FEATURE:
Behind the Scenes
Kate Bush’s Road into Music Video Directing
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YOU can always tell…
IN THIS PHOTO: Kate Bush and an extra during the shoot/rehearsals for the There Goes a Tenner video in 1982/PHOTO CREDIT: John Carder Bush
that Kate Bush had a deep interest in music videos. For many artists, music videos are an obligation but not something they enjoy. Kate Bush seemed to enjoy music videos as much as recording music. Bush didn’t direct her first music video until Hounds of Love’s title track was released in 1986. However, she assisted videos and was very much involved in the process. That was the case from the very first video: Wuthering Heights in 1978. The choreography was devised by Robin Kovac. Bush very much putting herself full into the video. Two were actually shot. One where she wears a white dress and another in a red dress. I think the first album, where she was having more say and building that fascination is 1980’s Never for Ever. For Wow from Lionheart, maybe there was still that sense of her being directed rather than directing. Her association with Keith MacMillan (Keef) – who is ninety and still with us – was intrusive and educational, though perhaps not always happy. Whilst she adored some of his videos, especially for Army Dreamers (from Never for Ever), there perhaps was not the collaborative ease and connection she had with other directors. I am not sure of the details of their relationship. You could tell Bush was fascinated and loved the videos produced with Keef, though there was perhaps a desire to work with other directors.
Through The Dreaming, although the singles the videos were attached to were not overly-successful, I love the cinematography and look of them. Bush definitely more hands-on with videos for Sat in Your Lap, The Dreaming and even There Goes a Tenner. If the directors of those videos might have felt at time there were two directors on set and she might have been trying to take over, this was a young woman who was a born visionary, director and visual thinker. It is only natural that she wanted to know about how videos worked and the art behind them. As these were her songs, Bush would already have visual ideas and storyboards in her head. It was not her trying to muscle into the space of experienced directors. Instead, Bush wanted to be more than the product. Put her own ideas into the mix. It would see her direct solo soon enough. Paul Henry directed the videos for The Dreaming and There Goes a Tenner. The former video was not that well-received. Bush very much wanted there to be wide shots and it to look like a film rather than a typical music video. I covered this recently, but the video for There Goes a Tenner saw EMI ask Paul Henry and Kate Bush to reign it in. I had quite a big budget though the video had to be more conventional and commercial. I don’t think Bush liked this compromise and direction. Her mindset was less in a commercial direction. She and Paul Henry would part ways soon. I don’t think Kate Bush was a difficult customer. She knew that she wanted but perhaps felt that the video treatments coming in were too simple, predictable or commercial. For the video for Suspended in Gaffa, she worked with director Brian Wiseman. Maybe going more in the direction that she wanted.
It was not until the videos for Hounds of Love and after that Bush became truly satisfied as a video director. Whereas previously she was more behind the scenes where it came to the decisions, you can very much feel her presence through the video for Hounds of Love. Especially true for Cloudbusting’s video. The second single from the album, I have said before how Bush personally tracked down Donald Sutherland to appear in the video. Going back a bit, and the video for Running Up That Hill (A Deal with God), directed by David Garfath, saw Bush very much pulling strings behind the scenes. Bush was a huge fan of Terry Gilliam. Perhaps having him in mind for that video, she tempted him to direct Cloudbusting, though he was not used. Bush loved Time Bandits and you can see some of that influence in the video for Cloudbusting. She also loved Monty Python, so you can understand why she was determined to have him direct her. For Running Up That Hill (A Deal with God), Gillian recommended David Garfath. Bush occasionally rang Gilliam’s office in Covent Garden to wax lyrical about his work and ask him to direct. Gilliam would recommend people. Maybe he was wary of his ability and skill at that time, rather than him trying to avoid Kate Bush. Bush was very strong-willed when it came to her videos. She kept this close-knit group of collaborators. So respected and loved was Kate Bush that people would move mountains and fulfil her requests. Again, this was her music being projected onto the screen so she wanted to work with the best crew, camerapeople and directors. David Garfath observed a very nice woman who was fine taking directions and a joy to work with. She was also definitive in what she wanted. The two met up for tea a chat. A different concept for Running Up That Hill (A Deal with God) was decide originally but not used. The iconic video we see now was more of a compromise and unity of Kate Bush and David Garfath. The scenes where cut-out images of Kate Bush and Michael Hervieu’s faces – Hervieu danced with Bush in the video – were placed on an army of dancers was the result of discussion between Bush and Garfath.
Even if Patrick Troughton was suggested first for Cloudbusting, you cannot imagine anyone but Donald Sutherland in that part! Sutherland was in the U.K. to work on the film, Revolution. He was unhappy on that shoot. He declined the original invite to appear in the video, so Bush arranged a dinner meet-up. He was charmed and won over by Bush! The fact that the video would be cinematic attracted him. It was not a typical, silly Pop video. Kate Bush was definitely pushing that direction. Bush and Sutherland got on famously and there was this close bond. From the two meeting at the Savoy Hotel to discuss the video, to him leaving the set, there was this love between them. Sutherland was also interested as the song was inspired by Peter Reich's 1973 memoir, A Book of Dreams. Sutherland was familiar with Reich and agreed to appear in the video for free because he was unable to get a work visa in time. One reason why I wanted to write this feature is because I was again inspired by Graeme Thomson’s book, Under the Ivy: The Life and Music of Kate Bush. How Bush was constantly being instructed and talked to by the crew. Many artists would not interact with crew. Bush was getting tips and was learning how videos came together. Not only was Bush learning – on the set of Cloudbusting – from a masterful actor, Donald Sutherland; she was being told about the shots. How to get the best results. Bush would soon direct herself. In 1985 came Hounds of Love. 1986’s The Big Sky. She would direct the videos for Experiment IV (1987) and Rocket Man (I Think It's Going to Be a Long, Long Time) (1991); she co-directed videos on The Sensual World and would direct for 1993’s The Red Shoes and solo-direct the 1993 film, The Line, the Cross and the Curve. Even though Bush got a lot of practical assistance from people around her, it was clear she had a distinct style.
Many might scoff at the idea of Bush being a genuine ‘director’. Although she was getting assistance on her earliest videos (where she directed solo) and everything from the editing to camerawork would see men around her provide tips and help, Bush was definitely the one driving the shots. Browns, greens and purples. Heavy stylised and cinematic videos that nodded to directors like Alfred Hitchcock. Bush’s fascination with films from the Thirties and Forties – the noir and comedy capers – blends into the videos. As Graeme Thomson writes, we find “operatic grand gesture: there’s a lot of clenched fists, enveloping hugs and long stares into the mid-distance”. If self-indulgent at times, Bush was definitely a cinephile. She had a collection of films at home from classic directors. If her initial plans to make Hounds of Love’s The Ninth Wave into a film did not come to fruition, she was always working her way up to do something fuller and more extensive than a single video – which came to pass with The Line, the Cross and the Curve. There are great articles that explore the cinema of Kate Bush’s work. I love the period from 1980 onwards, when she was becoming more involved in her videos. I guess 1982 was the first year where she was providing a lot of input on set. From 1985 through to 2011, Bush directed quite a few of her own videos. I did recently write about Bush being this visual auteur. I think her blossoming career as a video director is fascinating and worthy of further discussion. Bush is still directing now. Last year, she directed the animated video for Little Shrew (Snowflake). It is amazing to chart the progress from Bush being in front of the camera and being fully directed, to her offering suggestions, assisting with videos and then directing on her own (there were a couple of directing collaborations along the way). Bush using her knowledge and love of cinema and utilising it for these…
TIMELESS music videos.