FEATURE:
The Craft of Life
PHGOTO CREDIT: John Carder Bush
Kate Bush in 1974: Discovery, Progress and Transition
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I want to travel back fifty years…
PHOTO CREDIT: Alamy
and a very important time in the career of the wonderful Kate Bush. I say ‘ career’, but it was really before her career started. With Kate Bush fifteen/sixteen, it was a big time in her life. In 1974, there was no real progress in her music ambitions. There had been some movement and plans prior to 1974, yet that year also provided an encounter that would change her life. Even if Bush did not officially sign with EMI until the summer of 1976, she did meet with them there and there was a definite plan for her. An unofficial signing perhaps. She was seen as a little young at the time and needed a period for maturation. Noticing her talent, her signature was captured a couple of years later. I am thinking back to 1974 and what Kate Bush was writing. We know that her debut album, 1978’s The Kick Inside, was cut down from a mass of songs that she already had recorded or written. Think about Home-Recorded Demos (1974) & Studio Demo’s (sic) and possible songs that could have appeared on the album. There are the Cathy Demos. Bush had recorded music with David Gilmour prior to 1974. It will all make sense in a minute. 1974 was a particular turning point. Before getting there, let’s look at Kate Bush’s 1972-1974:
“1972
At the suggestion of Kate's family, Ricky Hopper, a friend with music business connections, tries to place "demo tapes" of Kate's songs with a record company, with a publishing deal in mind. At this stage Kate considers herself more of a writer than a singer. These original tapes have over thirty songs on each. [An unfortunate wording, since it may mean that there was one collection of thirty songs which was duplicated, and of which one copy was sent to each publisher; or that there were actually several different thirty-song collections.] All the major companies are approached. None accepts. Kate's songs are described as "morbid", "boring" and "uncommercial".
Kate feels that she cannot pursue a career in music and considers the alternatives: psychiatry or social work.
Unable to help further, Ricky Hopper makes contact with Dave Gilmour of Pink Floyd, whom he knew at Cambridge University. Gilmour, who at this time is spotting for talent that he can assist, is persuaded to listen to the demos and then to hear Kate perform. He is impressed, and agrees to help.
1973
Kate records at Gilmour's home studio. The backing band is comprised of Gilmour himself on guitar, and Peter Perrier and Pat Martin of Unicorn on drums and bass, respectively. The songs recorded at this stage include Passing Through Air (later to surface on the b-side of the 1980 single Army Dreamers) and a song now known as Maybe.
[Again, a bit more detail would have been welcome here. There is no mention of how many songs were recorded during these recording sessions. Incidentally, an excerpt of this version of the so-called Maybe, which presumably first appeared on Kate's original demos, was played by Kate during a radio programme called Personal Call. It should not be confused with the presumably more professional version of the recording which was made the following year (see below) but which has never been heard by fans.]
The new demos are again circulated to record companies with no result.
1974
With no progress in her musical ambitions, Kate seriously considers a career in psychiatry.
Kate takes her "O Level" examination and obtains ten "Pass" grades, with best results in English, music and Latin”.
Bush got signed to EMI on the strength of her demo tapes. On the recommendation and sponsorship of David Gilmour. It was not really realised and truly official until 1976. In July, Bush gets £3000 from EMI Records and a further £500 to finance her for a year of personal and professional development. The period from 1974 and 1976 is important. Bush sort of being discovered and fostered more by David Gilmour. Her taking up mime and dance. Going from someone who was not yet known widely and officially in music but had that clear potential and gift. Before going forward, I want to bring in a feature from Far Out Magazine, who wrote about Kate Bush’s discovery and that important relationship with David Gilmour:
“How was Kate Bush discovered?
The old music industry adage, ‘it’s who you know’, is very true – there is a reason for why people say that.
“She was the sister of a friend of mine’s friend. My friend came to me and said, ‘listen, my friend has a little sister who’s very groovy – have a listen’,” the famed guitarist and composer, David Gilmour of the seminal experimental rock band, Pink Floyd said – indeed, it was, in fact, Gilmour who helped get her signed to EMI.
In his own words, Gilmour has described the story in the past. Gilmour was given a tape of demos of the young songwriter, from a mutual friend whose sister was the one and only Kate Bush. Of course, at the time, she was only 15-16 years old. While it was clear that Bush possessed a unique sensibility and creative mind, it was Gilmour who picked up on this, and more than that, he knew what it took to capture her sound.
“When we started her off, I put her together with an engineer and a producer and an arranger in a top studio, and I chose the songs. She had about 40 or 50 songs and I picked three. And I have a friend of mine who’s an arranger and producer and I gave him the songs and said ‘listen, get this all fixed up, take her in the studio and do these songs as masters, not as demos. I said, ‘I already got demos.'”
Gilmour was busy at the time working on Pink Floyd’s The Dark Side of the Moon, but he was no less determined to help her. Gilmour worked with Bush to get 3-4 solid songs of hers down to get mastered with a producer that Gilmour chose. He added: “So I just spent some time listening to the tapes and doing some demo tapes with her, picked out songs and sent her into a studio, made three masters, which I then took to EMI studios and said, ‘do you want this?’ And they said, yes, we’ll have it, please.'”
“I was kind of busy at the time doing other things, I didn’t really have the time to get deeply involved with it.”
While Gilmour struck gold with discovering Bush, things wouldn’t exactly go off without a hitch with EMI.
Was Kate Bush too young to release her debut record?
The rumour, as Gilmour put it to rest sometime later, was in fact, false. While Gilmour pretty much set everything up perfectly; he paid for the recording time; he picked the three right songs from Bush’s 40 songs at the time; he found a producer and an arranger to help her record – all EMI had to do was step in, take over for Gilmour, and hit it home.
Well, unfortunately, the money-go-round mechanism of the recording industry and the red tape that this entails, didn’t allow for a smooth process. Gilmour commented on this, saying, “And they took two of those tracks which were those demos for her first album which were recorded a few years before. And what they were doing was, they were looking for different producers, they didn’t want to use the guy that I originally used, for some reason.”
Gilmour continued to say, “I think the delay was because of them thinking she didn’t have enough good songs and the producer’s just not getting the right thing out of her because they were putting her with the wrong people.”
It got to the point where EMI nearly gave up on the ordeal. “Eventually, a guy from EMI came to me and said, ‘C’mon David, it’s alright, but admit it, you sold us a dud here.’
Gilmour wasn’t about to back down or give up. He replied to EMI, saying: “I said ‘give me a fucking break, this girl’s really talented.’ And they said, ‘well, we just can’t get anything right.’ So I said, ‘why didn’t you go back to the guy that I put her with originally?’
Adding, “It’s plain and silly, but they wasted two years pissing around with the wrong producers and claimed they were waiting for her to mature, that’s all bullshit.”
How old was Kate Bush when she was discovered?
Kate Bush was only 16-years-old when she was discovered by David Gilmour, in 1974. If her debut record came out in 1978, what happened during this period and why did it take so long?
One of the things that happened was a rumour was created: That Bush was too young at the time and EMI were waiting for her to ‘mature’ before releasing her first record”.
Look ahead to 1975, and everything changed. In that June, Dave Gilmour pays for Kate to record at London’s AIR Studios. The Man With The Child In His Eyes, The Saxophone Song and Maybe are selected to be recorded. The first two are released on The Kick Inside. In the summer of 1975, Bush attends dance classes run by Lindsay Kemp. By that July, EMI start negotiating to sign this young talent. Bush leaves school with an interest in music and dance. I am really fascinated in 1973 and those demos and recordings happening. 1975 is when Bush recorded professionally and was a year away from EMI signing her with an advance. Fifty years ago, there was this bridge and transition moment. On the one hand, the school-age Bush was a bit despondent about her career not happening as quick as she might have liked. On the other hand, David Gilmour had discovered her and was working alongside her. Seeing that huge potential, she was signed to his label. An important fiftieth anniversary. I don’t think people really discuss Kate Bush pre-The Kick Inside. I am going to come to the period leading up to that at the end. I am fascinated by Kate Bush in 1974. There is some ambiguity in terms of exact events. Graeme Thomson goes more in depth about that time in his soon-to-be-reissued biography, Under the Ivy: The Life & Music of Kate Bush. When exactly EMI signed her. I guess David Gilmour discovered and mentored her as early as 1973, yet it does seem that 1974 was when that mentorship and discovery went up a step and got to the attention of a label. As it is fifty years ago, it is important to mark that. Turning sixteen on 30th July, it was a changing time of growth and discovery. Even if Kate Bush did not quite know it, 1974 was a year that was to change her life forever! I guess it was right she was given time to grow and have space. To take up mime dance and vocal lessons. When she was ready and right, that is when EMI gave her an advance and then into AIR Studios. This Wikipedia feature takes us from 1975 through to 1977:
“Bush attended St Joseph's Convent Grammar School, a Catholic girls' school in nearby Abbey Wood. During this time, her family produced a demo tape with over 50 of her compositions, which was turned down by record labels. David Gilmour of Pink Floyd received the demo from Ricky Hopper, a mutual friend of Gilmour and the Bush family. Impressed, Gilmour financed the 16-year-old Bush's recording of a more professional demo tape. The tape consisted of three tracks, produced by Gilmour's friend Andrew Powell and sound engineer Geoff Emerick, who had worked with the Beatles. Powell later produced Bush's first two albums, The tape was sent to EMI executive Terry Slater who signed Bush.
"Every female you see at a piano is either Lynsey de Paul or Carole King. And most male music–not all of it but the good stuff–really lays it on you. It really puts you against the wall and that's what I like to do. I'd like my music to intrude. Not many females succeed with that."
Bush, speaking to Melody Maker magazine in 1977.
IN THIS PHOTO: Kate Bush in 1977/PHOTO CREDIT: John Carder Bush
The British record industry was reaching a point of stagnation. Progressive rock was very popular and visually oriented rock performers were growing in popularity, thus record labels looking for the next big thing were considering experimental acts. Bush was put on retainer for two years by Bob Mercer, managing director of EMI's group-repertoire division. Mercer believed that Bush's material was good enough to release, but he also believed that should the album fail it would be demoralising and if it were successful Bush was too young to handle this. In a 1987 interview, Gilmour disputed this version of events, blaming EMI for initially using the "wrong" producers.
EMI gave Bush a large advance, which she used to enroll in interpretive dance classes taught by Lindsay Kemp, a former teacher of David Bowie, and mime training with Adam Darius. For the first two years of her contract, Bush spent more time on schoolwork than recording. She left school after doing her mock A-Levels and having gained ten GCE O-Level qualifications.
Bush wrote and recorded demos of almost 200 songs, some of which circulated as bootlegs. From March to August 1977, she fronted the KT Bush Band at public houses in London. The band included Del Palmer (bass), Brian Bath (guitar), and Vic King (drums). She began recording her first album in August 1977”.
I have been thinking about Kate Bush in 1974. A strange yet remarkable time. A few years before she recorded her debut album, she had rough songs and some potential jewels in her locker. It would not be too long until she heading into the studio to record The Man with the Child in His Eyes. Look forward to now, and I am not sure whether Kate Bush in 1974 would have realised all that she’d achieve. A Record Store Ambassador and someone who has had number one albums and influenced countless artists. I am so intrigued by those early years. Living at home at East Wickham Farm. Discovering all sorts of music and bonding with her brothers, Paddy and Jay (whose photographs of her when she was a child are so wonderful). Where she definitely wanted to go into music but was not quite there yet. Even so, she had this broad body of work that would soon be honed and narrowed into the songs that went into The Kick Inside. Back in 1974, there was this period of discovery – of Kate Bush and from her – and the seeds of something truly phenomenal. EMI knew her potential and promise. Very soon, that would truly…
COME to life.