FEATURE:
Who Knows Who Wrote That Song of Summer
IN THIS PHOTO: Kate Bush in a promotional image for 2011’s Director’s Cut/PHOTO CREDIT: John Carder Bush
Has Any Other Artist Achieved This Kate Bush Feat?
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THIS is something that…
IN THIS PHOTO: Kate Bush in 1989/PHOTO CREDIT: John Carder Bush
I think I have written about before, but it definitely warrants reinspection. In terms of songwriting, we think of the legends largely men. Bob Dylan, Paul McCartney, Stevie Wonder and Prince. Women are not mentioned that often. I am not sure why Kaye Bush is not included among the heavyweights, as she is not only one of the most strikingly original and fascinating songwriters ever. Unlike those who are seen as the greatest songwriters ever, she seems to have written more of her own songs than these artists. If we think about the first ten albums any artist has released, is there a single songwriter who has achieved the same feat as Kate Bush? Only one song from her ten studio albums has been given a co-write. The lyrics to Flower of the Mountain, from 2011’s Director’s Cut, credits James Joyce. This song was essentially a reworking of The Sensual World. That appeared on the 1989 album of the same name. Bush wanted permission to use text from James Joyce’s Ulysses, but she was denied. When it came to Director’s Cut in 2011, she was granted permission. Of course, there have been songs where other musicians and producers like Andrew Powell have added something. Kate Bush is very generous when it comes to allowing musicians to add their own ideas to the songs. That happened more later in her career. So can we say that there are quite a few other songs that should have been co-writes? I don’t think so, as we can say this of any musician. It is not the case of someone like Paul Simon, whose 1986 album, Graceland, had a couple of songs where songwriting credits were not given. With Kate Bush, perhaps some compositional elements were pitched by other musicians and there was this collaboration. Ten albums into her career, and there is only one occasion of a co-write, Can any other artist claim this?!
People might give some obvious names, though I have checked, and none of them have this same golden run. Not Joni Mitchell, Paul McCartney, Tori Amos, Bob Dylan, Stevie Wonder, Bruce Springsteen, David Bowie, Leonard Cohen or any other name that would sound obvious. Prince among them. Of course, there are bands that have written all of their own songs, though these have songwriting partnerships, rather than one songwriter. I was searching for a long time to see if there was any artist whose first/only ten albums was entirely written by them. I think this is important, as many polls do not feature Kate Bush as the greatest songwriter ever. And she really is. Her songs and albums are so varied. Filled with incredible lyrics and layers, why is she omitted? Alos, in terms of the purity of her songs, in the sense that she writes the tracks and no one else is involved, there are none who have that same ten-album run. Bush has also produced most of her own albums and she is an accomplished musician. Something that very few other artists can claim. I do think that this ten-album feat is an impressive one that should and cannot be overlooked. I am quite surprised that a lot of the most acclaimed and successful songwriters ever have not penned all of their own songs. Or everything from their first ten albums. It is very rare today. Most of the biggest artists of today have co-writers. I might be forgetting a couple of names, though I have searched through dozens of artists and checked their credits (according to Wikipedia). It is no minor achievement to have had a career where you have released ten studio albums and pretty much written everything 115 album tracks and one co-write. That is some brilliant run!
Keen Kate Bush fans will note that there are some songs where others have helped arrange them, though they have not been credited as co-writers. They definitely helped on the tracks, though a smaller element. Kate Bush composed and wrote most of it. Night of the Swallow pipes and strings arrangements by Bill Whelan. Strings arrangements on Houdini by Dave Lawson and Andrew Powell. Those tracks appeared on The Dreaming. Can we say that these are genuine co-writes? I am not too sure. I am still saying that Kate Bush has had one co-write, though there are two other songs where there was some input from others. Some might ask what the big deal is as to whether songwriters write their own stuff and why Kate Bush is so special. As I said, she is not often ranked alongside the best songwriters ever. In terms of any metric apart from sales, Bush really does need to be in the conversation. The fact that Kate Bush has produced solo seven of her ten studio albums and the compositions across those album have been so broad. Each album is extraordinary and district. It is important when we think about songwriting, how much of the artist is in the songs. Co-writing can be good, though it is an artist using someone else’s words and voice. For Kate Bush, Flower of the Mountain stands as the only song with a credited co-write. If we think of Night of the Swallow and Houdini as having some arrangement assistance. Arrangement takes something Kate Bush had in her head and translates it to the musicians. I feel that Bush had the music in her head and, like with Houdini, she needed some assistance to get that onto paper and make sense. So I am not counting that as co-writing. If we accept that, I don’t think there are any other major artists whose first ten studio albums has as much of the artist in there as Kate Bush.
Given Kate Bush’s influence now, I feel we do need to revise those polls and pieces. The same names keep popping up. What defines a great songwriter. This website says “Individuality: to be distinct and not generic Emotiveness: to conjure feelings in listeners”. A Reddit thread asked what makes a great songwriter, and this was one of the responses: “Good songwriters prioritize making a song emotional, moving, entertaining, etc. using a variety of musical elements, topics, characters, and points of view. They don't worry about their own struggles or navel-gazing (as much), and if they have something personal to say, they make damn sure that it's entertaining and interesting in a way that isn't average/boring everyday language”. Relatability is key, but can we associate Kate Bush as being relatable? She uses a lot of characters and there is some fantasy in there. This feature states that one of the elements of effective and brilliant songwriter is when an artist can “craft stories that feel real, vulnerable, and commonplace”. I think Kate Bush ticks a lot of these boxes. She has broken records and had this run of albums that have made it into the U.K. top ten. Her production is phenomenal, and the diversity and depth of her songwriter is up there with anyone. I feel she is more varied than a lot of the so-called ‘best’. That question comes back to mind regarding the ten-album run and the lack of other names credited as songwriters. That is so important. Today, most of the biggest artists in the Pop mainstream write with other people. Kate Bush is not done yet. When she releases her eleventh studio album, it is highly unlikely that there will be any co-writes. Or something like Flower of the Mountain, where Bush uses classic text. When it comes to Kate Bush, I don’t think that there is anyone that can match her…
INCREDIBLE songwriting feat.