Kate Bush Album: “The Kick Inside”

Released while still in her teens, this debut by Kate Bush is deceptively simple. One would not expect tons of musical sophistication in the structures of her songs. And, if the truth be told, the emotional palette of the album is fairly limited as well--that is to say, compared to her later work, there is a romantic dreaminess suffusing Bush's vocals throughout that is of unparalleled beauty, and even naivete.

Behind the simplicity of the verse-chorus song structures is a ferocious imagination. The vocal line of the opening song, "Moving" is more than enough to sound like some kind of complete reinvention of all singing. It is one of the most beautiful (and moving) things that Bush has ever recorded. And, as throughout all of her career, the musicians she has playing for her are genuine masters of tact, taste and musicianship. The bass player, in particular, deserves to be in the Hall of Fame for his playing.

There is no doubt that this is a first album by a first-rate artist. One song, one of the disc's stand-outs, "The Man with a Child in his Eyes" was apparently recorded when she was sixteen. Again, compared to her later work, there is a very dominant style of piano-bass-drum music over which Bush's sensuous vocals sail. The attempt at a more rock orchestration on "James and the Cold Gun", while musically lush in performance, seems a bit forced and is one of the weaker spots on the album. Basically, if the opening song grabs you by the soul and makes you sit up, then the whole thing is a banquet of similar delights.

Lastly, the album also features the (now) signature Kate Bush song, "Wuthering Heights". One of those rare kinds of song that deserves every bit of admiration that Bush's devoted fans lavish on it. Newcomers should be warned not to overread the meaning in the lyrics, here or anywhere else. Bush's lyrics seem to be very private, on the one hand, or are imaginative projections of the person in her song. In other words, and as Bush has asserted in interviews, the artist should not be mistaken for her subject.

Over the course of her career, one can actually hear the young woman who is singing on this album growing up--songs about broken hearts, rather than romantic idylls about Prince Charmings. The freshness, even the innocence, captured on this disk is truly remarkable. The singing, often in the very high range, is almost painfully moving--a truly amazing musical experience if you can be open to it without irony.

Kate Bush was one of the first to teach us that pop music doesn't have to be shallow and that girl singers don't have to be airheads. Some of these songs actually require you to read a book before you understand the lyrics.

I discovered her music about three years ago (I was born in 1978 so I was too young to remember her in her heyday)when a friend lent me the C.D. A huge fan of Emily Bronte, I was just blown away by Wuthering Heights, I felt like the spirit of Emily was speaking through her. It's so amazing that an 18 year old could compose a song full of such raw emotion and intellectual depth.

Every song on the album has a warmth to it, a charm that is both old-world and distinctly ahead of it's time. How lucky for us that, unlike most of the genius population, Kate Bush didn't have to struggle for years in anonimity, but that her songs were given to the world straight away.

I'll never be one of the people who critisize Tori Amos and other singers inspired by Kate because WE NEED MORE OF THEM.

I recently read that Kate Bush's "Wuthering Heights" was not initially inspired by the actual book but by a television mini-series based on same (not even the classic Laurence Olivier/Merle Oberon film apparently). My initial reaction was one of shock. I mean, Kate must have been all of 15 or 16 when she conceived of the song, but haven't all well-bred (and reasonably well-read) young English girls read the Bronte classic by then? And wasn't it just the height of presumption to pen a three minute musical adaptation of that narrative without having digested the actual book itself? Well, that's the librarian in me speaking, I guess. The more I thought about it, the more I liked the idea that Kate's classic (some might say "signature" song) was based on a screenplay rather than its source novel.

First of all, Kate supposedly read the novel right after having composed the song, in order to verify that her "research" was right. So all is forgiven on that score. Secondly, it seems all the more emblematic of her teenage creative soul that she would take her inspiration where she found it--even if it's not necessarily through the accepted channels. And then, just the fact that she apparently admitted it without much reservation is charmingly candid.

And of course it is a great song--one of many on this, Kate Bush's astonishing debut album. And I am not one to use words like "astonishing" lightly. To think that this almost flawless, truly poetic and musically sophisticated record was the work of a 19 year old almost boggles the mind. And one considers that many of the tracks were actually written when Kate was an even younger teen, well, it's clear that we are dealing with a true prodigy.

In terms of her adolescent burst of creative energy, Kate Bush reminds me of no one so much as Laura Nyro. Like Nyro, her songs were both quirky and yet eminently listenable. They were,in fact, full of hooks. Both women simultaneously enjoyed "cult" status while proving to be "commercially viable," (Nyro, unfortunately, primarily in the role of a hit factory for OTHER artists--even though her own interpretations were invariabley superior; Bush enjoyed considerable popularity on her home turf, but had to wait years to achieve any prominence in the US). Despite wildly divergent influences (Laura being steeped in NYC Doo-Wop, R&B, Broadway, and--really just--a bit of folk; while Kate was rooted in an Anglo-Celtic folk tradition, melded with a particularly British brand of progressive rock), they were in so many ways, sisters under the skin. Kate Nyro? Laura Bush? (Strike that last.)

If you accept that premise, then you might also agree with me that Kate Bush's early work displays the same kind of "madcap energy" that Laura saw in her own early work. Her songs were wildly inventive, musically and lyrically. Her off-handed spirituality galled some critics, but others found her bandying about of names like Gurdjieff and Jesus in the context of a bouncy, spirited near novelty number ("Them Heavy People") completely winning. A similar spirit sends a song like "Kite" aloft. And keeps it there.

The slower tempoed tunes are equally captivating, many of them moody meditations on love and loss that should have been beyond her years (as, say, Nyro had been a decade or so before with tunes like "December's Boudoir'). One can allow a 19-year old her Romanticism, so when she sees herself "in a Berlin bar, in a corner brooding," the listener indulges her her fantasy. Everyone's entitled to what Joni Mitchell calls their "dark cafe days." And at least, the young Kate Bush spent her time there sincerely grooving to a genius player's saxophone. And the sax arrangement captures that sentiment beautifully.

And speaking of arrangements, KICK INSIDE does differ from any number of other promising debut albums in one significant regard: the production and arrangements are spot on. They complement Kate's material beautifully. Kate did not start producing her own material for another few years, but she either lucked out and had the most compatible producer and arrangers possible or she was already--at the age of 19--calling the shots behind the scenes.

"The Kick Inside" is really a beautiful album. What makes it more unique and special, is that the album was created by a girl of 17 years of age. This was Kate Bush's debut, and it was a stunning and extremely literate debut. Kate's voice soars over an eight octave range to songs that can be sexual, romantic, and spiritual. "Wuthering Heights" (maybe to the annoyance of Kate)is her signature tune in some countries. The song is amazing, and is delivered in a theatrical manner, showing off Kate's beautiful and unorthodox voice and songwriting.

This album has one of the best songs written about a one night stand ("L'Amour Looks Something About You") and the orgasmic ("Feel It"). Despite its positive and romantic vibe, it ends with a suicide note in "The Kick Inside". Stark and beautiful stuff.

This album, released way back in 1978, is one of the best debuts ever. In my opinion, Kate only topped this album with The Dreaming and Hounds Of Love. This album includes some of her earliest compositions, some she wrote when still in her early teens. The Man With The Child In His Eyes is one of the most beautiful songs ever; Moving and the title track are way up with the best of the best as well, as far as I am concerned. It even includes some love songs (Oh To Be In Love, L'Amour Looks Something Like You), which are gorgeous. Her lyrical subjects matters are sometimes unexpected and of shock-value to some, but I think hers are so well crafted.... also, the instruments used on this album are unusual if some cases, but to great effect. I don't like every song on this album (Kite and Feel It don't do it for me), but the inclusion of the best pop song EVER makes up for that: Wuthering Heights. I have never heard anything better since. As for her voice: you either like it or you don't. And I love it.....