FEATURE:
Kate Bush: The Tour of Life
PHOTO CREDIT: John Carder Bush
The Albums That Inspired Some of Our Best Artists
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WHEN speaking about Kate Bush…
IN THIS PHOTO: Kate Bush in Holland in 1978 whilst promoting The Kick Inside
I have written about her influence and how she continues to be relevant. That will never change. For this feature, I have been thinking about particular albums. Although we can compartmentalise and look at the albums that inspired various artists, there is this more general influence. How can we explain why Kate Bush remains so relevant and fascinating? It is clear that her music is so different to anything else that has come before or arrived since. It has reached so many different corners of popular culture. I saw an article published last month that explained why Kate Bush is so relevant:
“A common struggle an artist faces is striking the balance between captivating their audience, while maintaining the resemblance of what they need to express. It is a struggle that both students and established professionals face. We place bets on our own work, assuming that it will be our magnum opus, but it is hard to predict which pieces will truly connect with the outside world.
Kate Bush released her debut album The Kick Inside in 1978, when she was 19 years old, and counteracted these overlying struggles with a persona that is expressive and even confusing. The first thing that stands out to a listener is her unique voice, a high-pitched and almost otherworldly sound that can be appealing or bizarre, depending on the taste of the listener. But the true value that these qualities hold in Kate Bush’s work is its timelessness. By creating something so unordinary, she has been able to cement herself in multiple ages of music and connect with audiences of varying generations.
Kate Bush’s top streamed song, “Running Up That Hill,” took 37 years to become the number one song, setting a record for the longest time between number one songs in the UK. With her first number one in the UK being “Wuthering Heights.” Both of these songs have something in common — they transport the listener to another era.
“Running Up That Hills”’ rise in popularity 37 years later was a result of its appearance on Stranger Things, a show known for its 80’s nostalgia. The song was suggested by Winona Ryder, the actress who played Joyce in Stranger Things, and also had a prominent acting career within the 80’s itself. “Wuthering Heights” is named after the 1847 novel of the same title by Emily Brontë. It had a similar resurgence in protest to the creation of the new and controversial Wuthering Heights adaptation, which was deemed inaccurate to the original plot of the novel by fans; especially in comparison to the emotion in Kate Bush’s song.
What many people fail to realize is that every artist is embodying a character in every song they release. Whether that is a popstar singing about their ex-lover or a jazz musician without any lyrics in their composition at all. They are often tapping into a certain piece of their life, or even someone else entirely while basing the emotions on their own empathy and experiences. They then recollect this story to the audience, in an attempt towards connection.
“Babooshka” and “Army Dreamers” excel in their storytelling by simultaneously excelling in their lyricism, the natural tragedy in Kate Bush’s voice, and other sound cues that tell the story nonverbally. The former tells the story of a woman creating an alternate persona to test her husband’s fidelity, while the latter tells the story of a young soldier as an overarching criticism of war and its casualties. Kate Bush can connect with the desire or the hopelessness or the longing of the character she is embodying in her work.
Kate Bush’s work is the background music you need when you are doing something mundane and want to connect with a time beyond your reach, whether that is 1978 or 1770’s Yorkshire. When “Running Up That Hill” reached one billion streams in 2022, Kate Bush responded.
“I have an image of a river that suddenly floods and becomes many, many tributaries — a billion streams — on their way to the sea. Each one of these streams is one of you. Thank you so much for sending this song on such an impossibly astonishing journey. I’m blown away,” said Bush”.
IN THIS PHOTO: Fiona Apple in 1997/PHOTO CREDIT: Joe McNally for LIFE
Do certain albums of Kate Bush inspire artists more than others? It is inarguable that Hounds of Love has influenced so many artists through the decades. As it is talked about a lot now, it is going to connect with new acts. I wonder whether this is the one album that will be the most enduring. In terms of its popularity, a wave of artists coming through now will discover Hounds of Love. A lot of artists who were born in the 1970s or 1980s would have heard it when they were young. It makes me think about the generational thing. Artists hearing these Kate Bush albums new when they came out, whilst others experienced them later on. Are overlooked albums like The Red Shoes or Lionheart influential at all? Do we hear about artists speaking about these works and how they have affected them? I have been thinking about the studio albums and how they impact certain artists. Maybe it is an age thing. Beth Orton called The Kick Inside one of her favourite albums. Fiona Apple said in an interview with Pitchfork in 2020: "I used to sing and play a bunch of her songs from The Kick Inside at my piano when I was a kid: 'Feel It' and 'Moving' and 'The Kick Inside' and 'Wuthering Heights'". In 2014 Sarah McLachlan said (of The Kick Inside) that she "loved" the album and was "really attracted to her voice and songs". These were either very young or only just born (in the case of Fiona Apple) when The Kick Inside came out. It is understandable why this album would be the most powerful to them. However, why are other artists who were born the same time as Apple, Orton and McLachlan gravitate towards other Kate Bush albums?
I think, in the case of the three women, perhaps it was a sound or vibe that struck them. More piano-based and similar to music that they would make early in their careers. Even if they are also quite experimental artists, you can match The Kick Inside and its aesthetic with a few of the artists who cite it as important. If some artists do not specifically state which Kate album has influenced them, maybe there is an aesthetic or something else that resonates. Halsey explained that her song, I Never Loved You, was inspired by Kate Bush, and she has paid visual tribute to the aesthetic of the Never for Ever era by recreating a specific photoshoot (one with Clive Arrowsmith in 1981). Of course, a lot of artists discover Kate Bush albums when they are teens or older. It may be how well that album did in the country they live in. The earliest few Kate Bush albums did not get much attention in the U.S., so it is understandable later albums would strike American artists more, whereas those in Europe, the U.K. or Australia would have been on board from the start. Björk, Big Boi, Steven Wilson, Lady Gaga, MARINA, St. Vincent and Julia Holter have said how The Dreaming (1982) made a big impact on them. In the case of The Dreaming, these artists have cited the innovative percussion and experimental production. A bold and forward-thinking album that Kate Bush produced, you can feel elements of that boldness and experimentation in the music these artists release. Hounds of Love is going to be name-checked by a lot of newer artists. In terms of those who have already named it as a source of influence, Björk, Florence + the Machine, FKA twigs, James Blake, Caroline Polachek, Japanese Breakfast, Brian Molko (Placebo) and members of Suede make the list. Can we drill down to why this 1985 album inspired them the most? Is it Kate Bush’s incredible production or something in the songs?
I am interested in the relationship between the Kate Bush albums and the other artists they inspire. It does make me think about the later albums. Everything from, say, 1993’s The Dreaming to 2011’s 50 Words for Snow. I am sure that these album have affected particular artists, though we are perhaps speaking about a different generation. Unless artists talk about Hounds of Love, they speak about Kate Bush’s influence in general terms. By drawing focus to specific albums, I think that it would generate attention and retrospection. I was thinking about The Kick Inside in preparation for some features due early next year. I was not aware about some of the artists who were influenced by it. It makes me revisit a subject and proposal that I have explored before. That is a Kate Bush tribute album. Or a way of uniting artists who have been affected by her music. Maybe Kate Bush might balk at the notion of artists coming together and celebrating her. It would not only be a way of them directly paying tribute to this artists. It will also engage new artists or those who have not yet discovered Kate Bush. I would like to link the studio albums and dissect why and what it is that landed. Whether it was the production and songwriting or the year they were released – or the age of the artist at the time. In terms of the breadth of her influence, it is clear that Kate Bush is one of the most important and enduring artists…
WHO has ever lived.