FEATURE:
Kate Bush’s The Whole Story at Thirty-Five
Is the Album the Best Starting Point for New Fans?
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THIS will be the final…
PHOTO CREDIT: Gered Mankowitz
feature that I do about The Whole Story. The Kate Bush greatest hits collection of 1986, it is thirty-five on 10th November. I have written features before regarding the best starting place one should explore if they are new to Bush. I would say that, if you take her debut studio album, The Kick Inside (1978), and work your way forward, that is as good as any plan. If you want an album that brings together a variety of popular songs, The Whole Story is a nice introduction! Of course, as it was released in 1986, we do not get anything from The Sensual World (1989) forward. It renews my calls for another greatest hits collection. Consider everything she produced on the five studio albums since 1986! Even though this album is thirty-five, The Whole Story still acts as a superb representation of an artist without peers. In a review of the album, this is what AllMusic noted:
“The first compilation of highlights from Kate Bush's work is still one of the better ways of getting introduced to her music, even 20-plus years after its original release. Bush made a special effort on behalf of this collection -- originally an LP -- by re-recording and remixing her debut hit "Wuthering Heights"; she felt that her teenaged vocal didn't properly represent the song and, in fact, at one point thought to re-do the vocals on several other of the early numbers included. The collection is an excellent overview, presenting the many sides of her music, and bookending her whole career through 1984, from her debut to her then newest single, "Experiment IV"; nor is it confined exclusively to major hits, as important lesser-charting entries are also featured. As with Bush's other LP-era releases, American listeners thinking of buying this collection should be aware that the British CD edition was mastered from tapes that were at least one generation up on their American counterparts and, thus, sounds distinctly better than the U.S. version”.
I like the fact that, unlike some best ofs/greatest hits albums, The Whole Story is not chronological. That would have resulted in an uneven listen and bad pressing. EMI had to ensure that both sides were close to equal in terms of running times. You get a more varied and satisfying experience when the material is mixed. Taking songs from The Kick Inside (1978), Lionheart (1978), Never for Ever (1980), The Dreaming (1982) and Hounds of Love (1985), there was certainly no shortage of gold material for The Whole Story! As you’d expect, the label/Bush went for the singles rather than a few singles and some deeper cuts. It is subjective to say which Bush material is the best. In terms of greatest hits albums, it is about the commercial successes and what charted – rather than the songs unreleased that you might prefer. As we learn here, Bush was not completely happy to release a greatest hits album at first:
“Yes, I was [against the release of a compilation album] at first. I was concerned that it would be like a "K-tel" record, a cheapo-compo with little thought behind it. It was the record company's decision, and I didn't mind as long as it was well put together. We put a lot of work into the packaging, trying to make it look tasteful, and carefully thought out the running order. And the response has been phenomenal - I'm amazed! (Kate Bush Club newsletter, Issue 22, December 1987)”.
It is nice that Bush was happy with the album and put so much thought into it. Some bands/artists have greatest hits albums released by the label without their consent or with very little effort. It can be seen as a way of cashing-in on success or the end of a group’s life. In the case of Kate Bush, 1986 was a year when her career was trending ever-upward. Hounds of Love (1985) took her to new heights internationally. Many might not have been aware of her earlier albums like Lionheart. I think that is a studio album under-served by The Whole Story. I suppose, as we are dealing with the singles here, EMI had to draw the line. There was only so much room. Aside from Wow (which reached fourteen in the U.K.), there was not a lot from the album released as a single. That said, there is so much on that album that is worthy of further exposure. The same can be said for Never for Ever. In that sense, you might say that The Whole Story is quite limited and imbalanced. I think the fact you get some nice cuts from each of her five studio albums (two from The Kick Inside, one from Lionheart, three from Never for Ever, two from The Dreaming and three from Hounds of Love (four if you include the fact The Big Sky was included in the VHS release) results in quite a varied record.
New listeners will not only hear great songs that showcase Bush at her finest. All the singles are very different. Even though there is eight years between the first and most-recent single on The Whole Story (1978’s Wuthering Heights and the new track, Experiment IV, of 1986), the sheer range of sounds is staggering! One cannot easily compare The Dreaming’s title track with Never for Ever’s Babooshka, even though the former was released in 1982 and the latter two years earlier! Consider Hounds of Love’s title track and Lionheart’s Wow. They are definitely the same artist, but they are so distinct as songs. I feel that a lot of greatest hits collections can be limiting in terms of sound and range. Even an album like the Madonna greatest hits record, The Immaculate Collection (1990) is not as varied and sonically-broad as The Whole Story. For that reason, I would urge anyone to start with this album. Though you can get it on vinyl, I don’t think it is as widely available as one would like. Might it be time to repress The Whole Story? There has not really been a follow-up accompaniment to The Whole Story that takes us from 1989’s The Sensual World to 2011’s 50 Words for Snow. Even though there have been compilations, we are awaiting another greatest hits album.
On its thirty-fifth anniversary, The Whole Story remains curious. It is a stunning album with some of the very best material from one of the very best artists ever. It is a flawless collection of songs. There is ongoing demand for a wider-ranging ‘best of’ that takes from all ten of Kate Bush’s studio albums whilst providing some deep cuts, covers and collaborations (imagine having her duet with Peter Gabriel, Don’t Give Up (also released in 1986) alongside 1991’s Rocket Man and The Wedding List from Never for Ever!). There are some people who might not be that familiar with Kate Bush. The Whole Story will give you a great taste and overview of her work. I would then suggest people investigate the studio albums and check out 2019’s The Other Sides. There, you will hear some of the lesser-known tracks, in addition to Bush’s ability to reinterpret songs and make them her own. I love The Whole Story, as the VHS introduced me to Kate Bush. Seeing the video for Wuthering Heights was my awakening (to her) as a child. Maybe it is also time to release The Whole Story on Blu-Ray/DVD – so that fans can see those glorious videos in crystal-clear splendour. If your Kate Bush knowledge is low and you are fairly fresh to her work then, with The Whole Story, you are…
IN for a treat.