriguing, fascinating and compelling tracks. One whose range of sounds and contours is a real step above anything from her first three albums:
“Kate about ‘Leave It Open’
Like cups, we are filled up and emptied with feelings, emotions – vessels breathing in, breathing out. This song is about being open and shut to stimuli at the right times. Often we have closed minds and open mouths when perhaps we should have open minds and shut mouths.
This was the first demo to be recorded, and we used a Revox and the few effects such as a guitar chorus pedal and an analogue delay system. We tried to give the track an Eastern flavour and the finished demo certainly had a distinctive mood.
There are lots of different vocal parts, each portraying a separate character and therefore each demanding an individual sound. When a lot of vocals are being used in contrast rather than “as one”, more emphasis has to go on distinguishing between the different voices, especially if the vocals are coming from one person.
To help the separation we used the effects we had. When we mastered the track, a lot more electronic effects and different kinds of echoes were used, helping to place the vocals and give a greater sense of perspective. Every person who came into the studio was given the “end backing vocals test” to guess what is being sung at the end of the song.
“How many words is it?”
“Five.”
“Does it begin with a ‘W’?”
It is very difficult to guess, but it can be done, especially when you know what the song is about.
I would love to know your answers.
‘Leave It Open’ is the idea of human beings being like cups – like receptive vessels. We open and shut ourselves at different times. It’s very easy to let you ego go “nag nag nag” when you should shut it. Or when you’re very narrow-minded and you should be open. Finally you should be able to control your levels of receptivity to a productive end.
Talking about “guessing”, at last someone has discovered what’s being said at the end of “Leave It Open” – well done! But let me tell you about some of the fascinating encounters I’ve had. There is a Mr. John Reimers from the U.S.A. who has rung up once a week with his new version:
“Is it…?”
“Nope!”
“Well, is it…?”
“Nope!”
“Tell me! Tell me!”
John, you’re terrific!
But I’m afraid this is just a mild case. One night I woke up to a tapping on the window. It was someone hanging from a nearby tree by their feet. In their hands was a card, and written on it was: “Is it ‘We paint the penguins pink?'” I’m afraid I had to laugh, and shook my head. They burst into tears and ran off into the moonlight. But I think the cleverest was a phone call I had the other week.
“Hello, Kate?”
“Hello?”
“It’s Jay here, how are you doing?”
He sounded a little squeaky to me. Then he said: “You know, it’s ridiculous. I was sitting here listening to the end of ‘Leave It Open’ the other day, and I just couldn’t remember what you said – I know it’s crazy but -“
I interrupted.
“‘We paint the penguins pink.'”
“Oh, yeah! Of course, how could I forget? See you soon – bye!”
Hmmm… see what I mean?… C-lever!
But seriously, I have enjoyed your guesses tremendously, but I have terrible dreams about your reactions now that the answer has been revealed. Do I hear cries of “You’re kidding! But that’s stupid!” or “Cor, that’s pathetic – all our efforts overthat?”
Well, I hope not… And remember to let the weirdness in.
PHOTO CREDIT: Pierre Terrasson
There is a lot going on through Leave It Open. Even though journalists have not really spent too much time with the song – I have not seen a single feature dedicated to it (apart from ones I have written!) -, there has been some fan discussion and dissection. Thanks to this website for leading me to postings and theories by fans that go back to 1985. People spending time with Leave It Open and offering some interesting insights:
“On "The Dreaming" there is a two-way message that is sung at the end of "Leave It Open". When you play it forwards it sings "We let the weirdness in". And when you play it backwards it sings "And they said they would not let me in"!
I've tried this several times, and I can't hear the word "not". All I can hear is "They said they would let me in". As to how they did it, I'm not an expert in the field, but I have what I think is a pretty good guess. It's drowned out by the music in the part where the music is still going, but in the part at the very end, I can hear something in the background, and although the voice is intelligible, it still sounds weird. This makes me think that they've recorded the two messages separately in normal, forward voices, then reversed one of them, then combined the two signals together. I'm not familiar with the Fairlight, but I wouldn't be surprised if such things were not too difficult to do on it. They probably tried different relative speeds and offsets until they got something that produced the desired effect. When we play the record in one direction or the other, we're actually hearing both messages at the same time, one forward and the other backwards. Because we tend to notice intelligible speech more than unintelligible speech, we hear mostly the forward message. One of the scientists I work with has done some research in the field of speech intelligibility, so if I get a chance I'll talk to him about it and I'll forward his comments to this mailing list”.
That ending mantra of “We let the weirdness in” almost became a motto or mission statement for The Dreaming. It is a weirder and darker album than anything Kate Bush recorded before – or since really. Bush writes so beautifully and vividly through this song. There are so many standout lyrics and passages. I have some favourites. This is one of the best: “Narrow mind would persecute it/Die a little to get to it/(But now I've started learning how)/I leave it open”. I often wonder what compelled Kate Bush to write various songs. That thing about humans being like vessels and cups. Opening and shutting ourselves at various times. In a way, I think Leave It Open is a companion piece for the first single from The Dreaming, Leave It Open. That song is humanity's endless search for knowledge. I like how there are connected songs and clear themes. Maybe Leave It Open would not have succeeded as a single. It is a shame that it is under-exposed and explored. That lack of live performance and stage spotlight. I wonder what would have happened if Kate Bush had gone on tour after The Dreaming. Maybe exhaustion meant that this was not a consideration. Such is the atmospheric and powerful nature of those songs, to see them on stage would have been magnificent! In terms of the production and her vocals, I think that Leave It Open is one of her absolute best. I would urge people to check out the song. It is magnificent and should be played on radio. If many see it as not suitable for most stations, those with taste and appreciation of music that has surface and is not your ordinary Pop song should give this a shot. It is an important chapter and moment from one of Kate Bush’s albums. Many people close their minds and hearts to this song. I think that people should really…
LEAVE them open.