FEATURE: The Digital Mixtape: Prince’s Album Openers and Closers

FEATURE:

 

The Digital Mixtape

Prince’s Album Openers and Closers

_________

BECAUSE we lost…

PHOTO CREDIT: Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images

Prince on 21st April, 2016, I wanted to look at the ninth anniversary of his death. It was a huge shock to learn of his death. Taken away from us too soon, the music world lost one of its greats. I have covered Prince a lot through the years. Rather than repeat what came before, for this feature, I have compiled a playlist of his album openers and closers. Those important songs that open and close his tremendous albums. I know there will be a lot written about him ahead of 21st April. Remembering a music genius whose influence lives on. We have got posthumous releases from Prince. His Vault continues to produce gold. It will do for years to come. Although it will be sad marking nine years since Prince died, we can also celebrate his life and legacy. Below are all of his album opening and closing tracks. These amazing tracks are just a fraction of the brilliance that…

HE left us with.

FEATURE: Two of Us: The Beatles’ Let It Be at Fifty-Five

FEATURE:

 

 

Two of Us

The Beatles’ Let It Be at Fifty-Five

_________

ON 8th May, 1970…

it will be fifty-five years since The Beatles released their final album, Let It Be. As we know, it was not the final album they recorded. Abbey Road was the last time they were in the studio together. It is a shame that this album was not their final-released. However, I think Let It Be is a lot stronger than people give it credit for. It turns fifty-five soon, so I wanted to celebrate that fact. Although there are not as many classic songs on this album as, say, Revolver (1966) or Abbey Road (1969), there are some prime Beatles cuts. Two of Us, The Long and Winding Road, Let It Be and Get Back. I’ve Got a Feeling too. Unlike other Beatles album, which were produced by George Martin, Let It Be was produced by Phil Spector (with some production by George Martin). Maybe Spector’s involvement gives it a black mark. Some songs ruined by awful strings and syrupy arrangements. However, there is a lot to love about Let It Be. I will end with some reviews for the 1970 album. We have had a couple of documentaries that take us inside the recording of Let It Be and the period around that. There was The Beatles: Get Back of 2021, and last year’s Let It Be.  Paul McCartney was keen to have a documentary/film to reinspire the band. Although the documentaries show happiness and togetherness, there were periods of friction and fallout. George Harrison walking out. On 30 January, 1969, The Beatles played their famous rooftop gig at Apple Corps headquarters at 3 Savile Row, London. In April 1969, the lead single from Let It Be, Get Back, was released. I want to start off with some detail and information about Let It Be:

“Recorded: 4, 8 February 1968
2, 3, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31 January 1969
30 April 1969
3, 4, 8 January 1970
1 April 1970
Producers: George Martin, Phil Spector
Engineers: Glyn Johns, Martin Benge, Ken Scott, Peter Bown, Phil McDonald, Jeff Jarratt

Released: 8 May 1970 (UK), 18 May 1970 (US)

Personnel

John Lennon: vocals, acoustic guitar, electric guitar, lap steel guitar, bass guitar, organ, whistling
Paul McCartney: vocals, acoustic guitar, bass guitar, piano, electric piano, Hammond organ, maracas, whistling
George Harrison: vocals, acoustic guitar, electric guitar, tambura, maracas
Ringo Starr: drums, percussion, svaramandal
George Martin: Hammond organ, shaker
Billy Preston: Hammond organ, electric piano
Linda McCartney: backing vocals
Uncredited: 18 violins, four violas, four cellos, harp, three trumpets, three trombones, two guitarists, tenor saxophone, 14 choristers

Tracklisting

‘Two Of Us’
‘Dig A Pony’
‘Across The Universe’
‘I Me Mine’
‘Dig It’
‘Let It Be’
‘Maggie Mae’
‘I’ve Got A Feeling’
‘One After 909’
‘The Long And Winding Road’
‘For You Blue’
‘Get Back’

The Beatles’ last album to be released, Let It Be was mostly recorded in early 1969, prior to Abbey Road. The music was produced by George Martin, and was then prepared for release in 1970 by Phil Spector.

Following the often fractious sessions for the White Album in the summer of 1968, Paul McCartney realised The Beatles were in danger of fragmenting further if they continued to work independently of each other. Since the death of Brian Epstein on 27 August 1967 he had worked hard to keep the group motivated, and towards the end of 1968 he hit upon the idea of filming a television special in front of an audience.

We started Let It Be in January 1969 at Twickenham Studios, under the working title Get Back. Michael Lindsay-Hogg was the director. The idea was that you’d see The Beatles rehearsing, jamming, getting their act together and then finally performing somewhere in a big end-of-show concert. We would show how the whole process worked. I remember I had an idea for the final scene which would be a massive tracking shot, forever and ever, and then we’d be in the concert.

The original idea was to go on an ocean liner and get away from the world; you would see us rehearsing and then you’d finally see the pay-off. But we ended up in Twickenham. I think it was a safer situation for the director and everybody. Nobody was that keen on going on an ocean liner anyway. It was getting a bit fraught between us at that point, because we’d been together a long time and cracks were beginning to appear.

Paul McCartney
Anthology

The effort was to be a continuation of the back-to-basics ethos the group had adopted since ‘Lady Madonna’ in February 1968. That single had marked a move away from The Beatles’ elaborate studio experimentation of 1966 and 1967, with a return to more straightforward rock and roll, and much of the White Album and the Yellow Submarine soundtrack had followed in a similar vein.

Reconvening in January 1969 at Twickenham Film Studios, The Beatles began work on what was initially known as the Get Back project: the concept was a chance for the group to get back to their roots, with perhaps a return to live performance for the first time since 29 August 1966.

In a nutshell, Paul wanted to make – it was time for another Beatle movie or something, and Paul wanted us to go on the road or do something. As usual, George and I were going, ‘Oh, we don’t want to do it, f**k,’ and all that. He set it up and there was all discussions about where to go and all that. I would just tag along and I had Yoko by then, I didn’t even give a s**t about anything. I was stoned all the time, too, on H etc. And I just didn’t give a s**t. And nobody did, you know. Anyway, it’s like in the movie where I go to do ‘Across The Universe’, Paul yawns and plays boogie, and I merely say, ‘Oh, anybody want to do a fast one?’

John Lennon, 1970
Lennon Remembers, Jann S Wenner”.

Once the recording and filming was complete, The Beatles realised they had little aptitude to sift through the hours of recordings for suitable songs.

That task was given to Glyn Johns, who prepared four different versions of an album, both titled Get Back, each of which were rejected by The Beatles.

We let Glyn John remix it and we didn’t want to know, we just left it to him and said, ‘Here, do it.’ It’s the first time since the first album we didn’t have anything to… we just said, ‘Do it.’ Glyn Johns did it, none of us could be bothered going in and Paul… nobody called each other about it. The tapes were left there, and we got an acetate each, and we’d call each other and say, ‘Well, what do you think? Oh, let it out.’ We were going to let it out with a really shitty condition, disgusted. And I wanted… I didn’t care, I thought it was good to go out to show people what had happened to us. Like this is where we’re at now, we couldn’t get – we can’t get it together and don’t play together anymore. Leave us alone. Glyn Johns did a terrible job on it, ’cause he’s got no idea, etc. Never mind. But he hasn’t, really. And so the bootleg version is what it was like. Paul was probably thinking, ‘Well, I’m not going to f*****g work on it.’ It was twenty-nine hours of tape, it was like a movie. I mean just so much tape. Ten, twenty takes of everything, because we’re rehearsing and taking everything. Nobody could face looking at it.

John Lennon, 1970
Lennon Remembers, Jann S Wenner

Johns had been approached by Paul McCartney in December 1968 to work on the Get Back recordings. He was present throughout the sessions, and afterwards began the mammoth task of compiling an album from the tapes.

I originally put together an album of rehearsals, with chat and jokes and bits of general conversation in between the tracks, which was the way I wanted Let It Be to be – breakdowns, false starts. Really the idea was that at the time, they were viewed as being the be-all-and-end-all, sort of up on a pedestal, beyond touch, just Gods, completely Gods, and what I witnessed going on at these rehearsals was that, in fact, they were hysterically funny, but very ordinary people in many ways, and they were capable of playing as a band, which everybody was beginning to wonder about at that point, because they hadn’t done so for some time – everything had been prepared in advance, everything had been overdubbed and everything, and they proved in that rehearsal that they could still sing and play at the same time, and they could make records without all those weird and wonderful sounds on them.

That became an obsession with me, and I got the bit between my teeth about it, and one night, I mixed a bunch of stuff that they didn’t even know I’d recorded half the time – I just whacked the recorder on for a lot of stuff that they did, and gave them an acetate the following morning of what I’d done, as a rough idea of what an album could be like, released as it was…

They came back and said they didn’t like it, or each individual bloke came in and said he didn’t like it, and that was the end of that.

Glyn Johns
The Record Producers

Johns’ first Get Back LP, intended more of a proof-of-concept than a release-ready album, was compiled in early 1969. Side one had ‘Get Back’, ‘Teddy Boy’, ‘Two Of Us’, ‘Dig A Pony’, and ‘I’ve Got A Feeling’, while side two featured ‘The Long And Winding Road’, ‘Let It Be’, ‘Don’t Let Me Down’, ‘For You Blue’, ‘Get Back’, and ‘The Walk’.

A period of time went by and I went to America to work with Steve Miller, and when I came back, I got a call from John and Paul asking me to meet them at EMI, which I duly did. They pointed to a big pile of tapes in the corner, and said, ‘Remember that idea you had about putting together an album?’ and I said, ‘Yes’. They said, ‘Well, there are the tapes – go and do it’. So I was absolutely petrified – you can imagine. I was actually being asked to put together a Beatle album on my own. So I did – I went off and locked myself away for a week or so and pieced an album together out of these rehearsed tapes, which they then all liked, really liked. This was some months after the thing had actually been recorded, and we’d actually started work on Abbey Road about the same time.

Glyn Johns
The Record Producers

Johns returned to the session tapes on 10 March 1969 at Olympic Sound Studios in London. The Beatles themselves had little involvement, having begun work on Abbey Road. Johns mixed the session tapes at Olympic from 10-13 March 1969.

At that stage, side one of the Get Back album was to have contained ‘One After 909’, ‘Rocker’, ‘Save The Last Dance For Me’, ‘Don’t Let Me Down’, ‘Dig A Pony’, ‘I’ve Got A Feeling’, and ‘Get Back’. Side two featured ‘For You Blue’, ‘Teddy Boy’, ‘Two Of Us’, ‘Maggie Mae’, ‘Dig It’, ‘Let It Be’, ‘The Long And Winding Road’, and ‘Get Back’ (Reprise).

The Beatles were unhappy with Johns’ second Get Back album, so he created a third iteration with the same running order as before. Several of the songs were remixed, and Johns’ earlier version of ‘Get Back’ was replaced with the single mix, accompanied by introductory studio dialogue. Other studio chatter was changed, and more than a minute of ‘Dig It’ was excised.

Mixing and mastering sessions took place on 7, 9, and 28 May 1969.

For the Get Back project, it was The Beatles’ intention to recreate the cover of Please Please Me, showing how they had changed visually since 1963. On 13 May 1969 the group returned to EMI House in London’s Manchester Square, and at 6pm the same photographer, Angus McBean, photographed them as they resumed their poses.

The artwork was prepared for Glyn Johns’ Get Back album, which was to bear the strapline “with Don’t Let Me Down and 12 other songs”. However, the session photographs remained unused until the 1962-1966 and 1967-1970 (the so-called Red and Blue albums) were released in 1973.

The Beatles rejected Johns’ first Get Back album, and new recording sessions for two Let It Be songs took place on 3 and 4 January 1970 – a year after the initial recordings were made”.

I am going to finish off with a couple of reviews about The Beatles’ Let It Be. I am starting out with a Pitchfork review of 2009. Even if some dismiss Let It Be as The Beatles’ worst album, it is an incredible piece of work. A lot of people focus on conflict or the breakdown of the band. Instead, there is a lot of great music on the album that you should concentrate on:

“As the 1960s wound down, so did the Beatles. The symmetry was perfect: youthful energy, optimism, and camaraderie had given over to cynicism, discord, and looking out for number one. As the decade's final year began, the White Album was still riding high on the charts and the Yellow Submarine soundtrack was days away from release. But the Beatles were in serious trouble. Nothing about being in the band was enjoyable or easy. The power vacuum left by the death of manager Brian Epstein a year and a half earlier had never been satisfactorily filled; Apple Corps, the multi-media company started by the band a year earlier, was bleeding money; and toughest of all, the once-Fab Four didn't generally enjoy being in the same room together. All were either married or close to it, closing in on 30, and tremendously weary of all they'd been through.

Paul McCartney, the most devoted of the gang to the notion of the Beatles (Ringo Starr called him the "Beatleaholic"), thought that the group needed a special project to bring it together. Another White Album-style scenario, with the songwriters in the band working alone in separate studios, enlisting each other to serve as a de facto backup band, was bound to fail. Too much good will and trust had been lost. They needed something big they could all submit to. Several ideas were proposed, most involving a return of some kind to live performance: perhaps a live album of new songs or a huge show in a remote place; maybe the band would charter an ocean liner and make an album on it. Ultimately, it was decided that the band would be filmed on a soundstage rehearsing for a show and developing material for a new album-- a document of the Beatles at work. The theme for the project would be back-to-basics, a return of the group as a performing unit, sans overdubs, emphasizing their inherent musicality. Working title: Get Back.

It was an awful idea. First, no one was sure exactly what he was supposed to be doing. Glyn Johns was there, a new presence behind the boards, but he never quite figured out if he was producing or just engineering. Regular producer George Martin was technically on board, but his participation was minimal. While Let It Be was initially meant to be a return to simplicity, Phil Spector's later involvement (he was brought in to "reproduce" the tracks, adding extra voices and instruments to thicken arrangements and remix the record, a decision made without McCartney's input) killed that angle.

Organizational chaos aside, the sessions were painful. We all know what it feels like to be around people we don't like for days on end; if reality television has taught us anything, it's that a camera crew in a room full of such people does nothing to ease tension. The time the Beatles spent recording and filming was described by all as supremely unpleasant, despite a later uptick when they'd returned to finish up at Abbey Road. And when they finished, no one really liked what they'd laid down on tape. So not surprisingly, the essential nature of Let It Be is that it feels incomplete and fragmented; it's a difficult album to peg because the Beatles were never sure themselves what they wanted it to be. So the best way to approach it is as a collection of songs by guys who still were churning out classics with some regularity. It may not succeed on the level of the Beatles' previous albums, but there's enough good material to make it a worthy entry in their canon.

Outside of the title track, there's little here that feels consequential to the Beatles' legacy. The easy acoustic shuffle of the John Lennon and Paul McCartney duet "Two of Us" has appeal, though, as do the prickly rhythmic drive of George Harrison's "For You Blue" and the bubbling Booker T-isms of McCartney's "Get Back". The swampy "I've Got a Feeling", possibly reflecting McCartney's recent interest in Canned Heat, is intriguing because it sounds so classic rock 70s. And Lennon's "Across the Universe", recorded during the White Album sessions and sounding like it was beamed in from somewhere else, has a certain ringing brilliance. For balance, there's "Dig a Pony" and the boogieing "One After 909", the latter actually written by Lennon and McCartney as kids in the fifties. Still, for plenty of good bands, the best of these would be career highlights.

Recorded without joy, set aside for months while a better album was assembled, and finally remixed in a way that enraged one of the band's principals, Let It Be finally saw release in May 1970. But by that point, the Beatles break-up had been official for several weeks. There's since been a live album, compilations, digitization, trolls through the archives, and an ocean of ink spilled about this little band that made it very big. And now there are these CD issues, done beautifully. But there never was a proper reunion, and we can assume that there will never be another Beatles”.

I am finishing off with a review from AllMusic. It must have been a strange time. Breaking up in 1970, there was this negativity from the press. Critics taking aim at the band. Many blaming Paul McCartney for the break-up of The Beatles. In years since, there has been reassessment and reframing of Let It Be. Films like The Beatles: Get Back helping to rewrite the narrative. If you have not heard the album in a while then do so now:

“The only Beatles album to occasion negative, even hostile reviews, there are few other rock records as controversial as Let It Be. First off, several facts need to be explained: although released in May 1970, this was not their final album, but largely recorded in early 1969, way before Abbey Road. Phil Spector was enlisted in early 1970 to do some post-production work, but did not work with the band as a unit, as George Martin and Glyn Johns had on the sessions themselves; Spector's work was limited to mixing and some overdubs. And, although his use of strings has generated much criticism, by and large he left the original performances to stand as is: only "The Long and Winding Road" and (to a lesser degree) "Across the Universe" and "I Me Mine" get the wall-of-sound layers of strings and female choruses. Although most of the album, then, has a live-in-the-studio feel, the main problem was that the material wasn't uniformly strong, and that the Beatles themselves were in fairly lousy moods due to inter-group tension. All that said, the album is on the whole underrated, even discounting the fact that a sub-standard Beatles record is better than almost any other group's best work. McCartney in particular offers several gems: the gospelish "Let It Be," which has some of his best lyrics; "Get Back," one of his hardest rockers; and the melodic "The Long and Winding Road," ruined by Spector's heavy-handed overdubs (the superior string-less, choir-less version was finally released on Anthology Vol. 3). The folky "Two of Us," with John and Paul harmonizing together, was also a highlight. Most of the rest of the material, by contrast, was going through the motions to some degree, although there are some good moments of straight hard rock in "I've Got a Feeling" and "Dig a Pony." As flawed and bumpy as it is, it's an album well worth having, as when the Beatles were in top form here, they were as good as ever”.

I am going to finish there. If some see Let It Be as the album that should have been released before Abbey Road and do not rate it highly or if you have more affection for it, there is no denying its historical importance. I really like the album, in spite of the production of Phil Spector. Two of Us among my favourite Beatles songs. On 8th May, it will be fifty-five year since it was released. An opportunity to spotlight the final-released album…

FROM the legendary band.

FEATURE: Signed from the Heart: Kate Bush and Her Ongoing Charity Work

FEATURE:

 

Signed from the Heart

IN THIS PHOTO: Kate Bush received the Editors Award at the Evening Standard Theatre Awards at the Palladium, London on 30th November, 2014/PHOTO CREDIT: Alan Davidson/Rex/Shutterstock

Kate Bush and Her Ongoing Charity Work

_________

I am going to mention this again…

PHOTO CREDIT: Kate Bush News

in other features. Where Kate Bush raised money for charity or has been involved in fundraisers. I am approaching an occasion in 1986 where she performed for Comic Relief. She has always engaged in charitable endeavours. Right from early in her career, Kate Bush has done as much as she could to raise awareness and money for charities! From Comic Relief in 1986 to last year when her Little Shrew (Snowflake) video raised funds for War Child, Bush is always giving and thinking of others. It brings me to a new occasion. Where Kate Bush is donating signed items for charity. It is amazing to think how much money she has raised for charity through the years! It would be good for someone to total all of that up. I can imagine Bush being involved in a lot more charitable causes in years to come. It is not about raising her profile or jumping on bandwagons. Whenever Kate Bush spends time and effort raising funds for charity, she does so because it means a lot to her. I am going to start off by sourcing a couple of new articles from Kate Bush News:

“Some heartwarming news about how Kate, with the generous support of her fans, has been helping to make a difference to the lives of vulnerable children around the world. US music magazine, Under The Radar, has spoken to Jim Benner, Global Music Lead of the War Child charity in their latest issue #74, The Protest Issue.

“We’ve done a Protest Issue every four or five years since 2004. As we’ve done in the past, the issue examines the intersection of music and politics and features photo shoots with musicians holding protest signs of their own making. Later this year we will auction off all the autographed signs, with all profits going to War Child UK and their U.S. fundraising arm, Children in Conflict.” The issue can be purchased here.

IN THIS PHOTO: Kate Bush signed Soundwaves art print – Running Up That Hill (A Deal with God)/PHOTO CREDIT: Kate Bush News

Kate has consistently supported the War Child charity for over 30 years. The magazine article notes that Kate “…continues to go above and beyond for the charity”. War Child provides psychosocial support for children caught up in war zones, whether it’s ensuring Iraqi children get an education, providing psychological support to children who have been traumatised by conflict in Yemen, finding lost vulnerable children in Afghanistan or providing life-saving emergency aid to the children of Gaza and their families.

“In the past 12 months alone, she’s raised over £500,000 for us.” Benner beams. “She just released a short animated film, ‘Little Shrew (Snowflake),’ which conveys the vulnerability of children in war in support of War Child. It’s beautiful and timeless. I urge everyone to go to Kate’s website to watch it. We had over £100,000 in donations and dozens of news stories in one day. “Kate also recently repackaged and reissued her back catalog, including a box set entitled Lost At Sea where she repurposed artwork she did for a War Child exhibition/fundraiser in 1994, Kate has donated proceeds and has made generous personal donations.

Another successful project Kate did for us was signing Soundwaves Art prints created by digital artist Tim Wakefield. Tim creates stunning artwork from a particular song. We then get the musical artist to sign. In this instance, Kate signed prints based on ‘Running Up That Hill’ which of course has had a great resurgence, thanks to Stranger Things. We usually ask the artist to sign 100 [copies], and Kate kindly did. The demand was so great that we then asked her to sign 150 more which she did, and 100% of the profits were donated to War Child.”

You can donate directly to help War Child here. Read more about Kate’s Little Shrew animation here or watch it in the player below. Read more about her signed Soundwaves Art prints here. Read more about The Boxes of Lost at Sea, “…a hybrid of an album and a piece of artwork you could hang on the wall” here or watch the special short promo film Kate directed to introduce these special presentations, narrated by Sir Ian McKellen, in the player below”.

PHOTO CREDIT: Kate Bush News

The second article from Kate Bush News was shared yesterday. It relates to four special items that Kate Bush has signed. It will help raise a lot of money for a wonderful auction. That money raised at the auction will go to support so many people. It does warm the heart that Bush continues to do so much for charities:

“From our very own Dave Cross (HomeGround): “I am very happy to announce that once again Kate Bush has donated signed items to the Cabaret vs Cancer music auction…and this year, she’s donated four, YES, FOUR items, all signed exclusively for CvC! We have got the 50 Words for Snow special vinyl Polar Edition, Before the Dawn four disc vinyl box set AND Boxes one and two of the Hounds of Love special ‘Lost at Sea’ boxes.

All items were signed by Kate this week specially for us. Having Kate’s support for CvC means the world to me, Rose Thorne and the rest of our volunteers and we will hopefully raise a lot of money to help people dealing with the effects of cancer. Please see the auction link HERE to start bidding… there’s lots of other cool things too!” Thanks for letting us know Dave – amazing work from you and the team at CvC as always! Best of luck – Seán”.

It will be no surprise to Kate Bush fans that this extraordinary artist does so much for charities. From raising so much for War Child to signed items for Cabaret vs Cancer, Bush has helped raise millions through the years. Whilst she does not do it for credit, you do feel like there should be some greater reward. In a recent feature, I suggested that a music award show should honour her. Though her being made a Dame might be out of the question (sadly), some sort of honour should come her way. However, one feels like she might reject it or feel that it puts the spotlight on her and not where it should be – and that is on charities she supports.

I look back and all of the occasions where Kate Bush has given her time and/or music to raise money for charities. Including her thirtieth birthday on 30th July, 1988, when Bush was working with other celebrities as shop assistances in Covent Garden to  raise funds for the Terrence Higgins Trust. I wonder what Kate Bush will go in years to come. Her fans want a new album. That will come in the next couple of years I am sure. However, I get the feeling that Bush will donate signed items again. I am not sure she will do an big fundraiser or be involved with anything public. However, this being Kate Bush, she is going to do a lot more for a whole host of charities! I am inspired by this side of her. As I will explain in an upcoming feature, I am doing a charity walk in June to mark fifty years since Kate Bush recorded her first professional recordings at AIR Studios, London. It is brilliant that Bush helped raise so much money for War Child. At a time when it is desperately needed. How she is donating items for Cabaret vs Cancer. Each of those albums will go for possibly thousands of pounds. I do wonder what else she will be involved with this year. If no new music quite yet, then there will be updates from Bush. Maybe some more charity contributions. A hearty salute to Kate Bush! This latest round of incredible generosity is not yet the tip of the iceberg. I know that we will see Bush doing so much more for charities…

FOR many more years.

FEATURE: Strange Phenomenon: Is Kate Bush One of the Most Original Artists Ever?

FEATURE:

 

 

Strange Phenomenon

IN THIS PHOTO: Kate Bush in 1980

Is Kate Bush One of the Most Original Artists Ever?

_________

I am going back…

IN THIS PHOTO: Kate Bush in 1978

to The Kick Inside briefly. Kate Bush’s 1978 debut album, I still marvel at how different it was to anything that came before. When you think about the female artists who proceeded her, were any talking about their body, sexuality and desires like Kate Bush? The lyrical content on that album stretching well beyond the commercial and ordinary. For a teenager, it was remarkably mature and extraordinary! No sense of timidity or staying close to what was out there. An individual artist who was astonishing from the very start. I posed the question as to whether Kate Bush is among the most original artists ever. Look around music now and there are few who can match her brilliance. In terms of how they change and evolve between albums. I have talked about The Kick Inside before and its lyrics. Not informed by anything in the charts or what was popular, there are few more original and distinct debut singles as Wuthering Heights. Not many artists taking from literature – or a T.V. adaptation of a novel – for their debut single. The whole album is fascinating. One of the most female albums ever released, the rest of Kate Bush’s career has been marked by these albums filled with characters, scenes and emotions that no other artist could write about or convey. I don’t think she gets talked about in terms of an influence on modern artists. We all know some of the big names who cite her as an influence but, for the most part, these artists did so a while ago. Look at many of the artists – especially women – coming through and at the forefront now. Whether consciously or not, you know that they owe something to Kate Bush. Whether that is the way they have this independence and take control of their career or something about their songwriting which has elements of Kate Bush. Whether that is talking about desire and passion similar to her or taking from literature and film. Building a cast of characters into their work. You look around the modern scene and you can tell of those artists who are similar to Kate Bush though they have not explicitly discussed her influence on them – but you feel like they should!

Just the way Kate Bush conducted her career. In addition to being an original. Bush was also very determined to produce her own music and do so at her own pace. That was almost unheard of for artists in the 1970s and 1980s. Especially women. Many signed to labels were either guided pretty heavily and did have not have much independence or those who were happy being a commercial artist and kept producing the same sort of music. Like The Kick Inside and Lionheart, Bush could have made the remainder of her albums piano-based and similar. Never for Ever (1980) introduced the Fairlight CMI. The Dreaming (1982) found her songs at their most dense and dark. Plenty of beauty and character. Bush producing and throwing herself into every moment. The Ninth Wave, the conceptual suite on the second side of Hounds of Love, being about a woman at sea hoping to be rescued. How many other artists would dedicated half of their album to a concept as opposed to the entire album – or just not bother at all?! Kate Bush going in a different direction after that. The cultures and sounds she mixed. Instruments and sounds from around the world. Bulgarian voices on The Sensual World. Baila touches on The Red Shoes. Bush never wanting to repeat herself. The breadth and scope of her music is extraordinary. This original brilliance also extends to her aesthetic and fashion. An under-discussed fashion icon, she was mixing casual and girl-next-door fashions with extraordinary and extravagant attire. All very distinctly her. Again, look at the women in music who have followed and you know they look up to Kate Bush. This was not forced either. Bush not trying to be attention-grabbing or do anything she was not comfortable with.

Some might say Bush became more conventional or lost some of her spark through The Sensual World and The Red Shoes. That late-1980s and 1990s output not as original or unconventional (in a good way). Aerial, though, was this return to the sounds that only our Kate Bush could produce. I think about the artists compared to Kate Bush. Despite the fact there are some similarities, I don’t think one could easily compare an artist with her. There are a lot of brilliant and innovative musicians around today. However, when I compare their albums and see how their careers have shifted, nothing quite impresses me as much when compared to Kate Bush. Not to suggest Bush wildly swings for the hell of it just to be different or unpredictable. Every album she has produced has been a natural evolution. That combination of her remarkable vocal range, lyrics that are unlikely anyone else’s and this incredible personality. I wanted to write about this but cannot see many other articles that argue this. It is subjective saying that an artist is the most original ever. There are a number of different factors to consider. One could argue that The Beatles or Taylor Swift are the most original. Or David Bowie. For me, there are aspects of Kate Bush that, when blended together, create this artist that has not been matched. The way Bush cannot be defined or categorised. Music videos almost like short films.

Theatrical and visually arresting, Bush’s music videos have definitely inspired generations of artists. Kate Bush has set records and broken barriers. She has maintained control of her music and has had this new resurgence. At the age of sixty-six, Bush is standing out from those around her. Someone who has raided funds for charity for decades and is this incredible thoughtful and generous person, she is also down to Earth and relatable. Despite this phenomenal talent, Kate Bush has never had an ego or fallen into the traps many other huge artists have. Blending mythology, fantasy, the gothic and passions of the heart, Bush’s music has taken influence from Africa, Ireland, Bulgaria, Australia and far beyond. Writing her own material and producing most of her albums, Kate Bush has kept relevant and distinct without having to duplicate or do what went before. There is more to be said on the subject but, as few have written about it, I wanted to raise it. Again, ‘original’ is hard to precisely define when it comes to music. One cannot deny Kate Bush is distinct and like nobody else. An artist who stands on her own. However, one who has inspired so many others artists through the years. I would love to hear other people’s thoughts on this. From the incredibly unconventional and original debut album in 1978 to 2011’s 50 Words for Snow – her most recent album -, the innovator and genius keeps doing something new and fascinating that is both incomparable to other albums yet accessible and endlessly listenable. It is clear that, when it comes to Kate Bush, there isn’t…

ANYONE like her.

FEATURE: Taste: Sabrina Carpenter and Female Empowerment

FEATURE:

 

 

Taste

 IN THIS PHOTO: Sabrina Carpenter at the 2024 Vanity Fair Oscar Party in Beverly Hills, California, March 10, 2024

Sabrina Carpenter and Female Empowerment

_________

NOT related to…

anything specific, I did want to take a moment to spotlight Sabrina Carpenter. An award-winning and amazing artist, it will not be long until she is headlining festivals like Glastonbury. A hugely empowering artist and someone who is a modern-day feminist iconic, this is an artist who advocates self-love and writes these incredibly powerful lyrics. Uncomfortable earlier in her career with what she was told to wear and how she was presented, now, she uses her music and voice to portray her sexuality in a way true to her. Empowering, confident and unshackled, she is an artist tackling prejudices and those who criticise her. Whether it is a slightly provocative performance or something that is seen as risqué, Carpenter is giving strength to so many other people. Being who she wants to be without being constrained. She is also something who collaborates with other female creatives and advocates for women constantly. A definite role model, I did want to source from a few articles that look at Sabrina Carpenter as this incredible feminist. Maybe an unexpected one in some cases, her most recent album, Short n’ Sweet, was released in 2024. A Deluxe edition of the album came out this year. I will end with a recent feature that explores how Sabrina Carpenter is redefining and recontextualising female empowerment. I am going to start off with a feature from Stellar:

“She’s also unashamedly sexual, in a way that women can relate to and even more importantly, enjoy. Let me explain.

The male gaze is a concept coined by film theorist Laura Mulvey in the ’70s. She proposed that media tends to present women through a lens most attractive to heterosexual men, stripping them of any agency and reducing them to mere sexual objects.

The female gaze, on the other hand, implies empowerment. It’s the lens in which women characters, directors, or writers view the world and the women in it; as people… who can be sexy, of course, but also have other attributes too.

In the past, many pop girlies were created for men. They dressed and acted certain ways, whether they wanted to or not. There may have been largely female crowds at their shows, but it was the male gaze they attracted.

Think Britney Spears in the early 2000s. The star has spoken out consistently about the discomfort she felt in her early career, the way she was styled, the shoots she took part in.

Remember the Rolling Stone cover where she was lying on her bed in her underwear holding a Teletubbie? Yeah, that.

The female gaze doesn’t mean that women can’t be sexual. In fact, it’s quite the opposite. A lot of the time, female gaze media involves a lot more than the subject, but the entire creative process.

Female crew, female writers, stylists, and photographers – a whole group of people hired to represent a female experience that isn’t just focused on the body, but much more.

Sabrina is hyper-sexual, but not in a way that pop culture is used to. She’s sexy but she’s funny. She’s dressed in lingerie but she styled herself. She’s not saying ‘I want to have sex with you.’ She’s saying ‘I want to have sex… and you’ll be there too.’

Her sexuality is loud, but there’s also a subtly to it – a cleverness. She has fun with her risque ‘nonsense’ outros, her lyrics are dominated by innuendo she wrote herself, she’s speaking to women as much as she is to men. It’s that me espresso, not that his espresso.

Her most recent album, Short n’ Sweet includes tracks like ‘Bed Chem’ and ‘Juno’, songs about having sex, thinking about having sex, and getting pregnant as a result of having some really good sex in various positions.

She’s also hyper-feminine. Her makeup is soft and pink, she wears glittery platforms, she pokes fun at herself being short without ever stumbling into ‘pick me’ territory.

She’s got her brand down, but it’s still a work in progress. Recently, she had to respond to criticism surrounding her attitude towards sex, both on and off the stage.

“My fans online are like, I can’t believe she’s bending over in front of her grandparents!” she said. “I’m like, girl, they are not paying attention to that. They’re just like, I can’t believe all these people are here”.

There are women at the forefront of Pop that are empowering and inspiring so many fans around the world. Artists such as Beyoncé, Charli xcx and Taylor Swift very much at the forefront when it comes to the most influential feminists and role models in music. However, as this feature from last year suggests, Sabrina Carpenter is the feminist we didn’t know we needed. There is no doubt that she is at the forefront of a new wave of a feminism. One about expression, positivity and self-love, whether it is the official start of the fifth wave of feminism or one happening in music (but not in wider culture), there is no denying how important she is:

“Carpenter has effectively altered her image while also recreating an entirely new wave of feminism. She does this through her lyrics, costumes, performances, ad campaigns and dance moves. The once “Girl Meets World” star has broken the Disney curse and become the most famous pop star of the moment.

Her lyrics acted as the catalyst for this newfound image. In “Espresso,” she describes how she essentially hypnotized this boy into loving her because it’s “that sweet.” The utterly hypnotic song also made us listeners fall in love with her. And then, when her sixth studio album, “Short n’ Sweet,” was released in Aug. 2024, we saw a whole new side to her.

The songs “Juno,” “Bed Chem” and “Taste” ooze with female sexuality. Fans saw this on display during the “Short n’ Sweet” Tour, where Carpenter switches between different variations of lingerie and displays a new “position” in each performance of her song “Juno.”

She’s received criticism for the hypersexual lyrics, but I’d say she is just finally coming into her female agency. And she is a great role model for young women.

Society has always tried to force women to be humble and poised. Carpenter confidently rebels against these expectations, all while reminding you just how beautiful she is.

Let’s get one thing sorted out: women can be just as sexual as men. If men are allowed to make “locker room talk” and write songs about sex and hot girls, then women have the same exact rights.

If The Weeknd and Playboi Carti in the hit song “Timeless” can say, “Ever since I was a jit, knew I was the shit / Shorty keep wanna come ‘round she wanna get hit / She think she the main because I keep her by my side,” then I think Carpenter should be able to sing, “And I bet we’d both arrive at the same time / And I bet the thermostat’s set at six nine / And I bet it’s even better than in my head.”

Carpenter is embracing sexuality and flipping the script. If men can be openly sexual and objectify women in their lyrics, then why can’t she?

Her most pack-a-punch lyric is in the song “Juno,” where she sings “Sorry if you feel objectified.” It’s a little wink to the type of music that men have been creating ever since Elvis could pop his hips. While her brand has transformed into a hypersexual pop princess, she’s really just showing the world and all of her young fans that women can also think like men. Cry me a river!

The only reason that Carpenter is getting any flack for her blatant sexuality is because a lot of people aren’t used to it coming from a woman. Female musicians, especially pop musicians, are typically expected to maintain a clean image for young fans.

In a recent interview with Time Magazine, Carpenter is upfront about the criticism she’s faced. “You’ll still get the occasional mother that has a strong opinion on how you should be dressing,” Carpenter said. “And to that, I just say, don’t come to the show, and that’s OK. It’s unfortunate that it’s ever been something to criticize.”

Other pop musicians, like Britney Spears, suffered backlash for showing even a morsel of sexuality, and it took a serious toll on her mental health. Carpenter’s sheer confidence and self-assuredness is what makes her actions so admirable.

With so many young and impressionable fans coming to her shows and indulging in her music, it’s easy for people to say she’s setting a bad example considering society’s attitude towards female sexuality. Yet the lady of the moment’s positive attitude and self-love is what young girls need to see. In a sense, Carpenter is finishing what pop princesses of the past started”.

I am going to finish with a recent article from Clique. Redefining female empowerment, it is interesting what they say about her live shows. Go to her gigs now and it is this explosion of self-expression, confidence and togetherness. Sexually open and powerful women always tore down and seen as bad role models. Sabrina Carpenter is a good feminist. “She is doing it for the girls”:

“Sabrina started out as a young teenage actor on the Disney Channel show “Girl Meets World." The show was having disappointing ratings and got canceled after a few seasons. The brightest star to come out of that show was Sabrina. She signed a record deal for five albums with Hollywood Records and recorded them in the image of a modest child pop star.

As Zoe mentions in her video series, Carpenter’s career was doomed by the “Disney curse” at the time, as her music and image were targeting a young audience, hence the age-appropriate, well, everything. However, if we know something about teenagers, they want nothing to do with age-appropriate. Her target audience was listening to Ariana Grande, Selena Gomez, and Miley Cyrus, who at this point in their careers were already fully shedded from the Disney curse and were making art that made sense for a grown woman. Something all teenage girls wanted to be.

Sabrina signed a record deal with Island Records in 2019, and in 2022 the world was blessed with a new era of her music and image. She stepped into her rebranding.

From the very first steps in her new image, she provoked the public. The album featured a song “Because I Liked a Boy,” where she refers to the media calling her a whore for dating an ex of Olivia Rodrigo, which was one of the biggest scandals in her career. Olivia Rodrigo wrote her hit song “Drivers Licence,” mentioning “a blonde girl” who was hanging out with her ex-boyfriend Joshua Bassett. It was a nod to Carpenter. The first wave of hate hit Sabrina when that song came out, and the public was calling her a “homewrecker” and a “slut” for taking another girl’s man. Which was not true, but even if it was, the public’s response was so strong, so hateful, and so quick to judge, leaving no space for another narrative, just another story of slut-shaming.

“Because I Liked a Boy," a song where Sabrina mentions all the hate that she got and how misogynistic the public’s responses were, was the song that led to Sabrina developing her 50s-inspired wardrobe. Ironically, the emergence of this new style was one of the sparks that ignited the recent hateful commentary on her overly sexualized costumes.

Other songs from that album also played a part in Sabrina’s more mature image. “Skinny Dipping” was a song where she shared raw and personal details of her past relationship, delving deeper into her personal life, distancing herself from the cookie-cutter lyrics of her past. However, the song that kicked off her flirty image and determined the direction of her branding was "Nonsense,” which featured a number of spicy lyrics provoking the listener, especially if they compared it to the previous version of Sabrina.

The success of her second album with Island Records, Short and Sweet, was vast. The album debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200 chart, marking Carpenter's first number one and top-10 album and best opening week to date. Her listening audience grew immensely; the songs were playing on the radio the whole summer, and her tour gave her even more publicity.

With the new album, the singer very obviously knew exactly what her brand was. At this point she was already working with Jared Ellner as her stylist, feeling very confident in her

established 50s pin-up aesthetic, singing about her sexuality, and knowing that people loved it. And that’s when the clash happened.

The growing audience, the Disney past, the revealing outfits, and provocative lyrics all came together to produce the narrative of Sabrina Carpenter “oversexualizing herself." A narrative that unfortunately was expected but is definitely not based on anything substantial.

Sabrina’s recent video for Vogue with her stylist explains the structure, meaning, and inspiration behind everything that happens during her show. The performance is supposed to feel like a night out with the girls.

It starts in Sabrina’s room, in her robe or towel, as she is getting ready. In this part, she sings slower songs of hers, starting the night. The singer drew inspiration from movies like “Bye Bye Birdie” and “Grease” for her outfits and stage design to capture the feel of “the girlies getting ready." She then changes into her Swarovski corset and pairs it with a sparkly garter and platform shoes. Then she puts on a lace bodysuit inspired by Marylin Monroe in “There is No Business Like Show-Business” and Audrey Hepburn in “Funny Face." She ends the night with her most fun and spicy songs in her bejeweled two-piece look inspired by the Abba Voyage Show. This is the part where she continues the tradition of sexy improv with her new song "Juno," where she mimics a new sexual position every night.

As Sabrina and her stylist Jared get excited to tell the audience of the video about the ideas and work behind her tour image, I get excited with them. I get excited about the lace and the sparkles and the garters, like I was excited about my pink ruffles and pearls on Halloween. Sabrina and her team made the show into a girly heaven with flowy bathrobes, Abba, platform shoes, Audrey Hepburn, and the unparalleled joy that girls feel getting ready together.

At the end of the video, she looks at her stylist and says, "The girls are going to love it.”.

I smile.

When you look at it from the inside, at least for me, the Short and Sweet show and Sabrina's branding in general seem like a lot of hard work, talent, great creative vision, and immense confidence and will to have fun. Despite the hateful comments she receives about her appearance and songs,.

In the endless fight against the patriarchy and battling on many sides of the argument, there has to come a point where you look in the mirror, standing in your kitten heels and lace corset as Marie Antoinette, thinking, "Which narrative should I choose?”. Do I look like the most attractive and confident version of myself, or am I objectifying myself and degrading women?

Well, I think only I can say which one it is.

Sexually open women are always going to be threatening, always an easy target to choose, always something easy to hate and attack before you analyze the work, talent, and imagination that goes into anything that woman does. Sabrina Carpenter is doing so much for the female community by allowing us to feel sexy when we want to, have fun when we want to, and continue doing it despite the backlash. Sabrina Carpenter is a good feminist. She is doing it for the girls”.

I wanted to write this feature in order to bring other people’s words together. Celebrating and recognising Sabrina Carpenter as this incredible feminist who is inspiring girls and women. Carpenter received backlash for simulating an ‘Eifel Tower’ (sex) position on stage. She also was criticise for what was deemed a risqué performance at the BRITs. This ridiculous outrage aimed at an artist who is not corrupting minds but is instead providing these incredible celebrated performances that are filled with fun, kookiness, camp, celebration, humour, sexual self-expression and infectiousness, this empowering, inspiring and amazing feminist should be heralded and not judged. That should be…

THE real conversation.

FEATURE: Groovelines: Pulp – Common People

FEATURE:

 

 

Groovelines

Pulp – Common People

_________

A classic song…

that reached number two in the U.K., I am looking ahead to the thirtieth anniversary of Pulp’s Common People. Released on 22nd May, 1995, I am looking to the thirtieth anniversary of a song often cited as the finest Britpop tracks ever. One of the defining tracks of that movement. It is one of the greatest songs ever in my view. In a Rolling Stone readers' poll in 2015, Common People was voted the greatest Britpop song. I am keen to get to features about the song. I am starting out with this feature from American Songwriter:

“Class consciousness was the beating heart of Britpop. Oasis were beloved—apart from the albums full of bangers—because they sang about the working class and they were working class. Blur, on the other hand, were thought to be suspiciously inauthentic.

“Common People” was the first single from Pulp’s 1995 album Different Class. The song is infectiously catchy. It’s here, where group founder and frontman Jarvis Cocker becomes an icon. But “Common People” is a class anthem. It is the soul of Britpop.

Sheffield’s Pulp formed in 1978. They struggled for many years to find success. At one point, Cocker folded the band and left to study film at St. Martin’s College.

Cocker—influenced by vocalists Serge Gainsbourg and Scott Walker— returned to the band. By the late ’80s, they were inspired by house music and rave culture. In 1991, “My Legendary Girlfriend” was NME’s single of the week—a pivotal moment in Pulp’s career.

What is Cocker talking about?

Jarvis Cocker, while studying at St. Martin’s College, met a wealthy girl who said she “wanted to move to Hackney and live like the common people.” Class tourism, or slumming, was popular at the time. People in upper classes found something noble in the lower classes, yet they had the privilege of leaving when they wanted.

She came from Greece she had a thirst for knowledge
She studied sculpture at Saint Martin’s College
That’s where I caught her eye
She told me that her dad was loaded
I said, in that case I’ll have rum and Coca-Cola
She said fine

Blur, at the time, were taking heat from critics for being a middle-class band writing songs about the working class. Their Parklife was a No. 1 album and was, according to a Q interview with Cocker, a “kind of patronizing social voyeurism.”

You’ll never live like common people
You’ll never do whatever common people do
You’ll never fail like common people
You’ll never watch your life slide out of view
And you dance and drink and screw
Because there’s nothing else to do

Britpop made a lot of money glamourizing the working class. Finally, Cocker has had enough. He exposes the tourist:

But still you’ll never get it right
Cause when you’re laid in bed at night
Watching roaches climb the wall
If you called your dad he could stop it all, yeah

Cocker wrote the song on a Casio keyboard. When he brought it to the band, they were not impressed. But keyboardist Candida Doyle thought it was great. Pulp booked a session at The Town House in London and recorded the single in two weeks.

It was produced by Chris Thomas, whose credits include The Sex Pistols, Pretenders, and INXS. “Common People” sounds very similar to “Los Amantes” by ’80s Spanish pop band Mecano.

The best Britpop song, ever

Pulp was coming off their breakthrough album His ’n’ Hers in 1994. The Mercury Prize-nominated album reached No. 9 on the UK Albums chart.

Different Class, the band’s fifth album, was released at the height of Britpop in 1995. It was Pulp’s first No. 1 album and won the Mercury Prize. Pulp headlined the Glastonbury Festival in 1995.

“Common People” was an anthem. It sounded like a synthesized version of The Sex Pistols’ Chris Thomas-produced “Anarchy in the UK.” It’s Pulp’s signature song and, at the time, topped many year-end lists. Pitchfork placed “Common People” at No. 2 on their Top 200 Tracks of the 1990s.

The song endures like the stubborn reality of class struggle. It speaks to any generation. Many art forms, including film and music, have a fascination with struggle. In some instances, the work is well-intentioned. In other cases, it exploits the powerless.

With “Common People,” Cocker exposed the façade of Britpop’s working-class chic. He wrote an anthem about the condescending way the privileged go sightseeing in the slums”.

It is worth reading the Wikipedia page about Common People. Information about its legacy and importance. Details about the music video and inspiration behind the song. I want to spotlight a 2015 feature from The Guardian. The feature was published to coincide with the twentieth anniversary of a Britpop anthem. A masterpiece from one of the best bands of their generation:

“However, there is a wider issue here of – if you’ll forgive me – cultural focus. Common People is not a song about a spoiled condescending female, however vivid the character. The song – part poem, part manifesto – is about Cocker (back then) and people like Cocker (as he had been): the long-term disfranchised and perma-skint, who spend their lives feeling broke, scared and hopeless, without a safety net.

It’s about the scathing wit that gives them voice, and the wild anger that drives them. Crucially, it’s a story about a penniless working-class student rather than a rich slumming one, and in an increasingly polarised one-note cultural landscape, this sort of distinction seems ever more important.

It’s now widely accepted that, not just music but all branches of the arts are steadily becoming middle-class enclaves – affordable only to the privileged few. Which just never used to be the case. Some out there might not like the idea of the musicians of the past honing their craft on the dole and making scant effort to find a “real job”, the fact remains that that’s where a lot of great music came from.

Now these same creative types are doubtless being burned out on zero-hours’ contracts. And this is just one way that musicians, like actors, dancers, artists, writers and any other creative person, are being priced out – and subsequently hounded out – of the arts.

This is a disaster for everybody, including, paradoxically, the privileged few, who lose out on the kind of potent vibrant culture that’s only possible when everybody gets a fair crack at joining in. Instead it becomes the norm that cultural focus goes automatically to a certain brand of middle-class moneyed sensibility, as if this were the only type that matters or, worse still, exists.

The problem is that this can’t help but become one-dimensional and stifling. How could it not, when all art has to be viewed through one incredibly narrow filter before it’s deemed worthy of attention, never mind celebration?

Moreover, with this kind of constriction, it’s not just talent that’s lost, a tragedy in itself; it’s also different kinds of people, backgrounds, textures, viewpoints and stories.

Which is where Common People comes in. This is a song that belongs without question to the disempowered classes. It’s the narrator (Cocker) who counts, and how he wants to tell his story. It barely matters who the student is – she’s a mere cipher, and that’s how “she” should remain, now more than ever. That’s why I don’t care if the student was Stratou or some other. Increasingly, all we hear about (and from) are people like that, usually strumming on a guitar wailing about “finding themselves” on a beach in Goa. Common People is about hearing from someone like the young Jarvis Cocker, the sort now seldom heard – someone sardonic, angry and – above all – totally skint”.

I am going to finish off with a feature from 2023. Uncut spoke with Jarvis Cocker, Pulp bassist Steve Mackey and keyboardist Candida Doyle. It is a really fascinating piece that I would encourage people to read. I have selected a few segments. Interesting reading what the band say a song that has endured all of these years. A song regularly played on the radio. One that has reached new generations of listeners:

“I realised that we had written something that had pretensions to being anthemic,” says Jarvis Cocker. “It was an anthem. A class anthem.”

At the start of the 1990s, Pulp – the band Cocker had formed as a 15-year-old schoolboy in Sheffield in 1979 – were still languishing in relative obscurity. “One more year on the dole, then that would be that,” remembers keyboardist Candida Doyle. But their fortunes began to take a more positive turn when the band’s 1994 album, His ‘n’ Hers, received a Mercury Music Prize nomination and reached No 9 in the charts. The record that finally made them stars, though, was Cocker’s memoir about a fellow art student from his time at Central St Martins College of Art and Design: a rich girl who wanted to slum it with the “common people”.

“Around London, you met these southern toffs,” drummer Nick Banks explains. “You got that idea they were different. That they could muck around and do what they wanted for a few years, then call in the trust fund and bugger off to the south of France. For most people, that ain’t the case. You’re stuck with what you’ve got.”
“I don’t think he [Jarvis] liked southerners much,” believes producer Chris Thomas. “He was suspicious of me. I think he was uptight at not having ever made it.”

But then “Common People” hit No 2 in June, 1995.

“That song released him. Suddenly, while ‘Common People’ was in the charts, Jarvis blitzed eight songs in 48 hours for Different Class. Every one was a winner.”

Later that same month, Glastonbury headliners The Stone Roses were forced to pull out, with Pulp invited to take their place. “If you really want something to happen enough then it will,” Cocker told the crowd at the end of the band’s set, culminating with “Common People”.

“It seemed the perfect thing to say,” says Banks. “And from that moment, the audience always sang along with ‘Common People’; you could feel this tangible response, that they knew what the song was about, and agreed with it. The crescendo of ‘Common People’ at Glastonbury 1995 was the high-water mark of the band.”

JARVIS COCKER: It all started with me getting rid of a lot of albums at the Record And Tape Exchange in Notting Hill. With the store credit I went into the second-hand instrument bit and bought this Casio keyboard. When you buy an instrument, you run home and want to write a song straight away. So I went back to my flat and wrote the chord sequence for “Common People”, which isn’t such a great achievement because it’s only got three chords. I thought it might come in handy for our next rehearsal.

Advertisement

STEVE MACKEY: We were just chuckling about how simple it sounded.

COCKER: Steve started laughing and said, “It sounds like [Emerson, Lake and Palmer’s version of] ‘Fanfare For The Common Man’.” I always thought the word “common” was an interesting thing. It would be used in “Fanfare For The Common Man” as this idea of the noble savage, whereas it was a real insult in Sheffield to call someone “common”. That set off memories of this girl that I met at college. She wanted to go and live in Hackney and be with the common people. She was from a well-to-do background, and there was me explaining that that would never work. I hated all that cobblers you got in films and magazines in which posh people would “slum it” for a while. Once I got that narrative in my head it was very easy to write, lyrically.

CANDIDA DOYLE: Jarvis’ neck would have to be on the line before he would write the words. And singing them would be a drunken affair, hiding behind a door. That went right up to our last LP. Scott Walker tried to talk him out of it. He just found it very personal.

COCKER: Part of the tension in that song is that I might have been repelled by what she was saying, but I was sexually attracted to her and wanted to cop off with her. I never did make a move. But I changed the song so she was attracted to me and wanted to sleep with me. Which was, you know, a lie. It was an anthem. We wanted to find someone to produce it who would give us a big sound but not make us sound like twats. Which is what brought us to Chris Thomas. He produced the Sex Pistols.

COCKER: I’m not ashamed of that song at all. I’m quite proud of it. I hear it on the radio and it still sounds all right!

DOYLE: Later in Pulp’s career I was thinking of groups that had written hit songs that never got forgotten, and I thought, ‘Oh, I wish we’d written one of those.’ Then I thought, ‘Oh, we have.’

COCKER: Was that girl real? Yes. On that BBC Three documentary [2006’s The Story Of… Pulp’s Common People], the researchers went through all the people who were contemporaries of mine at St Martins and they tried to track her down. They showed me a picture and it definitely wasn’t her. I dunno. Maybe she wasn’t Greek. Maybe I misheard her”.

I am going to end there. I am sure there are going to be anniversary features and interviews ahead of 22nd May. The album Common People is from, Different Class, turns thirty on 30th October. I wanted to spend time with its first single. One of the most acclaimed songs of the 1990s, this phenomenal anthem sounds essential and powerful…

IN 2025.

FEATURE: The Digital Mixtape: The Best Female Empowerment Anthems

FEATURE:

The Digital Mixtape

 PHOTO CREDIT: Godisable Jacob/Pexels

The Best Female Empowerment Anthems

_________

WHEN thinking about…

PHOTO CREDIT: Sydney Sang/Pexels

a theme for this Digital Mixtape, I wanted to focus on female empowerment anthems. There is no particular reason for it. Just to show how they have changed through the years. I am thinking of examples that have been released in the last couple of years. Perhaps not as common as they once were, perhaps they are quite common but empowerment and independence are woven into the fabric. Not as overt but more widespread in terms of the lyrical subjects and topics. In any case, I wanted to compile a mixtape of some incredible female empowerment anthems. In a future Digital Mixtape, I might move to investigate sex-positive anthems, as that is something that also interests me. A different type of empowerment. Some of these songs you will know; though there are others you might not. Have a dive into a Digital Mixtape that salutes women who…

PHOTO CREDIT: Polina/Pexels

HAVE created hugely empowering songs.

FEATURE: Groovelines: Madonna – Human Nature

FEATURE:

 

 

Groovelines

Madonna – Human Nature

_________

A single that should…

have been a much bigger hit than it was, I wanted to focus on Madonna’s Human Nature for this Groovelines. Its thirtieth anniversary is in June. The final single from her sixth studio album, Bedtime Stories (1994), maybe there was a feeling that the album had been out a long time and people had already heard the song. The track was a response to the backlash and criticism Madonna received after releasing Erotica and the book, Sex, in 1992. Written by Madonna, Dave Hall, Shawn McKenzie, Kevin McKenzie and Michael Deering, I think it is one of her most important songs. I am surprised it was not the first single released from Bedtime Stories. I guess, as the album was a sort of change and reflection following the reception Erotica got, it might have been a mistake or too bold going in with a lead single that took aim at critics. Those who criticised Madonna for talking about sex. Tongue in cheek and with plenty of humour, the song samples Main Source’s 1994 track, What You Need (Shaun McKenzie, Kevin McKenzie and Michael Deering were members of Main Source). Ahead of its thirtieth anniversary on 6th June, I wanted to bring in some features around Human Nature. I am going to start by sourcing from Dig! and their feature of last year. A song that urged fans to express themselves (Express Yourself turns forty soon), I think that some critic were unsure what to make of Human Nature:

“Madonna would have the final say

Madonna spent much of her Erotica promotional duties defending her sexually charged artistic choices in a series of confrontational TV appearances and magazine articles, but Human Nature would be the first time on song that she would comment on the furore caused by her work.

From “Express yourself, don’t repress yourself”, the song’s opening line (consider the contrast to Express Yourself’s “C’mon, girls, do you believe in love?” from just five years earlier) to “Oops, I didn’t know I couldn’t talk about sex; I must’ve been crazy”, the message couldn’t be clearer. And for anyone who might have missed the point, there was the closing kiss-off: “I’m not your bitch, don’t hang your shit on me.”

Human Nature maintained her presence on the dance charts

Coming off the back of her biggest-ever US hit, Take A Bow, the experimental Bedtime Story single (co-written by Björk) had proved too out-there for mainstream North America, but Madonna’s loyal UK market took it into the Top 10.

The next track lifted from the album, Human Nature, was a more radio-friendly option. Released on 6 June 1995, it peaked at No.2 on the US dance charts, narrowly missing out on qualifying for inclusion on Finally Enough Love: 50 Number Ones, the 2022 collection that would chronicle Madonna’s record-breaking run of US No.1 singles.

Human Nature’s promo video is one of Madonna’s most memorable clips

Arguably now more famous than the song that inspired it, the video for Human Nature is one of the best Madonna promo clips. Partnering for a third time with Jean-Baptiste Mondino, after Open Your Heart and Justify My Love, it features terrific choreography by long-term dance collaborator Jamie King.

Taking a visual brief from erotic artist Eric Stanton, this video is a sharp send-up of the Sex book and the public’s misunderstanding of the project (Madonna’s then pet dog, Chiquita, even makes a hilarious appearance). But there’s a message behind the parody: “Absolutely no regrets” is Madonna’s definitive statement to camera at the video’s end”.

There are a couple of features I want to end on. The first is from Billboard. Published in 2016, they looked at Madonna in 1995. Maybe large sections of the public exhausted by her sexualised lyrics. In fact, she was being herself and there was nothing controversial at all! Just this perception that Madonna was sex-obsessed or too provocative. Human Nature was released at a time when many were looking for something different from Madonna. Perhaps a reason it was not a major hit. A song that deserved a lot better:

“One of the few hip-hop-inflected singles in her discography (it samples a song from Main Source, the same rap group that gave Nas his first on-wax appearance), “Human Nature” has a deeply funk foundation while maintaining the spacious, thin production common to many ’90s R&B hits.

While “Take a Bow” — released just a year earlier from the same album, Bedtime Stories — was a smash No. 1 for Madge, “Human Nature” stalled at No. 46 despite a killer video and a defiant, empowering message. Lyrically, Madonna brushes off the prudes who faulted her for fixating on sex, pointing out that the “taboo” subject is simply human nature — the most basic element of human nature at that. She also correctly points out that she’d have gotten less flak for exploring sexuality so bluntly if she were a man (“Would it sound better if I were a man?” is one of her whispered rhetorical questions throughout). And it’s hard to argue with that — have any of the male directors behind sexually explicit hit movies been put through the wringer like she has?

Furthermore, the “Express yourself, don’t repress yourself” refrain is classic — the kind of line built to be repeated decades later. So why didn’t “Human Nature” at least knick the top 10?

Part of the reason may have been the fact that previous single “Bedtime Story” isolated too many radio programmers and casual fans. The Bjork co-write, while adventurous and exhilarating, didn’t make sense on radio in the mid-’90s, and it was just too weird for most of her younger fans (and in 1995, she still had plenty of those).

Ultimately, though, it’s the content of the song itself that prevented it from penetrating mass culture like previous dancefloor-ready singles. “Human Nature” is crafted as a challenge to those who thought she went too far by releasing an entire book devoted to erotic photos, and those are the people who don’t want to discuss sexuality — they just want to chastise you for talking about it. Even though the “I’m not your bitch/ Don’t hang your shit on me” line was excised for radio, the message of “Human Nature” was still too much for those who hated her Dita Parlo persona.

“Human Nature” is the original “Unapologetic Bitch,” but it came at a time when the idea of an unapologetic woman was far too threatening for most — not just radio programmers and parents, but even many of her fans. To a Puritan, the only thing worse than a woman wearing a scarlet A is a woman proudly wearing a scarlet A.

Regardless, “Human Nature” holds up as one of her finest ’90s singles, and today we’re saluting this anthem to not apologizing when you know you were right in the first place”.

I am going to end with a feature from Vice. Published in 2014, they talked about the importance of the unapologetic Bedtime Stories. From the emotional and sweeping Take a Bow to the beautiful Secret, this is an album that remains underrated. I think that Human Nature is one of Madonna’s best songs:

“When you’re a celebrity, you’re allowed to have one personality trait. Which is ridiculous,” Madonna told the Detroit News in 1993. When Bedtime Stories was finally released on October 25, she addressed both aspects of the shaming process. Despite the promises in her promo, she continued to acknowledge her sexual desires, although she also experimented with the sound and subject matter. Beginning with “Survival,” a song she co-wrote with Dallas Austin, Madonna doesn’t hesitate to address the backlash and sings “I’ll never be an angel / I’ll never be a saint it’s true / I’m too busy surviving.” The lyrics continue to convey a loosely drawn narrative of the punishment she endured from the media and her feelings leading up to the release, and the songs are carried mostly by R&B melodies produced by Austin, Nellee Hooper, and Babyface.

The definitive single on the album is an explicit rebuke of the backlash. In “Human Nature,” she confirms that wasn’t sorry and that she’s not anyone’s bitch, and she paired the song perfectly with a video that toys with bondage like an Erotica throwback. Right when she is about to drop the mic she whispers, “would it sound better if I were a man?”

Madonna asserted her lack of apology on the grounds that she had not said or did anything unusual; it was simply unusual for a woman to say it. In an interview with the LA Times, she defended Bedtime Stories by saying “I’m being punished for being a single female, for having power and being rich and saying the things I say, being a sexual creature—actually, not being any different from anyone else, but just talking about it. If I were a man, I wouldn’t have had any of these problems. Nobody talks about Prince’s sex life.”

Beyond offering Madonna’s final word on the scandal of her sexuality, the album pivots to address the misconception that her sexual persona limited her versatility as an artist. The narrative in Bedtime Stories immediately turns introspective, relating “I know how to laugh / but I don’t know happiness.” While the album borrows mostly from R&B and new jack swing, it becomes more experimental with the Bjork-penned title track, accompanied with a video that could not have explored the collective unconscious better if Carl Jung directed it. The video for “Bedtime Story” is the first instance of what would become Madonna’s long history of culture-plucking spiritual inquiry, and to this day is stored in a collection at the Museum of Modern Art. As a pair, “Human Nature” and “Bedtime Story” prove that Madonna owned her sexuality and would not be eclipsed by it. While the former fully embraces the decisions she made with previous albums, the latter dismantles the “slut” narrative that her overt sexuality discredits her depth as a performer. Surely people would see this as a feminist masterpiece, no?

Still, critics didn’t get it. The New York Times’ Jon Pareles waxed nostalgic for when “Madonna thrived in the 1980s on being sensational and suggestive against a tame mainstream backdrop,” calling her more recent work “vulgar instead of shocking.” Critical reception continued to focus on the scandal of her attitude rather than the actual record. “Madonna’s career has never really been about music; it’s been about titillation, about image, about publicity,” began one TIME review, which wasn’t unique in its premise. Any mention of the album’s experimental sound or numerous collaborations were overshadowed by her promiscuous image and once again left cheapened. Bedtime Stories as an album was not the clear apology the public demanded, and its emotional depth was largely ignored. At best, it was thought of as Madonna’s return to a safer expression of sexuality”.

In 2018, when ranking Madonna’s seventy-eight singles, The Guardian ranked Human Nature in fifteenth. Rolling Stone placed Human Nature twenty-first in 2016 (“The song is basically saying, 'Don't put me in a box, don't pin me down, don't tell me what I can and can't say,'" Madonna said of this pointed response to conservative scolds. "It's about breaking out of restraints." The lyrics directly take on the media firestorm Madonna started with her Erotica album and tour and her 1992 photo book, Sex. "Did I say something wrong?/Oops, I didn't know I couldn't talk about sex," she sings matter-of-factly. Musically, the song is a foray into hip-hop and R&B, sampling a jazzy beat from Main Source and biting some vocal phrasing from A Tribe Called Quest's "Electric Relaxation."). A track that has won more favour with critics of today than it might have done in 1995, it is a shame there was this sense of apathy or annoyance from some! That Madonna was pushing things too far. Human Nature has inspired songs by artists like Britney Spears, Demi Lovato, Christina Aguilera and Billie Eilish. Its standout video, directed by Jean-Baptiste Mondino, is another reason to love the song. As Human Nature turns thirty on 6th June, I wanted to give some overdue love to…

THIS Madonna classic.

FEATURE: In Salute of Post’s Lead Single: Björk’s Army of Me at Thirty

FEATURE:

 

 

In Salute of Post’s Lead Single

IN THIS PHOTO: Björk in 1995/PHOTO CREDIT: Jane Brown

Björk’s Army of Me at Thirty

_________

FOLLOWING Björk’s…

remarkable 1993 debut album, Debut, there was a lot of interest in her. Many knew her from The Sugarcubes. However, I think Björk is at her best when solo. Her second studio album arrived in June 1995. Many argue Post is her finest album. It definitely included many of her best songs. I think Army of Me is one of them. The lead single from the album was released on 24th April, 1995. The opening track from Post, it was written by Björk and Graham Massey. Lyrically, Army of Me is about the damaging behaviour of Björk's brother. She tells him to stand up to regain control of his life. It is quite a brave and original lyrical angle. A song that is dark and intense. The perfect way to open up her brilliant second album. I think it is inspired heavily by Trip-Hop artists like Tricky and especially Massive Attack. Björk wrote most of the album in London. Post is her impressions of life in the city. Or at least London inspired a lot of the sounds and sights. Army of Me’s lyrics are definitely personal. However, the composition seems to be very much influenced by British artists. Tricky (who was previously in Massive Attack) one of the producers on Post. I want to come to an interview from 1995 where Björk was asked about Army of Me. However, I want to first bring in some positive reviews for one of her most and most enduring singles:

“In a positive review, Heather Phares of AllMusic stated that "'Army of Me' casts Björk against type as a warrior goddess fed up with whining, instead of her usual cyber-pixie persona...the song's pounding industrial beat, menacing synth bass, and unusually aggressive lyrics ('And if you complain once more / You'll meet an army of me') stand in sharp contrast to the rest of the album and to most of her previous work." Eric Handerson of Slant Magazine found that the song "provocatively merges a Weather Report-esque jazz-fusion bass riff with a heavy-timbered rock drumbeat to match her contemptuous vocal delivery ('Self-sufficience, please!')" Natalie Curtis described the song as "inelegant"; Mim Udovitch of Rolling Stone dubbed it "ominous, anthemic", with Lou Stathis of MTV calling it "booming, martial-march techno". According to Brantley Bardin of Details, 'Army of Me' is "the album’s straightest song, a manifesto about self-sufficiency",[20] while for Liz Hoggard of The Observer, the track is "brutal yet tender". Stuart Maconie of Q magazine praised the song by stating that its lyrics carries "bold and refreshing sentiments for a rock song. Refreshingly Icelandic sentiments", and further stating that "'Army Of Me' not only sounds fabulous—Led Zeppelin and techno welded together into a surging, operatic whole—but possesses a briskly pull-yourself-together tone. 'Stand up, you’ve got to manage ... /You're all right, there's nothing wrong / ... get to work / and if you complain once more, you'll meet an army of me”.

I will move on to a chat from Interview Magazine that was published in June 1995. It is interesting what Björk said about Army of Me. I don’t think enough has been written about the song. It is a classic. A brilliant video directed by Michel Gondry (who directed several of her videos). I will do an anniversary feature about Post closer to June:

“Do you have visual ideas in your mind when you’re writing your songs ?

Definitely. It’s natural for me to express things first musically, then visually, and third, with words. So the words are like a translation of noises and pictures.

“Army of Me” Is a heavy song. Did you have a picture in your mind when you wrote it ?

I’m a polar bear and I’m with five hundred polar bears, just tramping over a city. The lyric is about people who feel sorry for themselves all the time and don’t get their shit together. You come to a point with people like that where you’ve done everything you can do for them, and the only thing that’s going to sort them out is themselves. It’s time to get things done. I identify with polar bears. They’re very cuddly and cute and quite calm, but if they meet you they can be very strong. They come to Iceland very rarely, once every ten years, floating on icebergs.

Are you in character in a lot of your songs ?

Most of my songs are written in the first person, from the point of view of my best friends. I find it ten times easier to express my friends’ feelings than my own. If I write about myself, I usually write in the third person. It just feels natural.

Do you sing from your stomach or your chest ?

My stomach. Most engineers find it quite difficult to deal with me, because most of the singing I did as a kid was when I was walking outside, completely on my own. This is absolutely impossible in London. There is no privacy here. I started singing with the whole of my body, which is both good and bad. The engineers usually end up using the same kind of microphones as they put on a stand-up bass, because it’s got a big body”.

I am going to end up with a feature that investigates the video for Army of Me. I do hope that the song is played on the radio on 24th April. Thirty years since the release of the first single from Björk’s second studio album. It is a stunning song that I never tire of hearing. One that has so much gravity and atmosphere:

“Bjork’s music video for her single Army of Me is strange and fantastical, and to me seemed very reminiscent of much of Tim Burton’s earlier works we saw at the Museum of Modern Art. The video starts with a slow pan in on Bjork lying in a glass tube, through the back of which we can see unidentifiable lights and shapes. This shot, along with the music behind it, sets the scene for the video as dark, out-of-this-world, and slightly confusing. The shot that starts at 13 seconds in is arguably my favorite in the video, and I see it as an exemplar showing of how framing, zooming out and an upward pan can be used in combination to quickly give the viewers a certain idea of what is happening, only to show them how misled they really were. At first it is just a faceless person in a plain car. Quickly, however, we see that we are actually in a scene involving a monstrous, unrealistic car and odd flying bugs the size of arms. The view of Bjork’s truck is our first real intuition on the costume and setting aspects of the mise-en-scene in the video. The car quite obviously looks fake: not just in its shape and bearing, but in that it seems to be made of Styrofoam. This follows for the rest of the video, emphasizing the idea that this is not supposed to be something we have seen before. Those familiar with Bjork’s music will understand how this idea is pertinent to her whole philosophy. She has done her best throughout her music career to never replicate anyone else, and beyond that to always do things no one else has even thought of. Again, I see a parallel to Tim Burton. As a director and film maker he is constantly changing things and doing things in ways no one else would have thought of, including writing a story about the king of Halloween town who wants to be Santa of all people, and changing the loving childrens movie Willy Wonka into a darker, creepier film”.

One of Björk’s greatest tracks, the supreme Army of Me turns thirty on 24th April. Even if you have not heard the song for a while, it is a perfect chance to connect with it now. Noticing the musical shift from the singles released off of Debut. Björk embracing new genres and directions. One listen of Army of Me and you are…

DRAWN into its world.

FEATURE: I Know You Have a Lot of Strength Left: The Desire for Kate Bush’s Catalogue to Be Explored More on T.V. and Film

FEATURE:

 

 

I Know You Have a Lot of Strength Left

The Desire for Kate Bush’s Catalogue to Be Explored More on T.V. and Film

_________

IT is always great…

when a Kate Bush track is used in T.V. or film. In 2022, Running Up That Hill (A Deal with God) was used in Stranger Things. Rather than it being the pure and unaltered version from 1985’s Hounds of Love, it was a sort of remixed or dramatised version. A blend between the original recording and something a little different. On 25th April, The Legend of Ochi releases in the U.S. The trailer features a remixed version of Hounds of Love. I guess you could call it a remix. It is interesting what they are doing. I am not sure that The Legend of Ochi impact will be the same as that from Stranger Things. However, it will lead to a spike in streaming figures for Hounds of Love. There will be more YouTube views of the video. The Hounds of Love album will also get more streams because of it. U.S. productions using Kate Bush’s music means there is going to be more attention in the county. A nation that has always been slightly detached and behind in terms of embracing her music, it is a time when there is momentum and respect for Kate Bush in the U.S. In fact, the U.S. is doing more with her music than anyone in the U.K. I think. I can’t really think of any big productions here that feature her music. When it was announced that Emerald Fennell was adapting Wuthering Heights for the screens, there was interest around that and whether Kate Bush’s iconic debut single of the same name would be used. I wrote a feature about that a while back. Photos have emerged showing Margot Robbie playing Catherine Earnshaw. It looks like it is going to be a pretty traditional version of the novel rather than a modern update. Published in December 1847, Wuthering Heights is Emily Brontë’s only novel. It will be interesting seeing what this new adaptation consists of.

I guess the fact it is not a more modern telling might rule out Kate Bush’s song being used. Perhaps a bit meta or on the nose. However, I don’t think there has been a case of anything from The Kick Inside being used in a film or T.V. show. It seems like a perfect song to use. To have its moment. Rather than manufacture something or it being contrived, Wuthering Heights is a song that would be wonderful on the screen. Maybe the song being played whilst a scene or chaos or disorder is unfolding. A meet cute that sees the two people play out the choreography of the song whilst they are sat down and see each other across the room. I don’t think there is enough awareness of Kate Bush’s work. I do like that Hounds of Love is getting exposure. Though it tends to be the one album that people know. It is this easy go-to. Maybe filmmakers thinking it is going to be the most accessible and instantly familiar choice. I do think that other Kate Bush albums suffer because of this. I know This Woman’s Work has been used on T.V. shows and films. She’s Having a Baby in 1988 and The Mother in 2023 are two examples. That song is from 1989’s The Sensual World. Maybe that song has been overused. Are filmmakers going for easy options and not digging deep enough? Thinking about albums like The Kick Inside, Never for Ever and The Dreaming. Songs from those albums that would be perfect for so many different types of productions. Aerial having more than its share of songs that could score something beautiful on the small or big screen.

It is no slight against filmmakers who naturally go for Hounds of Love. It is her best-known album in the U.S. and the one most associate her with. However, as Kate Bush is willing to have her music used for the right projects, I don’t think she is going to be too restrictive in terms of which albums are featured. It is a shame that there is this narrowness. It mirrors what is happening in wider culture. Maybe people streaming Hounds of Love or the big songs and not going beyond that. I do worry that there will be more and more homogenisation when it comes to song choices. Hounds of Love being mined heavily. This Woman’s Work too easy for many to resist. There is nothing wrong with that. However, think about her rich body of work. Entire albums that have never been on the screen. I will end with a playlist of songs that I think could feature on a T.V. show or film. Ones that have that flexible nature. I do hope that Wuthering Heights features soon. Maybe the Emerald Fennell film is not going to use the song. It would be awesome if it was, though I feel it may seem a bit weird or out of place if the adaptation is pretty faithful and serious. Even so, the fact remains that there is this whole world of Kate Bush music that has not received proper exposure. Bush would not want people to exploit her music and it for it to be used everywhere. I know she must get so many offers and requests. More recent inclusion of her music is being used in particular types of shows and films. The Legend of Ochi is Fantasy/Sci-Fi. Stranger Things mixes Horror and Sci-Fi. The Mother is an Action film I guess. There is a mixture of intensity and fantasy. Romantic comedies and other genres not being represented that much. I do wonder how Kate Bush decides which songs get used and who to say ‘yes’ to. The more we discuss her albums and full catalogue and not just stick with the obvious, the more that will see a wider range of Kate Bush music used on the screen. However, it is great that The Legend of Ochi features Hounds of Love. That it is a remixed version. Giving the iconic song a bit of a modern twist. Any time her music is used on screen that should be celebrated. It will bring more people to her work. Let’s hope that filmmakers turn to Kate Bush’s magnificent work…

FOR years to come.

FEATURE: Kate Bush: The Tour of Life: Inside Her 2006 Interview with Tom Doyle

FEATURE:

 

 

Kate Bush: The Tour of Life

 IN THIS PHOTO: Kate Bush in 2005/PHOTO CREDIT: Trevor Leighton

Inside Her 2006 Interview with Tom Doyle

_________

FOR Kate Bush…

feature 985 (published but not shared!), I am looking back at Tom Doyle’s amazing 2006 interview. Chatting with her for Q, the interview as part of a series to mark the magazine’s twentieth anniversary. The now-defunct publication ran twenty covers with twenty artists. This was the year after Kate Bush released Aerial. Tom Doyle spoke with Kate Bush at length in promotion of that album. He was given another chance to chat with her. However, whereas the Aerial interview was at her home, this one was down the line. I wanted to revisit this great interview and some standout sections. On 28th May, 2006, this amazing interview took place. If Tom Doyle notes in his book, Running Up That Hill: 50 Visions of Kate Bush, that it was a slightly gimmicky series, it did show that Q had pulling power. Bush was asked about her attending the Q Awards in 2001. She was honoured with the Classic Songwriter and received as standing ovation from her peers there. She was asked about that reaction and Bush found it wonderful and humbling. In 2001, it was still four years until Aerial would arrive. Bush was struggling to make big progress with it so it was a surprise that she was being recognised eight years after The Red Shoes came out. That reaction at the 2001 awards gave her heart and inspiration. Recognition that she was respected and relevant. I do like that. Recalling how it was “magic”, Bush was worried people had forgotten about her. As this album was taking longer than any other to that point, the fact that people were so responsive and adoring took her back. Bush was photographed at the Q Awards with John Lydon. They had been friends for years. She told Tom Doyle how he was a “true showman”. An intelligent man that she respected greatly, it was nice that the two got together in 2001 for Q.

One of the most interesting early questions is why Bush did not tour Hounds of Love after its success. Its success in the U.S. Bush said it was typical of her really. Expected to tour and do all these interviews to crack America, Bush stated how that was not her. She was not prepared to do that. She did go to the U.S. at the time the 12” of Running Up That Hill was popular. That was big in the clubs. Bush did do some promotion, but that version of it – sitting in hotel rooms drinking tea – was perhaps not want they were expecting. Bush was considering extending 1979’s The Tour of Life to the U.S. but there was demand in Europe and it would have been exhausted. I might extend that thought for a future feature. The success of Hounds of Love and Bush not touring in the U.S. The fact that she was not your typical huge artist and felt like touring was not for her. I wonder what would have happened if she did tour America! Bush was asked about her high and low points of the past twenty years. The birth of her son Bertie (who was on in 1998) was the highpoint; the death of her mother Hannah (in 1992) was the low point. Bush was asked about her music tastes and favourite artists. This is the most interesting section of the interview. She was asked which song from the past twenty years she wish she had written. She selected Paul Simon’s The Boy in the Bubble (from 1986’s Graceland). Commending his poetry (which Bush said was his forte), she also said she was a fan of Shaggy – which was perhaps unexpected! Tom Doyle cheekily asked if Tori Amos was one of her favourite artists. There was silence and Bush said how “As you could hear, I took a deep breath there”. That was no shade on Amos. I think Bush got asked about the comparisons and was a little fed up. However, you get a feeling that Bush is a fan of Amos’s work and there is respect between them.

Bush was asked about being out and about and being recognised. As she tends to keep herself wrapped up and private, she was not as recognised in the streets as in her heyday. She said she did get recognised in the supermarket now and then but from a distance. It is to do with her music and not her as a person necessarily. I would love Tom Doyle to chat with Kate Bush now and get an update. I can imagine there has been this new wave of recognition since Stranger Things took her back to the top of the charts in 2022. It would be interesting  Bush said how, since Aerial was behind her, she has more free time. Dispelling this myth that she lives in some gothic mansion filled with cobwebs, she explained how she is doing normal things: the school run, watching films and that sort of thing. It is interesting that Bush said that was thinking of ideas for a new project. This was in 2006. It would take her until 2011 to release new material (with Director’s Cut and 50 Words for Snow). I wonder what she had in mind and whether it was abandoned. Informing Bush she had only released three new albums in twenty years – The Sensual World (1989), The Red Shoes (1993) and Aerial (2005) –, she was taken aback.

However, she explained Aerial is a double album. So her average was slightly better than that! Bush said how she always intends to finish them quickly but stuff happens. Life gets in the way. How she would like to finish them quick and have a holiday in the Bahamas and move to the next one. Doyle did ask whether we’d have to wait twelve years until another album. Bush (half-jokingly) said she could probably get the next one done in six weeks. As it would be six years instead, I guess that quite a bit got in the way! It was a nice interview that I wanted to revisit. I first highlighted it back in 2022 I think. One of the best interviews Kate Bush conducted, it is interesting going back to 2006 and where she was then. I keep thinking how there needs to be an award given to Kate Bush. Consider all that she has achieved in the past few years in terms of new chart success, raising money for charity and inspiring a new legion of artists and fans. That does warrant something! It would be great if an award ceremony handed her a prize. Maybe Bush would come out to collect the award. A chance for her to give a new interview. It does seem like new work is afoot. Something that she is very much focused on. That will provide opportunity for new interviews. Someone who is always compelling and truly her when she is interviewed, I would urge anyone not familiar with the archive to search through interviews and watch them on YouTube. Check out this invaluable resource. It has been great fun revisiting Tom Doyle’s interview with Kate Bush for Q in 2006. An insight into…

A true icon.

FEATURE: The Digital Mixtape: Lily Allen at Forty

FEATURE:

 

The Digital Mixtape

Lily Allen at Forty

_________

THIS time out…

I am going to focus on Lily Allen. She turns forty on 2nd May. One of our most distinct artists, her amazing debut album, Alright, Still, was released in 2006. Her most recent album, No Shame, was released in 2018. It was nominated for the Mercury Prize. I wanted to mark her upcoming birthday with a career-spanning playlist of her hits and some deeper cuts. Before that, here is some biography about an artist who I hope has more albums in her:

“With her omnivorous musical tastes and cheeky attitude, London-based pop singer/songwriter Lily Allen made a name for herself almost as soon as she released her demos on the Internet. The daughter of comedian Keith Allen, Lily spent most of her childhood bouncing from one school to another; in fact, she attended 13 different schools between the ages of five and 15. This constant moving meant she didn't have much of a chance to make lasting friendships, so Allen entertained herself with books and, especially, music: she listened to everything from T. Rex, the Specials, and the Slits to the Happy Mondays and drum'n'bass, and even ran away to see the Glastonbury Festival when she was 14. After she left school a year later, she realized that music was the only career for her. Allen concentrated on her songwriting and singing, developing a style that was equally sweet and bratty; late in 2005, she set up a MySpace page and posted demos of her songs, as both individual tracks and as part of two limited-edition "mixtapes" that also featured tracks by Dizzee Rascal, Creedence Clearwater Revival, and Ludacris. The critical acclaim for her work fueled Allen's publicity, leading to tens of thousands of friends on MySpace, airplay on BBC Radio One, and a record deal with Regal/Parlophone before the end of 2005.

Allen began working on her full-length album with producers such as Greg Kurstin, Mark Ronson (with whom she also collaborated on a cover of the Kaiser Chiefs' "Oh My God" that appeared on her second mixtape), and Futurecut, and released a limited-edition 7" of LDN as her debut single in spring 2006. Both LDN and Smile, which followed that summer, were chart successes, with the former reaching number seven on the U.K. chart and the latter hitting number one the week it debuted. Hot on the heels of Smile came Allen's first full-length, Alright, Still, which she supported with a slew of dates stretching out to the end of the year. Despite the speed of her success, Allen continued to update her MySpace page with amusing blog rants, including one about her June 2006 appearance on Top of the Pops that berated the lead singer of the Kooks for "wearing broken straw hats and dark sunglasses" indoors and Dirty Pretty Things for having "organic sliced bread on the rider." Allen rang in 2007 with more tour dates, including gigs in Japan, Australia, and the U.S., and the U.S. release of Alright, Still. She also earned nominations for British Breakthrough Act and British Female Solo for that year's Brit Awards, while "Smile" and Alright, Still were nominated for British Single and British Album, respectively.

Allen spent most of 2007 touring, but also collaborated with Dizzee Rascal on Maths and English's duet "Wanna Be," and provided vocals on Basement Jaxx's Crazy Itch Radio. Allen's personal life and side projects were nearly as prominent as her music career, with her relationship with Chemical Brother Ed Simons and her subsequent miscarriage making headlines in late 2007 and early 2008. In February 2008, Allen embarked on a talk show on BBC Three, Lily Allen and Friends, which lasted through that April. That month, Allen posted two new demos on her MySpace page, including "GWB," which was about President George Bush; for her second album, she worked with producer Greg Kurstin of the Bird and the Bee, and co-wrote several songs with him instead of just providing the lyrics. She also worked on songs with Jamie Reynolds of the Klaxons and wrote a song about comedian James Corden for the 2008 Shockwaves Awards. Another new song, "Everyone's at It," debuted that fall, and Allen courted controversy again with an unauthorized cover of Britney Spears' "Womanizer" that December. It's Not Me, It's You, which covered topics like drugs, fame, family, and society, arrived early in 2009, preceded by the single "The Fear." Despite the album's success, which included platinum certification in the U.K. and a debut at the top of the charts in the U.K., Canada, and Australia (and at number five in the U.S.), in September 2009 Allen did not renew her record contract and took a hiatus from making music.

She remained busy, however, founding her own label In the Name Of (which included Cults on its roster), writing songs for the musical version of Bridget Jones' Diary, and starting a family with her boyfriend Sam Cooper, whom she married in June 2011. The following year, she announced that she was in the studio working on new music with longtime producer Greg Kurstin; she also sang vocals on P!nk's 2012 single "True Love," which was produced by Kurstin. Early in 2013, she gave birth to her second child. By November 2013, she had released a cover of Keane's "Somewhere Only We Know" for a holiday television commercial by U.K. retailer John Lewis. The single version promptly became her third U.K. number one single. Two subsequent singles, "Hard Out Here" and "Air Balloon," both reached the British Top Ten as well, and both appeared on her third album, Sheezus, which appeared in early May 2014. The album debuted at number one in the U.K., and hit number 12 on the U.S. Billboard 200. Following the album's release, Allen performed at Glastonbury Festival, and embarked on a headlining tour which took her through 2015.

In 2018, she returned with her fourth studio album, No Shame, which included the single "Trigger Bang" featuring rapper Giggs. The album found her moving away from longtime producer Kurstin, and embracing a more intimate, electropop sound. The album also appeared on the heels of a difficult period for the singer, who had gone to court over ongoing harassment by stalker Alex Gray (Gray was convicted and sentenced to an indeterminate hospital stay in 2016 after having broken into her house and threatened her). Allen, who amicably divorced husband Cooper in 2018, also admitted in an interview with Vulture to having gone through an "identity crisis" during and after the recording of Sheezus, and subsequently worked to regain her creative direction. No Shame debuted at number eight on the U.K. albums chart”.

I do hope that we get more Lily Allen music soon enough. Someone who remains one of our most important artists, I felt it only right to celebrate her upcoming birthday. On 2nd May, I hope that she gets plenty of love and respect. In order to demonstrate her music brilliance, I have compiled a collection of her excellent songs in...

THIS mixtape.

FEATURE: Oh, She Move Like the Diva Do: The Title Track of Kate Bush’s The Red Shoes at Thirty-One

FEATURE:

 

 

Oh, She Move Like the Diva Do

IN THIS PHOTO: Kate Bush in a promotional photo for The Red Shoes in 1993 

The Title Track of Kate Bush’s The Red Shoes at Thirty-One

_________

I will make this a short feature…

as there is precious little written about the title track of Kate Bush’s 1993 album, The Red Shoes. It is a remarkable song that is one of the highlights of the album. I don’t think the album as a whole gets discussed that much. Certainly not in positive tones. I think that there is something extra special and emotional when it comes to Kate Bush’s title tracks. The Red Shoes’ reminds me of the some of her most extraordinary moments. The energy of the track is infectious! Alongside Eat the Music, there is this sense of frenzy and dance that is impossible to escape. As there is very little available regarding the song, I am going to offer a few words on it; include a snippet of a 1993 interview with Kate Bush. It came out on 5th April, 1994. The album it came from arrived six months earlier. It was an album where quite a few singles were released. Maybe Bush seeing The Red Shoes as a commercial album or one that was seen as more accessible, five singles were released. The Red Shoes was the fourth. The final, And So Is Love, came out in November 1994. The Red Shoes was one of the songs included in the short film, The Line, the Cross and the Curve. That film’s initial release was 13th November, 1993, so fans got to see The Red Shoes before it was released as a single. The wider release of The Line, the Cross and the Curve was on 6th May, 1994. So it coincided nicely with the single release. The lead single from that film as it was. There is a bit of confusion regarding the exact release date of the single. Some say 4th April, 1994, though I think it was the day after. So I will say it is thirty-one on 5th April.

In any case, it is worth looking at the single release. Reaching number twenty-one in the U.K. upon its release, it was a moderate success. Considering April 1994 was a period when bands in the Britpop scene were coming to the fore, it is quite impressive that Kate Bush nearly made it into the top twenty with the fourth single from her seventh studio album Not surprising, because the track is among her best. I have written about The Red Shoes’ title track before. Bush reapproached the song for 2011’s Director’s Cut. I must say I prefer the original as it is so full of life and movement. The 2011 version is quite different. Before moving on, here is some information about the single’s release and its different versions:

“Formats

‘The Red Shoes’ was released in the UK as a 7″ single, a cassette single and two different CD-singles. The 7″ single and cassette single feature the B-side track You Want Alchemy. CD-single 1 added ‘Cloudbusting (Video Mix)’ and This Woman’s Work, and CD-single 2, released one week after the other formats, features Shoedance (see below), together with the single remix of The Big Sky and the 12″ version of Running Up That Hill.

Versions

There are three versions of ‘The Red Shoes’: the album version, which was also used on the single released, and ‘Shoedance’, which is a 10 minute remix by Karl Blagan of ‘The Red Shoes’, featuring excerpts from dialogue from the movie The Line, The Cross & The Curve. Finally, there’s the version from Bush’s album Director’s Cut in 2011”.

I will wrap up soon enough. I want to head back to 1993 and an interview from Vox. Published in November of that year (the same month The Red Shoes was released), we get a bit of context and background to the album. I think that The Red Shoes’ title track is extraordinary. A song that should be played a lot more than it is. I do think it also deserved a higher chart position:

“As befits a masterwork, The Red Shoes was kept carefully under wraps, reviewers being handed numbered lyric sheets (for later collection) at select playbacks. The detail within the tracks and the choice of guests offer witness to Bush's confessed pursuit of perfection. Sadly, history does not relate whether Prince and backing vocalist Lenny Henry were in the studio at the same time for the track 'Why Should I Love You', or whether Henry got to say: "Hey Vic, I do this great impression of you".

A film to accompany the album, with a working title of A Lion. A Cross And A Curve, features Miranda Richardson and Lindsay Kemp. Currently, its release is being delayed (and the album with it) as Bush toils over getting it right. It's been described as her Magical Mystery Tour, but she's reluctant to discuss it until completed, and has postponed other interviews to allow a clear run at the work. Again, she told the nationals: "I've always been tenacious when it comes to my work. It seemed ironic that I was expected to do interviews and television which took me away from the thing that had put me into that situation. It was no longer relevant that I wrote songs. I could see my work becoming something that had no thought in it, becoming a personality. All I wanted was the creative process."

In the following interview, Kate Bush reveals just how important that process has become...

What inspires you? Do you have to achieve a particular mood or are songs triggered off by particular events?

"I think it's incredibly elusive. I think I used to write in a more formulated way. When I was very young, I would sit there at the piano and just write a song - I actually hadn't done that for a long time.

"When I'm working, I'm continually hit by how you start off with something, and though it doesn't necessarily change in essence, there's this whole evolution that happens around it, little ideas that get pulled in. I think that may be one reason why the albums take so long. I feel very grateful, really, to have my work."

Do you escape into it?

"Umm... I don't know about escape - I think it's inseparable, that's what it is. It's not that I'm running away into my work, it's more that my work moves headlong into my life. There's a lot of my very personal experiences that go into my work, and my work gives me a lot of very personal experiences."

If something traumatic occurs in your life, do you find it easy to express, or does it come out in some other form?

"It depends on the trauma, it depends how heartbroken you are. Usually, 1 can pull myself through things like feeling low or having problems by working that through. But I have been at points where I just couldn't work. I couldn't possibly sing--it was beyond me, it just hurt too much. Sometimes you have to allow a bit of time to come between you and the experience in order to even touch it.

"I think the biggest thing on this album is that I lost my mother. I haven't been able to write about any of it--nevertheless, the experience is in there. It's something I couldn't possibly express in music, and yet it is being expressed through very subliminal things, like the quality of some of the performances. I couldn't work for months, I couldn't go near the whole process. I had no desire to start, no desire to work at all.

It was a terrible shock for all of us. Really, I'm so grateful that we had so much time together and we had such a good relationship. I had an incredibly good relationship with her, as did all my family. I often think how awful it must be for people who don't really get on with their parents--or don't know them - to lose them and be so bereft after having had nothing."

What happens if people want to interfere in your work? I take it you don't let them?

"I don't think it's so much that I got interference at the start, but I was aware that things wouldn't be how I wanted them to be unless I was willing to fight. I think you have to fight for everything you want. Whether it's work or life, it's just that sort of thing of struggling; struggle is very important. It's how you grow and change and it also tests your intention - if you really care about something, you won't let go.

I was 19 when it [the first album] came out, and my life completely changed. The big emphasis was that I was no longer allowed to work. My whole day used to be centred around work, in the most pleasurable way: I'd get up and play around on the piano, then I'd go up to London and see some friends, go dancing ..."

Did you feel that you were manipulated. Were you ever encouraged to be bimbo-esque for pictures?

"I think, on a couple of occasions, I was very naive and I was very young. It was all very new to me and, in the first year, 1 learnt so many lessons about how people wanted to manipulate me. I was always quite strong about what I didn't want to do, but nevertheless it doesn't take much."

Do you think of yourself as a feminist?

"I think a lot of respect went for the feminist movement. I think it's really wrong. A lot of women resent women who have pushed their energies, because it's kind of made feminine energy look stupid. I believe there is a way that feminine energy can stand strong and powerful without having to be something it's not."

Qualities such as ambition and competiveness are, supposedly, traditionally male ones, but do you possess either?

"I hate both words intensely I suppose that's because, in a lot of ways, they represent to me an incredibly driven male energy that offends my feminine energy. But I do think I'm driven, and I don't know about this thing of ambition. I don't know because I think my ambition is creative I don't think I'm ambitious to conquer the world, but I am ambitious to try out ideas and push things, to see if you can make it better. I'm certainly very driven in my work. I do think that for a lot of women, their creativlty is quite masculinely driven--it's quite a masculine trait to speed forward, I suppose."

How much time have you spent working on The Red Shoes?

"Well, 1 haven't spent that long. It went on over a long period of time-about two years of solid work amongst three-and-a-half to four years."

Each album seems to take you longer to make than the last Is this because you are a true perfectionist?

"I think 'perfect' is... I have used that word in the past, and used it wrongly because, in a way, what you are trying to do is make something that is basically imperfect as best as you can in the time you've got with the knowledge you have"

You don't normally release material unless you're totally satisfied...

"That's right. That doesn't necessarilly mean'perfect', but it's to the best of my ability. I've tried to say what needed to be said through the songs, the right structure, the shape, the sounds, the vocal performance--that is, the best I could do at the time."

When you've worked hard for something, you obviously don't want somebody interfering with it. In your cuttings, you've been described as the shyest megalomaniac on the planet, so how do yout work out the balance between that and being an incredibly quiet, private person?

"I think it's quite true that most people are extreme contradictions. It's like this paradox that exists, and I think that on a lot of levels, I'm quiet and shy, and a quiet soul.

I like simple things in my life...I like gardening and things like that, but when it comes to my work, I am a creative megalomaniac again. I'm not after money or power but the creative power. I just love playing with ideas and watching them come together, or what you learn from something not coming together.

I'm fascinated by the whole creative process--I think you could probably say I was obsessed I'm not as bad as I used to be, I'm a little more balanced now."

What's calmed you down?

"Just life, I think... Life gets to you, doesn't it? I also think there's a part of me that's got fed up with working. I've worked so much that I'm starting to feel... I felt I needed to rebalance, which I think I did a bit, just to get a little bit more emphasis on me and my life."

Where did you get the idea of 'Rubberband Girl"?

"Well, it's playing with the idea of how putting up resistance... um... doesn't do any good, really. The whole thing is to sort of go with the flow."

What about the sexual content--'He can be a woman at heart, and not only women bleed?

"It's not really sexual, it's more to do with the whole idea of opening people up - not sexually, just revealing themselves. It's taking a man who is on the outside, very macho, and you open him up and he has this beautiful feminine heart."

Have you found many of those?

"I think I've seen a lot of them, yeah. I think there are a lot of men who are fantastically sensitive and gentle, and I think they are really scared to show it."

A father image often comes out in your work. Is that because you're particularly close to your father or does it merely represent somebody or something you respect?

"I think they're very archetypal images: the parents, the mother and the father... it's immediately symbolic of so many things. I'm very lucky to have had an extremely positive, loving and encouraging relationship with both my parents. And you know I feel very grateful... I feel very honoured, actually."

Who is the Douglas Fairbanks character in 'Moments Of Pleasure '?

'Ah... In a lot of ways that song, er.. well it's going back to that thing of paying homage to people who aren't with us any more. I was very lucky to get to meet Michael (Powell, the film-maker who directed the original The Red Shoes) in New York before he died, and he and his wife were extreme;y kind. I'd had few conversations with him and I'd been dying to meet him. As we came out of the lift, he was standing outside with his walking stick and he was pretending to be someone like Douglas Fairbanks. He was completely adorable and just the most beautiful spirit, and it was a very profound experience for me. It had quite an inspirational effect on a couple of the songs.

"There's a song called 'The Red Shoes'. It's not really to do with his film but rather the story from which he took his film. You have these red shoes that just want to dance and don't want to stop, and the story that I'm aware of is that there's this girl who goes to sleep in the fairy story and they can't work out why she's so tired. Every morning, she's more pale and tired, so they follow her one night and what's happening is these shoes... she's putting these shoes on at night before she goes to bed and they whisk her off to dance with the fairies."

Are you still as involved in dancing as you were?

"I've had a lot of periods off, unfortunately, because my music is so demanding and I went through a phase where I just had no desire to dance. The last couple of years, it really came back, and it's been very interesting working in an older body. Your brain seems better at dealing with certain kinds of information. And I think there's something about trying too hard which takes the dynamics out of everything.

I think I've become less conscious through dancing, because it's very confrontational in a positive way - standing in front of a mirror and looking at something that basically looks like a piece of you, and you've got to do something with it”.

I am going to wrap up now. On 5th April, it will be thirty-one years since The Red Shoes was released as a single. Included in the film, The Line, the Cross and the Curve, it is a track I have a lot of love for. Its lyrics are amazing and vivid. Its first verse is extraordinary and sets the scene: “Oh she move like the Diva do/I said “I’d love to dance like you.”/She said “just take off my red shoes/Put them on and your dream’ll come true/With no words, with no song/You can dance the dream with your body on/And this curve, is your smile/And this cross, is your heart/And this line, is your path”. The Red Shoes stands tall…

IN a phenomenal catalogue.

FEATURE: Behind the Scenes and Critics’ Reviews: Kate Bush’s Director’s Cut at Fourteen

FEATURE:

 

 

Behind the Scenes and Critics’ Reviews

IN THIS PHOTO: Kate Bush in a promotional image for 2011’s Director’s Cut/PHOTO CREDIT: John Carder Bush

Kate Bush’s Director’s Cut at Fourteen

_________

I might have touched…

on some of these reviews and interviews where previously covering Kate Bush’s Director’s Cut. This album was the first she released in 2011. The second, 50 Words for Snow, arrived in November. Director’s Cut was released on 16th May. Nobody was really expecting an album like this. Although some feel it is a lesser work, the fact she reproached songs from The Sensual World (1989) and The Red Shoes (1993) was intriguing. I have complained how Wikipedia describe the album as a remix album. It is not in any way. These are not remixes. They are newly-recorded songs. It is a studio album and not Bush taking pre-existing songs and tinkering with them. I am not sure why they have labelled it as a remix album as it is misleading and wrong. In any case, all of the tracks have new lead vocals, drums, and instrumentation. Three of the songs, including This Woman's Work, have been completely rerecorded, often with some lyrics changed. It was a chance for her to correct some errors. Or at least update the production and give the songs new depth. The selected tracks hang together well. I am one of the few people who have written about Director’s Cut. Without reviewing it. Just shining a light on it. I will end with a couple of positive critical reviews for the underrated Director’s Cut. I am going to start out with some exerts from an interview where Kate Bush was asked about her first album of 2011. The first time that she truly immersed herself in retrospection. Returning to Interview Magazine and their chat with Kate Bush. They were one of the few websites/print sources to speak with Kate Bush about the album. She did more press for 50 Words for Snow:

“DIMITRI EHRLICH: I thought we’d begin with talking about Director’s Cut. Let’s talk about “The Sensual World” [off 1989’s The Sensual World]. I know that when you first recorded that song, you had originally wanted to use some text from James Joyce’s Ulysses, which is always a favorite on pop radio here in America.

KATE BUSH: [laughs] Yes.

EHRLICH: But the Joyce estate refused permission, and now, 22 years later you finally got the okay.

BUSH: Yes, originally, as you say, I wanted to use part of the text, and approached for permission, and was refused. I was a bit disappointed, but it was completely their prerogative—they were being very protective to the work, which I think is a good thing. So I had to sort of go off and write my own lyrics, which . . . They were okay, but it always felt like a bit of a compromise really. It was nowhere near as interesting as the original idea. When I started to work on this project, I thought it was worth a shot just asking again, because they could only say no. But to my absolute delight—and surprise—they agreed.

EHRLICH: Looking at your lyrics to “Song of Solomon,” I found it interesting how you juxtaposed sexuality with spirituality. What inspired that?

BUSH: Well, it was quite an interesting process for me to go back and re-sing these songs because, for all kinds of reasons, they’re not the songs I would write now. I can’t really remember what my thought process was when I wrote that one originally. I just thought it was one of those songs that could benefit from a revisit. That was just one of the songs that popped into my head. I didn’t really take a great deal of time choosing the list of songs, I just kind of wrote down the first things that came into my head.

EHRLICH: It’s funny. I’d think revisiting those songs would almost be like looking at old photographs or reading old love letters from a long time ago, because as a songwriter, the emotions that you’re tapping into are the most primal, raw, and immediate ones. Was it strange to step into the emotional clothing you had worn 20 years ago and see how it fit and wonder, Who is this person?

BUSH: Yeah, it was. At first, it was quite difficult, and, at a couple of points, I nearly gave up the whole process. I found that by just slightly lowering the key of most of the songs, suddenly it kind of gave me a way in, because my voice is just lower now. So that helped me to step back into it. And although they were old songs, it all started to feel very much like a new process and, in a lot of ways, ended up feeling like I was just making a new album—it’s just that the material was already written. When I listen to it now, it feels like a new record to me.

EHRLICH: Why did you decide to re-record existing material rather than do something new, or just release the old versions remixed, or whatever?

BUSH: Well, I really didn’t see it as a substitute for a greatest hits package, but it was something I’d wanted to do for a few years. I guess I just kind of felt like there were songs on those two albums [The Sensual World and The Red Shoes (1993)] that were quite interesting but that they could really benefit from having new life breathed into them. I don’t really listen to my old stuff, but on occasion, I would either hear a track on the radio or a friend might play me one, and there was generally a bit of an edgy sound to it, which was mainly due to the digital equipment that we were using, which was state of the art at the time—and I think everyone felt pressured to be working that way. But I still remain a huge fan of analog. So there were elements of the production that I felt were either a little bit dated or a bit cluttered. So what I wanted to do was empty them out and let the songs breathe more.

EHRLICH: Your music has always been defiantly different than American pop. Do you have a love-hate relationship with classic American pop? Do you just find it boring, or is there something about it that you secretly enjoy as a guilty pleasure?

BUSH: [laughs] What a thing to say! No, I mean, god, some of the best pop music ever has come out of the States. Some of that Motown stuff is some of the best songs ever written. It’s not that I don’t like American pop; I’m a huge admirer of it, but I think my roots came from a very English and Irish base. Is it all sort of totally non-American sounding, do you think?”.

I am going to move to a review from The Telegraph. Even though Director’s Cut was her lowest-rated album since maybe The Red Shoes (1993), there were some positive takes. It is commendable of Bush to put something out there that could divide people. Most were unaware that it would only be six months until her tenth studio album. Bush’s 2011 full with new recording and promotion:

“I wanted to drop this interview in again as it is a rare case of Bush being interviewed about Director’s Cut. I think that few people will celebrate its anniversary. I have speculated as to why that might be. There is a general feeling that it was a bit of mixed blessing. Bush providing us with this album but songs we were familiar with. The necesstiyt fo revisitng these tracks. Some felt it was unnecessary. Kate Bush definiktely had her reasonbs. I lovre the fact that she needed to get this album out before she could release new material. Looking back and taking tracjks back. Stripping them and providing rhse new versions. I think Director’s Cut is cannomn and should be seen as such. Rather than drop in the same reviews as I did for the previous Doirector’s Cut feature, I am going to dfcus on a couple of fifferent ones and then wrap up.

“As a fully crimped-up member of the fan club, I certainly felt misgivings which turned to horror at the first radio play of Deeper Understanding. This prescient song about a lonely woman trapped in an obsessive relationship with her computer, begins by sounding not different enough from the original to have been worth the remaking; then gets mangled by a vocoder, which now distorts the computer parts, as though 21st-century listeners might be too stupid to notice the lyrical dialogue. Surely the song was both more beautiful and more seductively sinister when the computer answered Kate in her own voice?

So when the full album arrived, I took a deep breath. By mixing up tracks from two albums, The Sensual World (1989) and The Red Shoes (1993), Bush would be breaking the bubble of intense, personal worlds I had inhabited for years. I began by angrily cataloguing all the little vocal and production flourishes I missed – a change of timing or emphasis here, a lost chorus there and where was that glorious, leonine growl on Lily? This was, of course, a childish approach.

Director’s Cut should really be enjoyed as a rare, live performance from an artist who hasn’t toured since 1979. The lead vocals and drums have all been re-recorded, allowing us to hear how Bush sounds in 2011. She’s stripped back the digital crunch of the production, giving the instrumentation more breathing space and creating a more intimate, organic feel: Rubberband Girl sounds like it could have been recorded in the backroom of an Irish pub.

There is, as Bush intended, much more air around the songs, which can reduce their original, raw intensity but also gives them a more mature, lingering potency.

Floating in a twinkling galaxy of synth notes, This Woman’s Work is a less acutely painful expression of grief than it was in the original piano-only cut – but it is more wisely accepting now. And it still made me cry.

Best of all, on And so is Love, Bush has changed the lyric, “We used to say, 'ah hell we’re young’/ But now we see that life is sad/ And so is love”, to “now we see that life is sweet”.

And so is this album. Fans should give it some time, and it will give them a deeper understanding”.

I am going to finish with another review. This one is from Drowned in Sound. There are some interesting observations. Some of the songs are arguably stronger than the originals, whilst some maybe take time getting used to. Fans will argue whether Director’s Cut is an essential and great album. I think it is an important one. Any album from Kate Bush is a blessing. I am glad that there were some positive and loving reviews. If you have not heard the album then I would strongly encourage you to listen to it:

“If Kate Bush’s Director’s Cut had been released, say, 15 years ago, then this odd project would surely have received a gazillionth of the attention it's enjoying now. Back then, in 1996, Britpop was at its lagery zenith and to some degree Bush appeared a relic of the golden age of AOR. Not that you’d find many with a bad word to say about her; indeed, the oompah oompah weirdness of 1982’s The Dreaming was clearly an influence on Britpop’s artier end. But it was over a decade since her tour de force Hounds of Love, and her most recent album, 1993’s The Red Shoes, was on the weak side, with a ghastly roll call of guests suggesting an artist mired in the past. Lenny Henry; Eric Clapton; Prince; Jeff Beck; some dude from Procul Harem – rich folks who’d peaked in the Eighties (at the latest), jarring outsiders who brought baggage into Bush’s rarefied studio fantasia.

So if, three years later, she’d issued a record consisting of tweaked tracks from The Red Shoes and 1989’s solid The Sensual World, one imagines it would have been seen as a curio at best, an indulgence at worst.

But this isn’t 1996. Since then, Bush’s legend has grown exponentially, her weaker albums fading out of collective memory as her great ones have grown in stature and reach. Much of this can be attributed to simple laws of supply and demand; it became hard to take her for granted when there was a 12 year gap between The Red Shoes and 2005’s Aerial; the fact Aerial was a masterpiece also helped. But also, people want big stars to believe in; in the present musical landscape, there simply are no art-pop auteurs comparable to Bush.

So yeah, the release of Director’s Cut - a mere five years after Aerial! - has got a lot of people excited. And rightly so, but let's keep it in perspective. It’s not new material, and much as there are a couple of jaw-dropping total reconstructions – notably ‘This Woman’s Work’ – it mostly amounts to intelligent tinkering. Opening track ‘Flower of the Mountain’ pretty much sets the tenor: it’s the seductive Celtic lushness of The Sensual World’s title track, only with Bush’s lyrics replaced with the extract from Joyce’s Ulysses that she’d been denied permission to use in 1989. Which is cool and all, and it’s a thrill to hear Bush slink richly through Molly Bloom’s climactic monologue, but ‘The Sensual World’ was a great song already and this new version is really just an act of housekeeping. Likewise, recent interviews would suggest that The Sensual World’s ‘Deeper Understanding’ was basically reworked because at the time of recording, Bush couldn’t get the vocal effect she wanted for the chorus. It does occur that it might have been a bit more practical to simply reissue The Sensual World with those two tracks tweaked, and then a totally overhauled The Red Shoes.

But then, if that had happened we’d have been deprived of the glacial, six and a half minute ‘This Woman’s Work’. Totally rerecorded, it’s creepingly claustrophobic and piercingly beautiful, in its own way just as perfect as the original. Over the barest electronic twinkle, each line is wrenched out painfully, like a cold crystal pulled from the earth. The lyrics remain opaque – is it about post-natal depression, perhaps? – but it builds to a climax whose raw, bitter sentiment is entirely discernible, a diamond hard electronic choir rising in the background as Bush spits the new lyric “all the things that you wanted for me/all the things that you wanted from me”. Though she probably started work on it during the last Tory government, it’s startlingly in tune with the current vogue for minimalism; for somebody who has always had a touch of nostalgia in her sound, it’s startlingly modern. Another total reformat goes to Red Shoes lead single ‘Rubberband Girl’: here it’s shorn of all synthetic trappings and reincarnated as charmingly dippy country strum. Paring things back has never really been Bush’s style, but after the ultra-expansive Aerial, maybe this could be the way forwards.

Most of the rest of the album consists of subtly improved Red Shoes songs, with a more organic, less synthetic feel generally derived from the addition of better vocals and the removal of Kate’s dickhead famous mates. Everything is at least a minor step forwards, but ‘This Woman’s Work’, ‘Deeper Understanding’ and ‘Rubberband Girl’ are the only total reconstructions, and thus the various tweaks do little to alter the fundamental quality of the originals. If it was great before (‘The Red Shoes’, ‘Lily’) it’s great now; if it wasn’t (the painfully bombastic ‘Top of the City’) then it’s still not.

Director’s Cut is a strange undertaking, but pretty much succeeds on its own terms. Hardcore Bush fans will appreciate it; newbies who may only know Hounds of Love and Aerial should certainly get this instead of The Red Shoes. Still, what Director’s Cut is not is a classic – or even proper – Kate Bush album. Some songs are far from her best, and it’s about as stylistically incoherent as you’d expect from a set consisting of bits of music recorded across four different decades. More to the point, was making this really a better use of Bush’s time than cracking on with Aerial’s follow up proper?

Still, at its best Director's Cut is a dazzling affirmation of Bush’s genius as songwriter, performer and producer. Maybe one day we'll take her for granted again. But not today”.

On 16th May, it is fourteen years since Kate Bush released her ninth studio album. The only time that she has reapproached older albums and reworked songs from them, it was a lot for some critics to get their heads around. It would have been great if there were more interviews with Kate Bush about the album. Not enough coverage of Director’s Cut. I love the promotional photos for the album. Bush treating it very seriously and presenting it as a new work. I am going to play Director’s Cut on 16th May. I am fascinated by the songs she chose and the way she recorded them. Many dismiss it as the runt of her output. I would strongly argue that Director’s Cut is more…

WORTHY than that.

FEATURE: Feminist Icons: Mikki Kendall

FEATURE:

 

 

Feminist Icons

PHOTO CREDIT: Dana Richards/Ettakitt 

Mikki Kendall

_________

CONTINUING this feature…

PHOTO CREDIT: Elaine Chung

and I wanted to spend some time with a feminist icon I have recently discovered. Someone whose work I am compelled to explore in depth. The Chicago-born author and activist is someone who you need to read. Mikki Kendall’s work focuses on, among other things, current events, the politics of food, and the history of the feminist movement. I am currently reading her most recent book, 2020’s Hood Feminism: Notes From the Women That a Movement Forgot. I want to highlight interviews with Kendall. An extraordinary voice and writer whose word have moved me. I want to start out with a fascinating 2020 interview from Esquire. An author who discussed “Breonna Taylor, coronavirus' disproportionate effect on women of color, and how feminism has to change”, one of the objectives of her work and Hood Feminism: Notes From the Women That a Movement Forgot is that people stop getting more and making sure everyone has enough:

“In Hood Feminism: Notes From the Women That a Movement Forgot, writer and feminist scholar Mikki Kendall writes, “We rarely talk about basic needs as a feminist issue. Food insecurity and access to quality education, safe neighborhoods, a living wage, and medical care are all feminist issues. Instead of a framework that focuses on helping women get basic needs met, all too often the focus is not on survival but on increasing privilege. For a movement that is meant to represent all women, it often centers on those who already have most of their needs met.”

This is the thesis of Hood Feminism, an urgent and essential text about the failure of modern feminism to address the needs of all but a few privileged women. Hood Feminism is a searing indictment of whitewashed, Lean In feminism, with Kendall calling for the movement to embrace inclusivity, intersectionality, and anti-racism. In powerful, eloquent essays, Kendall highlights how the movement’s myopia has failed Black women, Indigenous women, and trans women, among others, and how feminism must shift its focus away from increasing privilege in favor of solving issues that shape the daily lives of women everywhere.

As a long-overdue reckoning about racism and police brutality grips a nation already plagued by a pandemic, the issues of access and equality that Kendall highlights in Hood Feminism have been drawn into sharper relief. Women of color have been disproportionately targeted by the cascading effects of the pandemic, at once more likely to be unemployed and more likely to work in the line of fire as essential workers. So too are women of color subjected to police violence, with Black women suffering an epidemic of sexual assault at the hands of police officers. From her home in Chicago, Kendall spoke with Esquire about the murder of Breonna Taylor, the hard choices facing low-income women during the pandemic, and the lasting changes feminism must make in order to move into a bold, inclusive future.

Esquire: You write about how the feminism we too often see represented in the media is very privileged and whitewashed. How do we steer away from white, Girl Boss feminism and re-educate the public about the real meaning of feminism that can work for everybody?

Mikki Kendall: There's nothing wrong with wanting the power to change your life. However, there is something wrong with wanting the power to oppress other people, so the important thing is to shift the focus from feminism as opportunity for advancement of the individual back to feminism as opportunity for everyone. At the beginning of feminism, we were talking about opportunities for women as a whole, even though racism has always been a problem for feminism. We have to pivot back to the idea that equality for all is not the same as equality to oppress. There's nothing wrong with wanting to be a boss, but what kind of boss are you going to be? If you think, “I want to be in charge,” and your next thought isn't, “So I can pay my employees a living wage,” you need to ask yourself why you want to be in charge.

ESQ: You mention the beginning of feminism. What are some of the most common places that women's studies departments go wrong in how they teach feminist ideas and feminist history?

MK: One of the most common flaws is that the focus tends to be on the idea that white women invented feminism in the late 1800s. The Seneca Falls conference is often pegged as one of the first places where modern feminism happened, but the women they got those ideas from already had these rights. It's not that modern feminism was born when white women found out about it—it's that feminism was already happening in a lot of communities and was being oppressed.

The part that academic feminism erases is that low-income white women always had to work. Early big-name feminists like Susan B. Anthony came from a relatively privileged background; what they wanted was to be able to work in a way that allowed them to control their finances and their futures, because they were seeing other people with less have more power over their own lives. There’s a weird tendency in gender studies to situate the idea of equality in a place where upper middle-class white women discovered a concept as it was already happening for others, as opposed to situating it in a place where low-income women of color either already had it or were working toward it. Then well-off white women figured it out and took over what was already in the works.

ESQ: You write about how we have to unlearn the narratives of white supremacy, saying, “As feminists, we need to take critical, radical measures in listening to women in the poorest communities about what they want and need instead of projecting narratives of ignorance onto them.” What are those critical, radical measures of listening?

MK: Eve Ensler did a project where she was in the Congo going to see women who needed surgery to correct fistulas. She described in lurid detail what the rooms looked like and their lack of privacy, without considering that she was contributing to the lack of privacy. She was talking to the doctors, but she wasn't really listening to the women, because she wasn't really talking to the women. It was a really offensive piece, but it made me think: what might those women have to say about what was happening to their own bodies? We don't know. We barely even know their names. One of the radical things would be to consider that the world doesn't need you to speak for someone who was marginalized. The world needs you to give someone who was marginalized some money, and then to tell people to listen, and then to actually listen for yourself. Go from there in terms of what policies you vote for and what politicians you listen to, with the idea that the things that make life better for the folks with the least are more important than you having more of the excess you already have.

There was a woman in New York who was very upset because her kid had been studying for a test that was outlawed due to racial bias. She said it wasn’t about race, but it never seemed to click for her that she was upset because the playing field had been equaled. Her focus was on the fact that her kid wouldn’t get to be special, as opposed to the idea that maybe all the schools should be as good as this one or that all the kids should have access to opportunities. The radical pivot is to stop thinking about how to get more and to start thinking about how we can make sure everyone has enough. It sounds like a really simplistic idea, but as someone who's been parenting and dealing with public schools for a really long time, I’ve noticed how some of the things that come up at school board meetings make you realize: it's never occurred to people that maybe if every school was good, we wouldn't have to fight over space in these schools”.

There are a couple of other pieces I want to include before wrapping up. I am really looking forward to reading what Mikki Kendall writes next. There were some really interesting questions asked by Marie Clare in their 2020 interview. Kendall explained and discussed “how feminist movement has largely ignored women of color”. I would urge anyone who has not read Hood Feminism: Notes from the Women White Feminists Forgot to check it out. It is a book that, once picked up, you will not want to put down:

“MC: Was that a moment that helped shape your theory of feminism?

MK: Yes. But it's not like that was the only time—there have been various points in my life when I have felt like feminism was not for me or spoke to me. A lot of feminist texts, especially academically centered texts, engage with low income Black women who are single mothers like we're objects, like we're problems to solve.

I really wanted to talk about what I saw day to day, as opposed to what people think happens. There's this weird narrative that the hood is a terrible place, and that no one takes care of anyone and you're out there struggling by yourself. The reality for poverty, whether you're in the inner city or a rural area, is that you are with your community all the time. You're all working together, because otherwise you're not going to make it.

MD: You argue that feminism has largely ignored the problems that many Black women and women in poverty face: things like food security and education. Why is it crucial to view those problems through a feminist lens?

MK: When we say a feminist movement is for women, it's supposed to advance equality for all women. But then we say that these issues that only some women face [like food insecurity or education] are someone else's problem. Well, then we're not a movement for all women. We're a movement for women who want to be a CEO, we're a movement for women who want equality with white men. We're a movement for a lot of things, apparently, but we're not a movement for women who need support in their struggles. Then, mainstream feminism often turns to these women and says, Why aren't you showing up for us? Solidarity can't be a one way street.

We're a movement for a lot of things, apparently, but we're not a movement for women who need support in their struggles.

MC: Can you describe your relationship with the word solidarity?

MK: I think it's a great idea to have each other's backs, but it seems like often the actual having of the back is more likely to happen between communities of color and between feminists of color.

I feel like sometimes the concept of solidarity becomes a trap. It's not that it's take a penny, leave a penny in terms of support. I understand sometimes it's going to be 60–40. But when your idea is 99–1, that's not solidarity.

MC: Why is prioritizing intersectionality crucial?

MK: At this point, there's a weird sub narrative. We think somehow that all women are safer regardless of race, right? Really, women, especially women of color, aren't any safer [than men]. They're in more danger. And in some cases, like for indigenous women, there are higher levels of risk for certain crimes like sexual assault.

People are starting to realize that those women aren't safe. You can find any number of mainstream feminists who will be happy to tell you about the work they've done in the Congo or in India. Then when you start asking them about educational access in America, or about gun violence that particularly targets girls who are often of the same racial background as the ones that they feel like they can go save, [feminists] don't seem to recognize that [those American girls are] people. Some of that is definitely about being able to go and feed this white [savior] complex and feel good about yourself.

You might also have to face the fact that the people oppressing women of color are your neighbors. Are your relatives. Are you. There's a point where I think it's almost painful for feminism to look at the work it didn't do. It's easier in some ways to go clean up someone else's house than to clean your own”.

ILLUSTRATION CREDIT: QuickHoney

I am going to end with a feature from Chicago Mag from last month. I have not included everything from the feature, though I would encourage people to read it all. An author I am quite new to but am determined to explore in greater depth. Mikki Kendall’s background and upbringing was, at times, hugely challenging. The first point, where Kendall writes how spite is fuel is especially commendable and empassioned:

“■ Spite is fuel. People like to tell Black girls what they cannot and will never be able to do. And I’m like, Oh, OK, well, now I’m going to have to show you. There’s a saying, “Those who cannot hear will feel,” and I like to make sure people feel it.

■ When I wrote Hood Feminism, people said, “The hood’s not like this.” I don’t know what your experience was, but in my neighborhood, everybody knew everybody. The teachers knew our parents. My grandmother and my vice principal knew each other from school. There were these labyrinth interconnections where they went to the same churches. Not that it’s a good political practice, but a weird facet of segregation is that it binds people together.

■ When I was 8, an aunt’s ex-husband put a loaded gun to my head to make a point about money. He was going to shoot me. My other aunt was in her nightie with a bottle of barbecue sauce — Open Pit — and this man is going off because he’s decided her sister owes him money. He’s drunk. She tells him, essentially, “Motherfucker, if you crack it, I’m coming.” And she’s swinging this bottle of barbecue sauce. She’s five feet tall and a demon. I think he looked in her face and truly believed that even if he managed to kill me, he wasn’t leaving that house. I still don’t eat Open Pit.

■ I once told my grandmother, who was born in 1924, that I wanted to drop out of high school and take the GED. I was 15. She had just had a radical mastectomy, and I don’t know to this day how she did it, but that old lady raised up an arm that didn’t have no strength to choke the shit out of me. I got the full “Hope and the Dream of the Slave” speech. If I tell that to somebody Black of a certain generation, they’re going to be like, “Oh, you fucked up.”

■ Early on, I would get upset, and my husband would be like, “This is completely disproportionate to what is happening.” And I had to learn that everything doesn’t require the top of the pops, right? But then he met the rest of my family, and he was like, “Oh, you’re doing way better than I would expect”.

I will end things there. I want to give a bit of an introduction to Mikki Kendall. Go and read Hood Feminism: Notes from the Women White Feminists Forgot and also check out 2016’s Hidden Youth: Speculative Fiction from the Margins of History and 2019’s Amazons, Abolitionists, and Activists: A Graphic History of Women's Fight for Their Rights. A phenomenal writer who has dissected and discussed the history of the feminist movement, this is an essential voice that you…

NEED to know.

FEATURE: Feel Good Music: Gorillaz’s Demon Days at Twenty

FEATURE:

 

 

Feel Good Music

Gorillaz’s Demon Days at Twenty

_________

RANKED alongside…

the best albums of the 2000s, Gorillaz’s second studio album, Demon Days, turns twenty on 11th May. Its U.K. release was 23rd May but I am marking its release in Japan. Produced by Gorillaz, Danger Mouse, Jason Cox, and James Dring, it features De La Soul, Neneh Cherry, Martina Topley-Bird, Roots Manuva, MF DOOM, Ike Turner, Bootie Brown of the Pharcyde, Shaun Ryder and Dennis Hopper. I am going to get to some reviews about Demon Days. Reaching number one in the U.K. and several countries around the world, I think perception around the album has changed since its release. In 2005, there was a range of opinions. It is now seen as a classic and iconic. Maybe at the time it was seen as too weird, cartoonish and mad. Its subjects of guns, violence, corruption and greed are scarily relevant now. It is an album that was ahead of its time. In the lead-up to its twentieth anniversary, I am going to end with a couple of reviews for Demon Days. Before then, in 2005, Uncut spoke with Gorillaz’s Noodle and Murdoch:

“Every great band is destroyed by their success: cartoon bands are no exception.” Discuss…

Noodle: When many great bands start off they are uniquely oblivious to what makes them special, what makes that exceptional. When they become successful these reasons are pointed out to them. Their magic is analysed and explained to them by their fans, the press or the people surround them. Therefore it forces a change in them. Either the band

react against it, or try to imitate the elements that make them successful, or other people expect a change. Even the choice to ignore these explanations is a decision. It usually affects that chemistry of a band. It can never remain the same as that first initial unconscious period. Every great band will face destruction or must destroy themselves in order to..start again. Cartoon bands are no exception.

Murdoc: The trouble with great bands is they lose their edge, y’know? The get distracted, or they start writing. ballads, or they mellow out. You know what I’m talking about anyway. As soon as bands become big they invariably need to be brought down. They get complacent. However, cartoon bands are the exception.

Russel: Yeah that’s the difference. You don’t want a cartoon band to become a caricature of themselves.

2D: That would just be weird.

Murdoc: Bands just seem to screw it up at some stage for some reason. If

they don’t, well that’s just equally dull.

Any truth in the rumours that Murdoc wants to kick 2D’s head in for being such an irritatingly good-natured pretty boy?

Murdoc; Hey, I’d want to kick his head in even if he was ugly. You can’t blame it all on good looks.

Was Danger Mouse chosen to produce because of his skills or his name?

Russel: We would never be so flippant with our music as to choose a producer for any other reason than a mutual love and respect for music, and an incredible ability to execute the vision they had for the album.

Murdoc: Yeah. The name Dangermouse was just a bonus.

2D: So was the fact that he turned up with an eyepatch and a mate called Penfold.

Noodle: I was impressed with the work he had done on his own ‘Grey Album’ which I had downloaded from the Internet. It took a while to convince him to work with Gorillaz, but the album took a leap into the incredible when Mr. Mouse arrived. This would be around June 2004. Dangermouse and myself immediately began an intricate pre-production session.

Murdoc: This mainly involved playing table tennis and listening to a load of old electro records.

Noodle: His instinct and insight into music is very intuitive. He will pull out the necessary elements of a track and disguard the rest. In that way the music has an athletic, direct economy whilst still remaining full and rich. I fully expect Dangermouse to produce an impressive run of excellent albums over the next 10 years.

Murdoc: Pass us a biscuit Noodle. I’m getting a bit peckish.

How on earth did Dennis Hopper get involved in this madness?

Murdoc: Oh yeah. Right. Blame it on us. Like Dennis Hopper had spent his entire life in perfectly normal and sane surroundings until he got dragged into the big old nasty madness of the Gorillaz world. Christ! Why don’t you find some other scapegoat, Huh?

Russel: Noodle ran into him at some award show and it turns out he knew some Gorillaz tracks already. We told him what we were working on and then took it from there. He’s always been a symbol for a certain type of expression and free speech that suited the track we were working on. So he seemed a relevant choice for Gorillaz.

Murdoc: He’s always crashed his bike right into the palace of wisdom so we thought, ‘wait a sec I’ll just get my helmet.’

Noodle: The track he narrated was a serious tale or a nation of innocents whose happiness was destroyed by people infiltrating them, and trying to overtake them. As they had never seen aggression or this type of behavior before, they were unprepared. It awoke something in their society which destroyed them and their attackers. This story is read by Dennis Hopper on the album, and because of his history he seemed the right person to deliver it.

2D: Hmmm. And he was great in Speed as well”.

Led by Damon Albarn, I think some took a while to warm to Gorillaz. Perhaps not used to a group like this, it was odd embracing a virtual group. Their most recent album, Cracker Island, was released in 2023. I am going to get to a couple of reviews for Demon Days. NME shared their thoughts about an album that deserved a lot more respect than it got in 2005:

“If you were to invent a pop act right now, where would you begin? Well, human beings take too many drugs and start boo-hooing when they don’t get their own way, so you’d create something, like a cartoon character, to front the whole shebang. You’d do something to make sure The Kids’ parents didn’t understand the appeal – it’s the punk rock way, after all. And since we live in such modern times, you’d promote this new popstar not through the conventional channels, like the gig circuit or CD:UK, but through some semi-interactive platform, to really make the whole thing come alive. You’d pair your popstar with the world’s most can’t-get-out-of-your-headable tune, and once the entire project reached critical mass, you’d whack out a single. Congratulations: you’ve just invented the Crazy Frog. You are, to all intents and purposes, a cunt.

Of course, nobody would suggest that Damon Albarn is a cunt – he was far too pretty in his twenties to ever be truly hateable – but if you need proof of how far we’ve come since the first Gorillaz album dropped four years ago, look no further than how unextraordinary the band’s high concept shenanigans seem now. We don’t think, ‘Hold your horses, cartoon characters can’t make albums’ – we just wonder how Gorillaz sold so many albums in the states when 2D’s teeth were such a state. Gorillaz, now, are no more than a normal band. For this second album the music steps up a gear to compensate for that conceptual shortfall by conjuring a unique mix that’s darker but often more accessible than its predecessor and strutting around very much like the ultimate pop album, but that’s not the only significant development.

Where 2001’s ‘Gorillaz’ began life as an elaborate and self-indulgent vanity project and accidentally turned out to be quite good to the tune of six million copies sold, ‘Demon Days’ is, alongside the Coldplay album, one of 2005’s biggest bankers for EMI. None of this is a happy accident, and nothing has been left to chance. It speaks volumes that legal downloads of the splendid lead single ‘Feel Good Inc’ became chart eligible – thanks to a limited run of vinyl, issued to record shops simply to satisfy chart regulations – in the very week that downloads first qualified in the UK charts. Reckon Damon sat at home and thought of that one? Already, the Gorillaz’ return feels less like a group of mavericks operating in some musical wasteland on the edge of civilisationetcetcetc and more as if every boardroom in the Western world has sprung to life with marketing gurus scribbling ‘MAINSTREAM VS UNDERGROUND’, ‘ASDA BUYERS VS PUNK KIDZ’ on flipcharts. The biggest challenge, given the success of the first album, must undoubtedly have been this: how do you manufacture spontaneity?

They haven’t been short of ideas. Practicality, sadly, has got in the way of the band embarking on a series of gorilla gigs (although you should probably approach your local Dixons window display with caution over the next few months). Instead, a similarly self-conscious culture-jamming exercise was set in motion, through which a viral-type campaign encouraged fans to stick anti-celebrity ‘Reject False Icons’ stickers on billboards. One fan recently noted, in their online diary: “Since it’s so close to the actual release date I plan on going to the mall this week, and writing ‘Reject False Icons’ on some bathroom stalls. Have to do my part, and trust me, I’m not the only one who has done this… I’m part of a ‘team’ who does this kind of thing every day. Pretty exciting actually.”

‘Exciting.’ Make no mistake, this is as sophisticated and insidious as the ‘street teams’ orchestrated for bands like Busted and McFly, except at least that lot get a free frisbee for their troubles. Alongside (but hamfistedly at odds with) the ‘Reject False Icons’ campaign, Gorillaz also launched their ‘Search For A Star’ online campaign, which incorrectly billed itself as the first online-only talent search. Either it was Gorillaz’ intention to eventually tell applicants ‘Look, Michelle McManus isn’t really that bad – what you’ve done is exactly what she did’, or this supposed satire of the fame game was simply in place to have a laugh at the expense of the band’s fans. At the very least, those fans are being used to promote ‘Demon Days’, just like the fans who bought the ‘collectable’ limited edition ‘Feel Good Inc’ vinyl were used to create acres of publicity when the single charted.

Have those fans been cheated? Have we all been cheated? It all becomes irrelevant as soon as you press play, because beyond the mixed messages and startling lack of logic in the album’s promotion, ‘Demon Days’ may end 2005 as one of the year’s most celebrated albums. Before you even consider the sonic and melodic innovation paraded through the album there’s so much crammed into each of these fifteen songs (without any one of them sounding overproduced or cluttered) that repeated listening is a must. With ‘Demon Days’, repeated listening is like throwing a dolphin a fire escape – entertaining the first time, impossible to predict the outcome on each subsequent attempt. There’s always something new to enjoy.

Instrumental in this album’s charm is Dangermouse’s production, which propels the album far beyond the limits of its predecessor; the standard Gorillaz sonic motifs (light-headed dub, left-of-centre electronic flourishes, caricatured wailing from another planet and the irresistible thud of a thousand bass bins) remain, but there’s a seemingly unselfconscious desire from all parties to innovate within the realms of the modern pop song. They succeed at every turn, and the inevitable rolecall of guest stars keep it moving. With the exception of the London Community Gospel Choir, who’d arguably turn up to the recording of an envelope being opened, this is an unexpected and imaginatively-plucked succession of cameos, taking in De La Soul, Martina Topley-Bird, Neneh Cherry (on the droopily spectacular ‘Kids With Guns’), Roots Manuva (on ‘All Alone’, the most ‘Gorillaz’-sounding track on the album), Ike ‘nice guy’ Turner, Dennis Hopper… Even the score from ‘Dawn Of The Dead’ pops in to say a spooky hello at the album’s outset.

We also find Shaun Ryder sounding genuinely relevant for the first time in fifteen years, in an electronic pop masterpiece called ‘DARE’. With the arguable exception of ‘O Green World’ (whose chorus lyric, “Uhhh-uhhhhh-uuhhhhh-uhhhh-uh”, sounds like Jimmy Saville at the dentist), ‘DARE’ is the finest moment on an album which never drops below total brilliance: it’s got more hooks than a New Order bassist lookalike convention and will be absolutely everywhere this summer.

If you believe Gorillaz are genuinely inverting popular culture you probably also think Apple present some ‘cool’ sort of alternative to Microsoft, but while ‘Demon Days’ is as fastidiously packaged and cynically promoted as your average Shania Twain release, it’s an honest overview of the rarely-accepted fact that it never really is all about the music, even when the music’s this extraordinary. ‘Demon Days’ is also just a few IQ points away from being as clever as it thinks it is. Pretty clever”.

It is such a shame that features have not been written about Demon Days. The amazing second studio album by Gorillaz, I do hope that there is some celebration close to the anniversary. Released on 11th May, 2005 in Japan, this is an album I remember at the time and have loved ever since. I am going to end with a review from AllMusic. They made some interesting observations about Demon Days:

“Damon Albarn went to great pains to explain that the first Gorillaz album was a collaboration between him, cartoonist Jamie Hewlett, and producer Dan the Automator, but any sort of pretense to having the virtual pop group seem like a genuine collaborative band was thrown out the window for the group's long-awaited 2005 sequel, Demon Days. Hewlett still provides new animation for Gorillaz -- although the proposed feature-length film has long disappeared -- but Dan the Automator is gone, leaving Albarn as the unquestioned leader of the group. This isn't quite similar to Blur, a genuine band that faltered after Graham Coxon decided he had enough, leaving Damon behind to construct the muddled Think Tank largely on his own. No, Gorillaz were always designed as a collective, featuring many contributors and producers, all shepherded by Albarn, the songwriter, mastermind, and ringleader. Hiding behind Hewlett's excellent cartoons gave Albarn the freedom to indulge himself, but it also gave him focus since it tied him to a specific concept. Throughout his career, Albarn always was at his best when writing in character -- to the extent that anytime he wrote confessionals in Blur, they sounded stagy -- and Gorillaz not only gave him an ideal platform, it liberated him, giving him the opportunity to try things he couldn't within the increasingly dour confines of Blur. It wasn't just that the cartoon concept made for light music -- on the first Gorillaz album, Damon sounded as if he were having fun for the first time since Parklife. But 2005 is a much different year than 2001, and if Gorillaz exuded the heady, optimistic, future-forward vibes of the turn of the millennium, Demon Days is as theatrically foreboding as its title, one of the few pop records made since 9/11 that captures the eerie unease of living in the 21st century. Not really a cartoony feel, in other words, but Gorillaz indulged in doom and gloom from their very first single, "Clint Eastwood," so this is not unfamiliar territory, nor is it all that dissimilar from the turgid moodiness of Blur's 2003 Think Tank. But where Albarn seemed simultaneously constrained and adrift on that last Blur album -- attempting to create indie rock, yet unsure how since messiness contradicts his tightly wound artistic impulses -- he's assured and masterful on Demon Days, regaining his flair for grand gestures that served him so well at the height of Britpop, yet tempering his tendency to overreach by keeping the music lean and evocative through his enlistment of electronica maverick Danger Mouse as producer.

Demon Days is unified and purposeful in a way Albarn's music hasn't been since The Great Escape, possessing a cinematic scope and a narrative flow, as the curtain unveils to the ominous, morose "Last Living Souls" and then twists and winds through valleys, detours, and wrong paths -- some light, some teeming with dread -- before ending up at the haltingly hopeful title track. Along the way, cameos float in and out of the slipstream and Albarn relies on several familiar tricks: the Specials are a touchstone, brooding minor key melodies haunt the album, there are some singalong refrains, while a celebrity recites a lyric (this time, it's Dennis Hopper). Instead of sounding like musical crutches, this sounds like an artist who knows his strengths and uses them as an anchor so he can go off and explore new worlds. Chief among the strengths that Albarn relies upon is his ability to find collaborators who can articulate his ideas clearly and vividly. Danger Mouse, whose Grey Album mash-up of the Beatles and Jay-Z was an underground sensation in 2004, gives this music an elasticity and creeping darkness than infects even such purportedly lighthearted moments as "Feel Good Inc." It's a sense of menace that's reminiscent of prime Happy Mondays, so it shouldn't be a surprise that one of the highlights of Demon Days is Shaun Ryder's cameo on the tight, deceptively catchy "Dare." Over a tightly wound four minutes, "Dare" exploits Ryder's iconic Mancunian thug persona within territory that belongs to the Gorillaz -- its percolating beat not too far removed from "19/2000" -- and that's what makes it a perfect distillation of Demon Days: by letting other musicians take center stage and by sharing credit with Danger Mouse, Damon Albarn has created an allegedly anonymous platform whose genius ultimately and quite clearly belongs to him alone. All the themes and ideas on this album have antecedents in his previous work, but surrounded by new collaborators, he's able to present them in a fresh, exciting way. And he has created a monster album here -- not just in its size, but in its Frankenstein construction. It not only eclipses the first Gorillaz album, which in itself was a terrific record, but stands alongside the best Blur albums, providing a tonal touchstone for this decade the way Parklife did for the '90s. While it won't launch a phenomenon the way that 1994 classic did -- Albarn is too much a veteran artist for that and the music is too dark and weird -- Demon Days is still one hell of a comeback for Damon Albarn, who seemed perilously close to forever disappearing into his own ego”.

I am going to finish there. A remarkable album with some incredible collaborators and standout cuts. I am not sure whether there is a special anniversary reissue coming along. Demon Days deserves it. An album that is now seen as influential and important, that wasn’t the general feeling in 2005. In my opinion, Gorillaz’s second studio album is a…

REMARKABLE work.

FEATURE: Spotlight: Revisited: Lola Young

FEATURE:

 

 

Spotlight: Revisited

Lola Young

_________

THIS is an interesting period…

PHOTO CREDIT: Sophie Jones

for Lola Young. I included her in my Spotlight feature years ago so I wanted to revisit her now. Last year’s Messy EP gained a lot of praise. I know that there will be more material coming this year. Her track, Messy, is a song that has been described as an ADHD anthem. A song where Lola Young asks why she can’t just be herself. An honest and raw song that has resonated with so many people. I am going to get to some interviews with Lola Young. If you have not heard her 2024 album, This Wasn’t Meant for You Anyway, then I would thoroughly recommend it. I am going to start out with an interview from last year from Atwood Magazine:

“Unapologetic in every sense of the word, the 23-year-old singer/songwriter from Croydon, South London, has been spilling her guts in song for five years now. She made a splash with 2023’s major label debut album My Mind Wanders and Sometimes Leaves Completely, yet it’s with this year’s sophomore record – the critically acclaimed This Wasn’t Meant for You Anyway, released June 21st via A Day One / Island Records – that she has transcended the local scene to become somewhat of a beloved cult figure in the alternative and pop worlds.

The attitude Young displays in songs like “Messy,” “Conceited,” “Wish You Were Dead,” and “F***” is infectious and undeniable; she holds nothing back in asserting her unfiltered, charismatic self, blending raw vulnerability with youthful vigor and charm through songs that fuse her emotionally charged, soul-soaked voice with indie rock and alternative pop instruments.

This Wasn’t Meant for You Anyway - Lola Young

This Wasn’t Meant for You Anyway – Lola Young

You know I’m impatient

So why would you leave me

waiting outside the station

When it was like minus four degrees?

And I, I get what you’re sayin’

I just really don’t wanna hear it right now

Can you shut up for like once in your life?

Listen to me, I took your nice words of advice

About how you think I’m gonna die

lucky if I turn thirty-three

Ok, so yeah, I smoke like a chimney

I’m not skinny

and I pull a Britney every other week

But cut me some slack,

who do you want me to be?

– “Messy,” Lola Young

“This Wasn’t Meant For You Anyway captures where I am now,” Young tells Atwood Magazine. “It’s more confident, more honest, and slightly more unapologetic, although I have always been unapologetic in my writing. However, this album feels like I’ve embraced my vulnerabilities even more so; I’ve really explored some deeper parts of myself, and I think you can massively hear that in the music.”

Young wrote and recorded This Wasn’t Meant For You Anyway with American singer/songwriter and record producer Jared Solomon, who goes by Solomonophonic (credits include Remi Wolf, BROCKHAMPTON, Dominic Fike). She describes it as a contemporary break-up album, encapsulating “the sound of what it means to be young and in constant romantic chaos.”

“Honestly, the songs just poured out of me,” she explains. “I didn’t plan on releasing another album so soon, but once I started writing, it felt like they needed to be out there. There were things I wanted to say, and when I met Jared, something just clicked and it felt right to start writing again. I wanted to capture this moment in my life while it was still fresh.”

“This album is a collection of experiences and emotions from a period of an intense romantic journey,” she continues. “It’s about the highs and lows, the moments of clarity and confusion. It’s my way of navigating through the chaos of young love and finding some sort of meaning in it all… and I’m still trying to find out if there is any!”

And I’m sick of your puppy eyes

You said boys should never cry

Well, surprise, I bet no one’s ever told you

You bought me some flowers,

I gave them to someone else

Told me that you loved me,

you’re just talking to yourself

I don’t wanna know,

I don’t wanna hear it

Let yourself out,

you’re so conceited

– “Conceited,” Lola Young

As spellbinding and seductive in sound as it is fearless in size and scope, This Wasn’t Meant for You Anyway is a cinematic, multi-faceted fever dream from one of the music world’s fastest-rising artists-to-watch.

An ambitious and triumphant record (she herself describes it as ‘”raw, honest, and unapologetic”), Lola Young’s sophomore album emphatically establishes her as a singular and unique voice in the modern zeitgeist.

Atwood Magazine recently caught up with the singer/songwriter for a candid, in-depth conversation about finding her voice and making her second LP. Dive into This Wasn’t Meant For You Anyway below as Lola Young digs into her songs, her inspirations, and what she hopes audiences gain from her music.

“I hope listeners take away a sense of empowerment,” she smiles. “This album is about finding strength in vulnerability and embracing who you are, flaws and all. For me, creating this album has been a journey of self-discovery and healing, and I hope it connects with others in a similar way.”

“For me, it’s a daily struggle, but I’ve learned that the most important thing is to stay true to who I am, even if it is super ‘messy’!”.

When speaking with Vogue at the end of last year, Lola Young discussed her Gen-Z anthem, Messy, and remaining grounded. Latter in the year, Young will play some incredible festivals. Here and in the U.S. Her phenomenal music will connect with people around the world. An artist who is going to be influencing people for many years to come:

“I think “Messy” is really resonating with people because they crave that authenticity and your point of view. And of course there’s been the whole Sofia Richie Grainge and Kylie Jenner thing. What goes through your head when you see something like that?

Well, to be fair, I would say the TikToks are the least exciting part about it, if I’m honest. Kylie Jenner… like, that’s a really good promotional thing. Obviously I didn’t ask her to use my song, but in terms of having things move forward, it’s been kind of amazing. And the Sofia Richie Grainge trend is really funny and weird. But I think what’s really exciting is that the song’s in the Top 40 UK charts and global charts. That feels like a milestone. I’ve had Kylie Jenner use my sound before. I’ve had a viral moment on TikTok before – although obviously this does feel slightly different. It is such a wonderful feeling, having something you’ve worked so hard for pay off. I never used to think people listened to my music, but they do.

I liked something you said in your Wonderland interview about the making of an anthem: “Anthems aren’t just pop songs, they start with something else and then become a pop song.” I think that’s super interesting, especially in an era where it feels like everyone’s looking to release the next big hit.

I just don’t think about it. I don’t write to write a hit. If you look at all the artists that have a legacy – Sabrina Carpenter, Chappell Roan and Charli xcx will have a legacy because of their work – they don’t go into the studio saying “I’m going to write a hit song, and this is the hit song.” And no label or A&R knows what’s going to be a hit song. You can think it’s going to be a hit and then something else is a hit song or vice versa. It doesn’t really matter. Charli even said that she didn’t think Brat was going to touch anybody. You just write from your heart – or just put out something that you believe in, it doesn’t even have to be that deep. It takes time to evolve as an artist. It also takes time to go, “You know what? I’m confident in this. I’m confident in what I do.”

I’ve seen videos of people at your shows crying and singing along in the audience. How does that feel?

It’s such a weird feeling. Sometimes I get really emotional about it, and other days I’m just like, “This is my life now.” This is something I’ve been waiting for my whole life, and then when it starts to happen, it is a very weird feeling. I can’t get too close to that weird feeling because then it might affect me, like, “What the fuck? Where’s this going? What’s going to happen?” Also, I would say the growth has been slow. I used to say back in the day that I don’t want to call [my followers] fans. I only want to call them followers. And then I realised I just didn’t have any fans. When you actually have fans, you then realise that these are people who don’t know you but are really into you and want to drop everything and watch everything. That’s a powerful thing to have.

You appeared on Tyler The Creator’s new album Chromakopia. How did that come about?

Well, he messaged me with an emoji and the words “Uncle Steve” or something, and I freaked the fuck out. I was in LA and this was before “Messy” and whatever. My album wasn’t even out and I actually almost shat myself and then I messaged him something back. I thought he was talking about a meme, but he’s just a fucking weirdo. I was searching through the internet for memes about “Uncle Steve”? Then we had a conversation about sandwiches, and he was like, you should come to LA. Eventually I went to the studio. He’s just actually a living genius.

I have to ask: what was on your Spotify Wrapped?

Well, I use Apple Music as my primary thing, so I didn’t look at my Wrapped, but it probably would’ve been Frank Ocean. I’m listening to a lot of trap at the moment – Tyler The Creator and Earl Sweatshirt as well. “Casual” by Chappell Roan and “Bed Chem” by Sabrina Carpenter were my favourites from their albums”.

There are a couple of other interviews I want to get to before finishing off. Nominated for Best Pop Act at this year’s BRIT Awards – she lost out to Jade -, Lola Young saw Messy reach number one in the U.K. in January. The BBC spoke with an artist who highlighted how her songs were as real as they get. Now there is this new momentum behind her music, this could be her breakout year:

“South London singer Lola Young's unflinchingly honest hit Messy has reached number one in the UK after a two-month climb, and she's been nominated for a Brit Award. Now she's made a breakthrough, this could be her year.

Lola Young jumps into a car, laughing uncontrollably as she flashes a brand new set of shiny gold teeth.

"I just got grills fitted," she explains once she's regained her composure. "But they're like so intense, so you're rocking with this today, and a lisp."

She's been running a few minutes late for the interview and this explains why - so she can finish getting her dental jewellery accessories fitted,, external with which she seems extremely pleased.

The screen suddenly freezes. The car she's in is somewhere in the US and the reception has cut out.

Young made her US TV debut on Jimmy Fallon's talk show, external the night before, which followed a whirlwind trip to Australia, and she'll soon set off on a sold-out European tour. She's talking on Zoom as her manager drives her to the next stop on her schedule.

Young sang Messy on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon on Tuesday

Travelling the world and in high demand, but making time to get a full set of solid gold teeth grills fitted - she's living a proper pop star's life.

And she is now a proper pop star. After several years of almost making it - she sang on the 2021 John Lewis advert, was on the BBC Sound of 2022 list and had glowing reviews for her two albums - Messy has given her a bona fide hit.

The song became inescapable at the end of 2024 and completed its climb to the top of the charts on Friday.

The 24-year-old is the first current British artist to have a UK number one since Chase and Status and Stormzy in August, the youngest to do so since Dave in 2022, and the youngest British woman to score a chart-topper since Dua Lipa in 2017.

Her number one came a day after she was nominated for best pop act at the Brit Awards.

"The response has been amazing and it's been really exciting to see all the love that Messy has been receiving," says Young after reconnecting the call.

"I love the song, it's a song I wrote that's really personal and really important to me. So I'm really happy that it's resonating so much."

Young will play the Coachella and Reading and Leeds festivals this summer

Messy was released on Young’s second album This Wasn't Meant For You Anyway last May.

Its trajectory was supercharged when superstar US influencers Sofia Richie Grainge and Jake Shane posted a 14-second TikTok clip of themselves dancing to its chorus. Young's song has now been used in 1.3 million videos on the platform - from Kylie Jenner lip-syncing as a dog, to a viral clip of an old woman vaping and holding a pint alongside the caption "94 and still messy".

The singer would like to point out that the track's success is not simply down to TikTok, however.

"That's not necessarily how it blew up. I would like to say that the song was blowing up before TikTok, and it was having its moment elsewhere. A lot of things contributed to the success.

"The TikTok thing is great. I don't make music for TikTok. I make music for myself and for my fans, but the Sofia Richie thing is just one element of how well it did in every aspect.

"But yeah, it's been great to see every side of it."

Contradictions

The track was indeed starting to gain traction before finding TikTok virality, and has only done so well because it is more than a mere meme.

Its lyrics, about never being good enough for someone whatever you do, have connected deeply with fans. "I want to be me, is that not allowed?" she implores.

"I guess it's because the song speaks to so many people in terms of, I'm talking about the idea that there's two sides of a person, the contradictions," Young says.

The song captures how it is "to basically feel like you're not enough for somebody and also in turn not enough for yourself".

Amid the craziness of success, there's some relief that she has now reached the next level in her career.

"I mean, I feel like it's the right time," the singer says. "It's been a minute, but also it does feel like the right time for me."

Young has also recently featured on Tyler, the Creator’s well-received album Chromakopia”.

I am going to finish off with an interview from NME. Conducted whilst she was at the BRITs, I think we are going to see Lola Young collect lots of awards and headline festivals soon enough. An artist who speaks to so many people. A role model for sure. If you are unfamiliar with her then I would urge you to see out her music:

“The singer, songwriter and former NME Cover star spoke to us while on the BRITs 2025 red carpet, and discussed how ‘Messy’ became one of the biggest singles of the past 12 months.

“I think it’s the idea that you don’t have to be this thing that stereotypers want women to be,” she began. “It’s not even just that though, because everyone can feel like they’re not enough for somebody. ‘I want to be me, is that not allowed?’ – that’s a great lyric! I’m very proud of it and it feels like it’s resonating with people on a wider scale [than I expected].”

“I’m just taking it all in my stride and taking each day as it comes. I’m really proud of the song,” she added.

She also opened up about her recent cover of The Cure’s iconic single ‘Close To Me’, which she shared last month as part of triple j’s Like A Version series.

“I love The Cure. I love the weird [blend] of it being nostalgic but still feeling current,” she explained. “I think they’re an incredible band.”

At the 2025 BRITs ceremony, Young also took to the stage to perform her viral hit, and was nominated in the Best Pop Act category alongside Charli XCX, Dua Lipa and Rising Star winner Myles Smith. The award went to JADE, and marked the singer’s first BRIT trophy since launching a solo career.

The Cure were also up for several awards on the night – becoming their first nominations at the BRITs in three decades. They received nods in Best Rock Act, Group Of The Year and Mastercard Album Of The Year for ‘Songs Of A Lost World’, but ultimately went home empty handed, leading to fans sharing their frustrations online.

You can find a full list of the night’s winners here.

As for Lola Young, last summer, the singer’s debut album, ‘This Wasn’t Meant For You Anyway’, was given a glowing five-star review from NME, and described as “the most distinctive and daring realisation of her experimental tendencies yet”.

One of our most remarkable artists, the stunning Lola Young is going to have a very busy rest of 2025. After featuring Young a while ago, I have really enjoyed her music since. Someone who keeps growing and evolving, she will continue to get stronger. Such a talented songwriter and performer, make sure that you follow…

THE wonderful Lola Young.

____________

Follow Lola Young

PHOTO CREDIT: Sophie Jones

Official:

https://www.lola-young.com/

Instagram:

https://www.instagram.com/lolayounggg/

TikTok:

https://www.tiktok.com/@lolayounggg

Spotify:

https://open.spotify.com/artist/67FB4n52MgexGQIG8s0yUH?si=fdfoCYBETzetDZMt4Kb7-A

YouTube:

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCytDCxKs_rP8sBXjLmEs8jA

Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/lolayoungmusic/

FEATURE: Walk of Life: Dire Straits’ Brothers in Arms at Forty

FEATURE:

 

 

Walk of Life

Dire Straits’ Brothers in Arms at Forty

_________

LOOKING ahead…

IN THIS PHOTO: Dire Straits performing with Sting at Live Aid in 1985/PHOTO CREDIT: Shutterstock

to 17th May, that is when Dire Straits’ Brothers in Arms turns forty. Their most acclaimed album, I wanted to spend some time with it ahead of its anniversary. A chance to go inside an album whose huge hits, including Money for Nothing and Walk of Life, mark it out as one of the best albums of the 1980s. A huge commercial success that went to number one around the world (including their native U.K. and in the U.S.), there is no denying the legacy and importance of Brothers in Arms. The fifth studio album from the band, it was the first album in history sell over a million copies on C.D. A truly massive chart success, Brothers in Arms also was the first album ever to be certified ten-time platinum in the U.K. It also won the Best British Album prize at the 1987 BRIT Awards. I am going to get to some reviews soon enough. I want to start out with this feature from 2024. They celebrate the fact that Brothers in Arms was an album that connected with millions of people. Dire Straits could not have foreseen how successful their fifth studio album would become:

“No one, not even Mark Knopfler and Dire Straits themselves, could have anticipated what happened when they released their new album on May 13, 1985. It went on to top the US chart for nine weeks, became a global No.1, a double Grammy-winner and has sold an estimated 30 million copies worldwide. After the preview of the single “So Far Away,” May 25 was the date that year that Brothers In Arms made its debut on the UK listings.

In America, the album also gave Dire Straits a residency on pop radio and on MTV, as “Money For Nothing” hit No.1 on the Hot 100. Brothers also became the first million-selling compact disc, and generated a tour that ran to a total of 248 gigs in 117 cities. In the week that it entered the US chart at No.54, it fell to No.3 after its first two weeks at No.1 in the UK (there would be 12 more, later) but continued at the summit in Australia.

Now happy to be touring in a more manageable way in his own name and with his current, stellar band, Knopfler has come to realise that the enormous scale of that mid-1980s tour couldn’t be sustained. “I always want to go everywhere but you can’t, you have to cut it down a bit,” he said some years ago.

“We used to do all these enormous tours but I think I was sort of running away, and you can’t really run away,” he went on. “These tours end and you have to come back, But now I don’t want to run away, I just want to do a reasonable length of tour and then come home again”.

I want to go back to 2015 and Ultimate Classic Rock’s thirtieth anniversary feature around Brothers in Arms. They note how the band’s fourth studio album, Love Over Gold, subverted critical expectations. Brothers in Arms shattered them altogether. An album that is still being talked about and played widely to this day:

“But before it topped charts, sold millions and won Grammys, Brothers in Arms had a fairly humble birth. After working the songs out with the band in rehearsal, Dire Straits leader Mark Knopfler took the group and co-producer Neil Dorfsman out to AIR Studios on the Caribbean island of Montserrat — a setting that proved idyllic in some ways and frustrating in others.

"It was pretty torturous," Dorfsman told Sound on Sound. "It was a good-sounding studio, but the main room itself was nothing to write home about. ... Still, we crowded everybody in there, recording with at least three or four guys on every tune, while I built little rooms out of gobos and baffles and blankets."

What saved the tracks — and helped make Brothers in Arms a benchmark recording for the early years of the nascent digital era — was the studio's Neve console, which combined with the overall Montserrat vibe to produce a purity of sound as well as intent. "It was a great place to hang out and it was very relaxed, so you could focus on what you were doing," explained Dorfsman. "And the board was so good that anything you put through it just sounded great."

One notable exception to that rule proved to be drummer Terry Williams' playing, which Dorfsman immediately found lacking — an opinion that, as the weeks dragged on, Knopfler came to share. Although Williams wasn't fired from the band, he was eventually dismissed from the sessions and replaced by Omar Hakim, then a member of Sting's Blue Turtles band.

While he acknowledged that he could have handled the situation more delicately, Dorfsman stood by the results, which he recalled making an immediate difference as soon as Hakim knocked out his first drum track — the start of a quick two days of work that ended with him replacing all of Williams' performances except his crescendos during the "Money for Nothing" intro.

"Omar is very, very confident as a musician and as a person, and what he brought to it was exactly what it needed, which was kind of a kick in the butt," said Dorfsman. "We were there in Montserrat, it was beautiful, there was a lot of swimming, a lot of hanging out, and basically we got into a thing where the energy slowly ebbed away. It was like being on a vacation for a while and losing a little bit of edge without even realizing it. The music needed that energy and we weren't really getting it. We weren't vibing at all, but then I remember Omar coming in and it was like a bulldozer — New York attitude, New York energy."

Hakim's presence wasn't the only Sting connection on the record. For "Money for Nothing," a tongue-in-cheek dismissal of the rock star lifestyle that Knopfler penned after overhearing a "hard-hat type" complaining in a department store while MTV played in the background on a wall of TVs, Knopfler reached out to Sting to sing a refrain that set the words "I want my MTV" to the tune of the Police hit "Don't Stand So Close to Me." Coupled with the song's distinctive video, it added up to the band's biggest single.

Also aiding Brothers in Arms' steady ascent to No. 1 on the charts was Knopfler and Dorfsman's decision to record using a digital deck. Although the album wasn't completely digital, it came close enough to be marketed as one of the few titles whose sonics took advantage of the new CD format's capability for cleaner sound, and the sales bore that out: Brothers became the first record to move a million compact discs, and the first whose CD sales outmatched its LP's. For a variety of reasons, it was the right album at the right time — not that Knopfler ever professed to understand the huge surge in popularity that followed.

"It was a sheer fluke," Knopfler said years later. "If it hadn't been that album, it would have been something else. It was just an accident of timing. It got connected: 'Brothers in Arms' was the first CD single, or so I'm told, and I suppose it was one of the first CD albums. ... Plus, we had a couple of hits in America – 'Money for Nothing' and 'Walk of Life' – so it got connected with the American success, but people will always want to make something like that into something else completely."

As many artists have discovered, that level of success isn't always everything it's cracked up to be, and Dire Straits' quietly literate brand of rock was never really made for the arena-sized platform they commanded after Brothers in Arms. As the band's profile continued to grow, Knopfler viewed their increased fortune with a certain amount of alarm.

"We just picked the ball up and ran with it. Which is what most kids do when that happens," Knopfler told Barney Hoskyns in 2004. "And that’s fine. We had a really good run. It did get big, and I just felt that it got too big to be real and to be manageable. I think there’s an optimum size for things. I’m a pretty slow learner, so it probably just took me a bit longer than most sensible people to get the sense of proportion right”.

The first of two reviews I want to highlight is from Pitchfork. In 2020, they reviewed the box set, The Studio Albums 1978-1991 / Dire Straits / Communiqué / Making Movies / Love Over Gold / Brothers in Arms / On Every Street. It was interesting what they had to say about Dire Straits’ commercial smash. It is a classic album that did get some mixed reviews. Some critics not completely on board:

“Songs came crashing back into the spotlight on Brothers in Arms. Stripping away the excesses of Love Over Gold, Dire Straits distilled a shimmering, atmospheric sound that could withstand industrial-strength rock’n’roll, cowboy laments, and heartache alike. That delicate balance between songcraft and austere atmosphere is key to the album’s phenomenal success: It could appeal to traditionalists and modernists alike. Some of Knopfler’s sturdiest songs are here, such as the pining “So Far Away” and “Why Worry,” a tune so lovely the Everly Brothers covered it soon after its release. Listening to Brothers in Arms decades later, its moodiness is striking, particularly when Knopfler’s guitar glides atop Clark’s keyboards; this is the sound modern acolytes like the War on Drugs and Jason Isbell have adopted as their own.

Brothers in Arms is also home to “Money for Nothing” and “Walk of Life,” a pair of smash singles that helped sustain Dire Straits’ popularity into the 1990s. Like “Industrial Disease” before it, “Walk of Life” is the rockin’ anomaly on Brothers in Arms, but its cheerful, old-time rock’n’roll became a standard on screen and in sports arenas alike. As popular as it was, “Walk of Life” was overshadowed by “Money for Nothing,” a screed against music videos cannily given a cutting-edge video that made it a staple on MTV. Sung from the gruff perspective of a blue-collar appliance installer who can’t believe musicians draw a paycheck, the song theoretically gives the songwriter license to portray his character’s homophobia in the third person, but the song’s verse about the “little faggot with the earring and the makeup” is jarring and distasteful. Heard in close proximity to “Les Boys,” it’s hard to hear it as simply Knopfler singing in character, the way his idol Randy Newman did on “Rednecks."

Some critics did call out Knopfler about this “Money for Nothing” verse back in 1985—Robert Christgau noted the singer-songwriter somehow got the word on the radio “with no static from the PMRC”—and Canadian radio ultimately banned the song in 2011. The controversy may dog Dire Straits, but it’s never quite tarnished the group, possibly because Brothers in Arms was simply too big: It was certified platinum 14 times in the UK, nine times in the U.S. The record’s success afforded the group the opportunity to take an extended hiatus, allowing Mark Knopfler to pursue his country-rock busman’s holiday the Notting Hillbillies and cut a duet album with his hero Chet Atkins in 1990”.

I am going to end with this review from Subjective Sounds. If you are new to the album or have not heard it for a while then I would advise you to listen to it now. I heard this album when I was a child and have loved it ever since. Even if some critics have taken against it, you cannot deny how millions took Brothers in Arms to heart. Some minor quibbles aside – such as the homophobic slur in the lyrics for Money for Nothing -, it remains this exceptional album that took Dire Straits to new heights and worldwide:

“Released in 1985, Dire Straits’ Brothers In Arms was not only a defining moment in the band’s career, but it was a landmark release. With its blend of poignant songwriting, intricate guitar work, and state-of-the-art production, the album resonates as a timeless masterpiece with an equally compelling piece of cover art that blends perfectly with the music.

While the fanfare surrounding this record is absolutely justified, it’s an album that has long divided music lovers and audiophiles for there are so many different versions (masterings) that one needs to question if it is the sonic quality, or the music itself, that should be at the forefront when listening to Brothers In Arms.

Here at Subjective Sounds, you’ll get both perspectives, but I do lean towards the music rather than sonic prowess alone. Let’s start with the formats, and then discuss the music, shall we?

With over 500 versions of Brothers In Arms listed on Discogs, one would rightfully find selecting a definitive edition to be tricky, if not impossible. While I obviously can’t review every release, I’ll give you my thoughts based on the versions I’ve been fortunate to have listened to.

The releases include:

• The Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab 2015 release (MFSL 2-441)

• The 20th Anniversary Vertigo (9871498) Hybrid SACD edition

• The Apple Music 16-bit/44.1kHz ALAC lossless stream

What’s most interesting, however, is that the Hybrid SACD contains not only the CD version of the album but also the HDCD, SACD Stereo 2.0 mix, and the SACD 5.1 Surround Sound Mix. That single disc has so many different versions on it that it really showcases just how well the Hybrid SACD format could be utilised for a mass market release; a release that could appeal to all music lovers, rather than just audiophiles.

While multiple options are (usually) a good thing, sometimes there can be too much of a good thing and in this instance, less is more. Yes, dear reader, I drove myself to the point of insanity, listening to every version and the truth is that I couldn’t pick a winner for each exhibited their own uniqueness and none were what I would consider to be flawed. Certainly, I had my preferences, but I could never quite lock one in; until now.

So, which version did I prefer and why?

I chose to go with the lossless Apple Music stream. Blasphemy, I hear you say. The problem was I was listening for faults and minute elements rather than simply enjoying the music. Plus, when all else fails, sometimes good enough is…good enough.

Nevertheless, I’ll give a brief rundown on my experiences with the two physical versions, for those of you who may, or may not, wish to go through the torturous process of deciding which version you’d subjectively feel is better. And, yes, if you’ve put more money into your turntable setup than your SACD et al gear, that will be the one to go for, and vice versa.

Let’s start with the Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab (MOFI) edition; for it is magnificent. While I don’t condone MOFI’s deceit regarding the master tape sources they used, along with using a digital intermediary, the sonic reproduction, of this release, speaks for itself as you will be enveloped in the soundstage from the very first note to the last. Every musical element is positioned exactly where it should be and regardless of the volume you choose to play the album at, it’s going to sound incredible. While it isn’t necessarily affordable, although what is these days, if you’re after a record that will make your turntable sing, this is one you should certainly consider. You do have to deal with flipping the record over after two songs, however; a by-product of the album being pressed at 45rpm. Of course, original releases truncate some of the album’s greatest songs in order to have had it fit comfortably on a regular 33.3rpm release, so there will always be a tradeoff when it comes to vinyl editions.

As with all MOFI releases, the outer sleeve is thick, so much so that one would need to be determined to damage it before the sleeve would fall apart. It’s a lovely reproduction, even if the gatefold inner artwork is a little on the blander side.

So Far Away opens the album with a clean and steady rhythm that is largely unassuming but equally compelling. Setting the tone for the music to come, So Far Away is not only an enduring classic but its relaxed groove will appeal to just about any music lover as it sounds deceptively simple, yet its melodic sophistication ensures that it’s timeless.

Money For Nothing is, without a doubt, the most iconic track from the album with one of the most recognisable guitar riffs in rock history. This is pop-rock at its finest and despite being released in the mid-80s, no element pigeonholes it to that era. Much could be said about this landmark tune, including the often criticised controversial lyrics, but it’s in the listening that will determine one’s interest in Money For Nothing. So, take a listen and rock out for Dire Straits doesn’t get much better than this.

Walk Of Life lifts the tone of the album with its upbeat organ tuning and the song’s infectious rhythm. Providing a lighter, more playful counterpoint to much of the album’s introspective tone, Walk Of Life is a joyous track that has long been a fan favourite and a staple in Dire Straits’ live performances.

Your Latest Trick immediately sets itself apart from Walk Of Life, yet it doesn’t sound out-of-place in the album’s linear structure. Your Latest Trick is very much jazz meets soft rock, with lush instrumental arrangements and an intricate interplay between all musical elements. While it may not have set the charts on fire, when released as the final single from the album, it’s amongst Dire Straits’ greatest recordings and harkens back to their earlier releases, just with a tad more production and layered musicality.

Why Worry? is tender, meditative, and despite clocking in at eight minutes, I never tire of it and could listen to this song on repeat indefinitely. The soothing melody, combined with Knopfler’s gentle guitar work and delicate arrangement, makes this beautiful song a hidden gem.

Ride Across The River paints a vivid sonic landscape, one built on a foundation of Latin-inspired percussion and atmospheric synthesisers. The song is so immersive that it creates a cinematic listening experience and, despite being an album-only tune, is a core reason why Brothers In Arms is so respected.

The Man's Too Strong has a stark acoustic arrangement before delving into a more dramatic dynamic that will draw you in instantly. As it pertains to the various editions of this album, it’s songs such as this that can either make or break the record as the crescendo tends to be ear-piercing and shrill. In fairness, the Apple Music stream doesn’t deliver the low-end boldness that is heard on the vinyl release, but at the very least it doesn’t grind my senses.

One World injects a funky upbeat groove into the album. Its lively tempo and rhythmic interplay make it a refreshing change of pace; one that will find you toe-tapping and head-bopping along to this incredible tune.

Brothers In Arms is a hauntingly beautiful ballad that features one of Knopfler’s most emotive guitar performances and serves as a poignant closer to one of the greatest albums ever recorded.

Ultimately, Brothers In Arms is more than just a collection of songs, it’s an artistic statement that has stood the test of time; one that has sold more than 30 million copies worldwide. With its seamless blend of rock, jazz, and blues influences, there’s little doubt as to why this landmark release was not only so well received, but is amongst the greatest albums released in 1985”.

On 17th May – though some sources say 13th May -, Dire Straits’ Brothers in Arms turns forty. A global smash that took the band to number one in so many countries, I hope it gets new celebration and affection nearer its anniversary. There is going to be an anniversary reissue that fans can pre-order now. From standout cuts like Walk of Life and Money for Nothing through to the less-played So Far Away and The Man’s Too Strong, this exceptional album still holds so much power…

FORTY years later.

FEATURE: The Digital Mixtape: A Stevie Wonder Playlist

FEATURE:

 

 

The Digital Mixtape

PHOTO CREDIT: Emma McIntyre/Getty Images for The Art of Elysium

A Stevie Wonder Playlist

_________

MY second Digital Mixtape…

in as many days, there is a special reason for this one. It has just been announced that the legendary Stevie Wonder will headline BST Hyde Park 2025. He is also embarking on his LOVE, LIGHT & SONG U.K. tour. Because of that, I wanted to do a career-spanning playlist. One that reveals the full scope of his genius. It will be an incredible experience seeing him on the stage. Before getting to the mixtape, NME report the news of some exciting dates. Even if you are not a massive Stevie Wonder fan then you will want to catch him. It will be as life-altering experience:

“Stevie Wonder is set to headline London’s BST Hyde Park 2025 as part of his ‘LOVE, LIGHT & SONG’ UK tour. Find all the details below.

The tour will take the legendary singer-songwriter to cities across the UK including Lytham, Birmingham, Cardiff, London and Manchester, with the summer trek set to kick off with a headline performance at Lytham Festival on July 3.

From there, he’ll head to Manchester’s Co-op Live Arena, Birmingham’s Utilita Arena and Cardiff’s Blackweir Fields, before wrapping things up in London with a headline BST Hyde Park concert on July 12.

Marking his third appearance at the festival, the soul legend will take to the Great Oak stage on July 12, with support acts to be announced later. Tickets go on general sale at 10am GMT this Friday (March 21), and you can find yours here.

The ‘Superstition’ singer is one of the best-selling artists of all time, having produced a slew of hits across his career and garnered 25 Grammy Awards, as well as being inducted into the Rhythm and Blues Music Hall of Fame, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and the Songwriters Hall of Fame.

Wonder joins the previously announced BST Hyde Park 2025 headliners Neil Young, Sabrina Carpenter, Olivia Rodrigo, Zach Bryan, Noah Kahan and Jeff Lynne’s ELO.

Tickets for Stevie Wonder’s Hyde Park gig also go on general sale at 10am GMT this Friday (March 21) – you’ll be able to buy yours here. Alternatively, Amex customers can access a pre-sale today (Monday March 17).

Stevie Wonder’s ‘LOVE, LIGHT & SONG’ 2025 UK tour dates are:

July
3 – TK Maxx Presents Lytham Festival
5 – Co-op Live, Manchester
7 – Utilita Arena, Birmingham
9 – Blackweir Fields, Cardiff
12 – BST Hyde Park, London

News of his Hyde Park headline show follows last year’s surprise announcement of the ‘Sing Your Song! As We Fix Our Nation’s Broken Heart’ US tour, so-called after Wonder’s 2024 single by the same name, the release of which marked his first new song in four years”.

I will revisit Stevie Wonder in May as he turns seventy-five then. One of the all-time great artists, his Hyde Park show will be one of his career highlights. I have been a fan of his music since I was a child so I am really glad that he is still performing and undertaking these huge shows. The love he will get on the road. To celebrate a big announcement and these upcoming shows, below is a career-spanning mixtape of…

STEVIE Wonder gold.

FEATURE: Heavy Breathing: Kate Bush and the Search for the ‘Human’ Take

FEATURE:

 

 

Heavy Breathing

IN THIS PHOTO: Kate Bush in 1980

Kate Bush and the Search for the ‘Human’ Take

_________

THERE is always this debate…

IN THIS PHOTO: Kate Bush in 1980

around Kate Bush and whether she can be called a perfectionist. I think you would define one, in musical terms, as someone who was never happy and slaved over takes because they are never happy. Pushing things beyond their limits. With Kate Bush, it is very much about getting something from her players that is more about playing with their hearts and not their heads. That may sound wishy-washy or abstract. Of course, musicians are largely guided by technique and precision. They are playing the song in a particular way and there may be multiple takes so that it sounds right. When it comes to Kate Bush and her music, I think that she wanted to push them beyond that point and open them up. In the sense that there was something inside of them that could not be unearthed unless they kept doing takes. So they were perhaps more relaxed and less inhibited. One of the frustrations on her first couple of albums might have been the production and the way the recordings were directed. Of course, Andrew Powell was an experienced producer and exceptional musician. More used to getting what was required but really not going beyond that. Knowing that what he captured was technically great and would sound good on the record. One could imagine Kate Bush producing The Kick Inside and Lionheart in 1978 and taking things in a different direction. When she was producing on Never for Ever things changed. If you play with your head and are perhaps over-thinking thing then you can only get so much from the finished recording. However, when you keep going and let your heart lead then there is something extraordinary revealed. Bonding with the song in a more personal and deeper way. Getting more from the song. It is interesting to consider. Kate Bush not content with a few takes and getting something good out. As a producer, she knew that she could get something special from her musicians.

After being mimicked and spoofed by many in the early days, Never for Ever was an album where her voice changed. There was more gravel and grit in it. Trying to distance herself from the idea she was a squeaky-voiced singer and this rigid (and untrue) perception. Breathing is perhaps the standout from Never for Ever. The album’s final track, it was also one where she had to push the musicians quite hard. Brian Bath being asked to play the same guitar part a couple of hundred times. Though it must have been frustrating or odd for musicians – who could perhaps not detect much difference and improvement between takes thirty and one-hundred -, it is like directing actors. Looking for a perfect take. One where they hit a sweep spot or uncover something that needed bringing to the surface. Scientific discovery and experimentation. Kate Bush must have got through quite a few spools of tape. Max Middleton adding in a discordant note to the song. Though not especially pleasant to hear, when added to the mix, it began to click. It made Breathing even better. Bush as this director and visionary. I have discussed this before. The human aspect of the song. Something Graeme Thomson notes in Under the Ivy: The Life and Music of Kate Bush. Rather than rehash what I have previously written, it is curious honing in on the human element. Songs on Never for Ever – and subsequent work – that were about people or human relations. If you are playing technically or driven by your head, are you going to get the most evocative, human and deepest take? For session musicians who were used to working in a different way, this was a time to adapt. Perhaps a few takes and making sure the song sounded right with no errors. That was it. Songs that demanded more emotion meant that they were being pushed harder by Kate Bush. Producing with Jon Kelly, maybe there were moments when there were tensions.

Kate Bush was right. Something She could not exercise on her first two albums, when she got the chance to take the production reigns, there was this new ethos. A relentless work ethic and this persistence in getting the very best from her musicians. That fact that the finished Breathing provoked tears from the musicians proved that she was correct to ensure that they were playing with feeling and not just instinct or something more academic – and less spiritual. Kate Bush is not really a perfectionist who overworks a song or takes all of the edges off. There is a magic and mystery in her head. She wants the musicians to play what she hears. That is a commendable quality. Until there is this transcendence! When I discussed Kate Bush as a producer and her casting for musicians and doing multiple takes, it is not her flexing or showing who is boss. She writes a song knows what it sounds like. She would not instantly know which player and part is best for the song until she tries a few options. A song like Breathing is an extreme in terms of its takes. However, when you hear the song now, would it impact you as hard and deep if less time had been spent on it?! It was not only other musicians that were worked until they produced the most human take. One that brought all of the heart and humanity from the song. Bush also did this to herself in terms of her vocals.

Again, not wanting to be associated with this image of her having a high voice and it being sweet with no depth, The Dreaming (1982) especially saw her add, in her words, some balls to her vocals. This continues for Hounds of Love in 1985. Maybe a bit of a shift again for The Sensual World (1993). If the experiences with Breathing at Abbey Road was Kate Bush making her musicians do multiple takes and getting the most from their instruments, her studios and spaces for The Dreaming were a world apart. Advision Studios in Fitzrovia became a hermetically sealed environment. Bush would work fifteen or more hours a day. Not as airy or light as Abbey Road, time and space must have seemed distant or strange. Bush recalled how every night she and those with her would watch the evening news, eat takeaway food and go digging for treasures. A windowless studio, it must have been intense and claustrophobic down there! This basement studio where Bush was not resting. During meal breaks she would be playing around and working. Subsiding largely on a grape diet in the final stages of recording The Dreaming, Bush stated how she felt like a Martian when she came out of that recording experience. Into the daylight and around humans. However, when you hear about the vocals on The Dreaming, Bush was looking for something extraordinary.

Expressing the real meaning of the lyrics and a distinct timbre and tone. For that reason, she needed some aides to get something different out of her voice. Guide vocals were recorded at Abbey Road and Townhouse. The master vocals were recorded in sections. Seeing as different voices and characters were in the songs, it meant embodying something physical and distinct for each vocal take. Piecing them together. Finding the right technique and production sound for each song. It must have been exhausting! Like with Never for Ever, Bush wanted the human to come from the songs. Also, as Graeme Thomson writes, a “girl becoming a woman”, there are these growling and roaring vocals that are so different to what people were used to. Adding milk and chocolate to her diet to give some mucus and grit, you can hear the results on Houidini, All the Love, Pull Out the Pin, Night of the Swallow and Get Out of My House. Wild, abandoned, emotional and often intense, it was very much controlled by Kate Bush. She knew exactly what she was doing! It must have been wonderful and sometimes draining for her musicians. Maybe not looking ahead to what would come, Bush knew the sound she wanted them to give her. When it came to her vocals, doing whatever she could so that the perfect take was released. The results speak for themselves. It is one of many reasons why Kate Bush is this hugely influential and iconic artist. Like I say quite often, we do not give her enough credit and love when it comes to discussing her…

AS a producer.