Never for Ever

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Never for Ever
Studio album by Kate Bush
Released 8 September 1980
Recorded Autumn 1979 - June 1980
Genre Art rock
Length 37:16
Label EMI
Producer Kate Bush, Jon Kelly
Kate Bush chronology
Lionheart
(1978)		 Never for Ever
(1980)		 The Dreaming
(1982)
Singles from Never for Ever
  1. "Breathing" b/w "The Empty Bullring"
    Released: 14 April 1980 (1980-04-14)
  2. "Babooshka" b/w "Ran Tan Waltz"
    Released: 27 June 1980 (1980-06-27)
  3. "Army Dreamers" b/w "Delius" / "Passing Through Air"
    Released: 22 September 1980 (1980-09-22)
Professional ratings
Review scores
Source Rating
Allmusic 3/5 stars[1]
Fluffhouse (8/10)[2]

Never for Ever is the third album by the British singer Kate Bush. Released in 1980, it was Bush's first no.1 album and was also the first ever album by a British female solo artist to top the UK album chart as well as being the first album by any female solo artist to enter the chart at no.1.[3] It has since been certified Gold by the BPI.[4] Bush co-produced the album with Jon Kelly.

Contents

[edit] Production and style

Never for Ever was Bush's second foray into production (her first was for the On Stage EP the previous year), aided by the engineer of Lionheart, Jon Kelly.[5] The first two albums had resulted in a particular sound which was evident in every track, with lush orchestral arrangements supporting the live band sound. The range of styles on Never for Ever is much more diverse, veering from the straightforward rocker "Violin" to the wistful waltz of hit single "Army Dreamers". Never for Ever was the first Kate Bush album to feature synthesizers and drum machines, in particular the Fairlight CMI,[5] which was programmed by Richard James Burgess and John L. Walters. Like her previous two albums, it was initially composed on piano.

Bush's literary and cinematic influences were again to the fore. "The Infant Kiss", the story of a governess who is frightened by the adult feelings she has for her young male charge (who is possessed by the spirit of a grown man), was inspired by the 1961 film The Innocents, which in turn had been inspired by The Turn of the Screw by Henry James. "The Wedding List" drew from François Truffaut's 1968 film The Bride Wore Black.[6] "Delius (Song of Summer)" is a song referring to the English composer Frederick Delius. Never for Ever is the only album to date by Bush not to have a title track.

"Blow Away (For Bill)" commemorates her lighting director Bill Duffield, killed in an accident at Poole Arts Centre during her 1979 tour.[7] The song links his name to those of several music stars who died in the previous decade - Minnie Riperton, Keith Moon, Sandy Denny, Sid Vicious - and one earlier icon - Buddy Holly.

[edit] Release and impact

The album became Bush's first record to reach the top position in the UK album charts, also making her the first female British solo artist to achieve that status.[8][9] Technically, Never for Ever is the first studio album (i.e. - not a greatest hits compilation) by any solo female artist to reach no.1 in the UK as only Barbra Streisand and Connie Francis had achieved the feat prior to 1980 but with compilation albums (Diana Ross had also achieved three UK no.1 albums by then but these were also compilations and were credited to Diana Ross & The Supremes and were therefore not solo albums).

In Japan, the CD booklet cover art was modified, as EMI-Toshiba execs decided that the illustration of various animals emerging from beneath Bush's skirt was too risque, and chose to enlarge a section of the original cover art, creating two different booklet covers: the outer one modified; and underneath the original.[citation needed]

The album's cover was voted 'Greatest Album Cover of 1980' by Record Mirror.

[edit] Track listing

All songs written and composed by Kate Bush. 

Side one
No. Title Length
1. "Babooshka"   3:20
2. "Delius (Song of Summer)"   2:51
3. "Blow Away (For Bill)"   3:33
4. "All We Ever Look For"   3:47
5. "Egypt"   4:10
Side two
No. Title Length
6. "The Wedding List"   4:15
7. "Violin"   3:15
8. "The Infant Kiss"   2:50
9. "Night Scented Stock"   0:51
10. "Army Dreamers"   2:55
11. "Breathing"   5:29

[edit] Personnel

[edit] Charts

[edit] Chart positions

Chart (1980) Position
Australian Kent Music Report Albums Chart[10] 7
Dutch Mega Albums Chart[11] 4
French SNEP Albums Chart [12] 1
German Media Control Albums Chart [13] 5
Japanese Oricon LP Chart[14] 40
New Zealand Albums Chart [15] 31
Norwegian VG-lista Albums Chart[16] 2
Swedish Albums Chart[17] 16
UK Albums Chart [18] 1

[edit] Year-end charts

Chart (1980) Position
Australian Albums Chart[10] 55
French Albums Chart[19] 34
UK Albums Chart[20] 27

[edit] Certifications & Sales

Region Certification Sales/shipments
Canada (Music Canada)[21] Platinum 100,000^
France (SNEP)[22] Gold 299,600[23]
Germany (BVMI)[24] Gold 250,000^
Japan (Oricon Charts) 17,910[14]
Netherlands (NVPI)[25] Gold 50,000^
United Kingdom (BPI)[4] Gold 100,000^

^shipments figures based on certification alone
xunspecified figures based on certification alone

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ Allmusic review
  2. ^ http://www.fluffhouse.org.uk/musicreviews/album.php?albumid=60
  3. ^ Kate Bush Never for Ever chart history
  4. ^ a b "British album certifications – Kate Bush – Never for Ever". British Phonographic Industry. http://www.bpi.co.uk/certifiedawards/search.aspx.  Enter Never for Ever in the field Search. Select Title in the field Search by. Select album in the field By Format. Click Go
  5. ^ a b "Kate Bush". NNDB. http://www.nndb.com/people/504/000025429/. Retrieved 2007-04-03. 
  6. ^ Irwin, Colin. Paranoia and Passion of the Kate Inside, Melody Maker 10 October 1980. Accessed: 12 November 2011.
  7. ^ "Kate Bush - singer-songwriter". BBC. 4 February 2005. Retrieved 2010-08-02.
  8. ^ Williamson, Nigel (2005-10-02). The Mighty Bush. Scotland on Sunday. http://gaffaweb.org/reaching/rev_aer_UK1.html. Retrieved 2009-05-05 
  9. ^ [dead link]Williamson, Nigel. "The Mighty Bush". Scotland on Sunday. http://gaffa.org/reaching/rev_aer_UK1.html. Retrieved 2007-04-03. 
  10. ^ a b Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. St Ives, NSW: Australian Chart Book. ISBN 0646119176. 
  11. ^ "dutchcharts.nl Kate Bush - Never for Ever". dutchcharts.nl. MegaCharts. http://dutchcharts.nl/showitem.asp?interpret=Kate+Bush&titel=Never+For+Ever&cat=a. Retrieved 2011-09-12. 
  12. ^ "InfoDisc : Tous les Albums classés par Artiste > Choisir Un Artiste Dans la Liste : Kate Bush". infodisc.fr. http://infodisc.fr/Album_B.php. Retrieved 2011-09-12. 
  13. ^ "Album Search: Kate Bush" (in German). Media Control. http://www.charts.de/search.asp?search=kate+Bush&x=0&y=0&cat=a&country=de. Retrieved 2011-09-12. 
  14. ^ a b Oricon Album Chart Book: Complete Edition 1970-2005. Roppongi, Tokyo: Oricon Entertainment. 2006. ISBN 4871310779. 
  15. ^ "charts.org.nz - Kate Bush - Never for Ever". Recording Industry Association of New Zealand. http://charts.org.nz/showitem.asp?interpret=Kate+Bush&titel=Never+For+Ever&cat=a. Retrieved 2011-09-12. 
  16. ^ "norwegiancharts.com Kate Bush - Never for Ever". http://norwegiancharts.com/showitem.asp?interpret=Kate+Bush&titel=Never+For+Ever&cat=a. Retrieved 2011-09-12. 
  17. ^ "swedishcharts.com Kate Bush - Never for Ever". Sverigetopplistan. http://swedishcharts.com/showitem.asp?interpret=Kate+Bush&titel=Never+For+Ever&cat=a. Retrieved 2011-09-12. 
  18. ^ "Chart Stats - Kate Bush - Never for Ever". UK Albums Chart. http://www.chartstats.com/release.php?release=39371. Retrieved 2011-09-12. 
  19. ^ "Les Albums (CD) de 1980 par InfoDisc" (in French). infodisc.fr. http://www.infodisc.fr/B-CD_1980.php. Retrieved 2012-01-29. 
  20. ^ "Complete UK Year-End Album Charts". http://chartheaven.9.forumer.com/a/complete-uk-yearend-album-charts_post21.html. Retrieved 2011-09-12. 
  21. ^ "Canadian album certifications – Kate Bush – Never for Ever". Music Canada. http://www.musiccanada.com/GPSearchResult.aspx?st=Never+for+Ever&sa=Kate+Bush&smt=0. 
  22. ^ "French album certifications – Kate Bush – Never for Ever" (in French). Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique. http://www.disqueenfrance.com/fr/pag-259165-CERTIFICATIONS.html&type=8. 
  23. ^ "Les Albums Or". infodisc.fr. SNEP. http://www.infodisc.fr/CDCertif_O.php?debut=400. Retrieved 2011-08-31. 
  24. ^ "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (Kate Bush; 'Never for Ever')" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie. http://www.musikindustrie.de/gold_platin_datenbank/?action=suche&strTitel=Never+for+Ever&strInterpret=Kate+Bush&strTtArt=alben&strAwards=checked. 
  25. ^ "Dutch album certifications – Kate Bush – Never for Ever" (in Dutch). Nederlandse Vereniging van Producenten en Importeurs van beeld- en geluidsdragers. http://www.ifpi.nl/nvpi/pagina.asp?pagkey=60463. 
Preceded by
Telekon by Gary Numan		 UK Albums Chart number one album
20 September 1980 – 26 September 1980		 Succeeded by
Scary Monsters (and Super Creeps)
by David Bowie
Kate Bush
Studio albums
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Live albums
and compilations
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