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The Kick Inside

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The Kick Inside
An east-asian styled album cover, with a distant Bush slightly off center, holding on to a yellow kite that has a red dragon drawing.
Studio album by
Kate Bush
Released17 February 1978
RecordedJune 1975, July–August 1977
StudioAIR Studios, London[1]
Genre
Length43:13
Label
ProducerAndrew Powell
Kate Bush chronology
The Kick Inside
(1978) 		Lionheart
(1978)
Singles from The Kick Inside
  1. "Wuthering Heights"
    Released: 20 January 1978
  2. "Moving"
    Released: 5 February 1978
  3. "Them Heavy People"
    Released: 5 May 1978
  4. "The Man with the Child in His Eyes"
    Released: 26 May 1978
  5. "Strange Phenomena"
    Released: 1 June 1979
Alternative cover
Artwork for the 2nd (1978) and some subsequent US releases

The Kick Inside is the debut studio album by English singer-songwriter and musician Kate Bush. It was released on 17 February 1978 and contains her UK number one hit, "Wuthering Heights". The album peaked at number three on the UK Albums Chart and has been certified Platinum by the British Phonographic Industry.[2] The production included efforts by several progressive rock veterans, including Duncan Mackay, Ian Bairnson, David Paton, Andrew Powell, and Stuart Elliott of the Alan Parsons Project, and David Gilmour of Pink Floyd.

Background and recording

Having written songs since the age of 11, Kate Bush recorded demos with the assistance of her brothers, who were also musicians. A friend of theirs, Ricky Hopper, brought some of these tapes to various record companies in 1972, when Bush was 13. The tapes were passed over, but Hopper played them for his friend David Gilmour of Pink Floyd.[3] Gilmour was immediately intrigued and went to meet with the Bush family and was impressed with Kate's talent for songwriting. He financed some better quality demos and while Pink Floyd were recording their album Wish You Were Here at Abbey Road studios, Gilmour played the tapes for record company executives. EMI Records was impressed and agreed to sign her, offering her an advance of £3,000.[4] Two of the demos recorded in June 1975 were included on her debut album three years later: "The Man with the Child in His Eyes" and "The Saxophone Song".

In 1976 Bush's contract was finally agreed upon by her family. In preparation for the recording, she embarked on playing with the KT Bush Band around various pubs. According to her brother Paddy, who also played with her on stage, these started out as very small affairs with little interest but grew to larger audiences over the months.[5] Finally, in July and August 1977, the rest of the songs were recorded at AIR Studios in London, helmed by producer Andrew Powell. Bush was keen to keep the line-up of the KT Bush Band for the recordings, but EMI insisted that she use properly experienced session musicians. Powell engaged Ian Bairnson, Duncan Mackay and Stuart Elliott among others, many of whom he had worked with before.

It was also around this time that Bush had started to study dance and movement as a way of presenting the songs and subsequently credited her dance teacher Lindsay Kemp on the album. The song "Moving" was inspired by Kemp. EMI and Bush disagreed over the use of a certain shot, which emphasized her cleavage, on the picture sleeve for the first single. Initially, this was to be "James and the Cold Gun", but Bush insisted on "Wuthering Heights". EMI relented and the single was scheduled for release in November 1977. However, due to the disagreement over the picture sleeve, this date was pushed back to the new year of 1978. The song became a big hit and reached No.1 in the UK Singles chart in March.[6] It stayed at the top of the charts for four weeks, becoming one of the biggest selling songs of the year and was the first time a female singer-songwriter topped the charts with a self-penned song.[7]

The album, titled The Kick Inside, was released in February 1978 and featured 13 tracks. Bush's cinematic and literary influences, two qualities which would later be considered key to her work, were most obvious in the song "Wuthering Heights". The song was not initially inspired by Emily Brontë's novel but by a television adaptation, although Bush read the novel later in order to (in her own words) "get the research right".[8] Further influences can be found when she references Gurdjieff in "Them Heavy People", while the title song is inspired by the ballad of Lizie Wan.[9] Bush also writes openly about sexuality, particularly on the erotic "Feel It" and "L'Amour Looks Something Like You". "Strange Phenomena" questions unusual coincidences, premonition, and déjà vu.

The album's second single, "The Man with the Child in His Eyes", reached number six in the UK. Three other singles were released over the world during the next two years: "Them Heavy People", "Moving" (which reached number one in Japan) and "Strange Phenomena". "The Man with the Child in His Eyes" also charted on the American Billboard Hot 100, Bush's only single to do so until 1985. It peaked at number 85. Bush made an appearance on Saturday Night Live in December 1978. Despite this publicity, The Kick Inside failed to enter the top 200 of the Billboard albums chart.

The album peaked at No.3 on the UK Albums chart and remained on the chart for much of the rest of the year. Eventually clocking up 71 weeks in the chart.[10] It was certified platinum and remains one of Bush's biggest selling records.

Release

Six different varieties of the album's cover are known:[11] the regular UK cover, a variant UK cover, the US cover, the Canadian cover, the Yugoslavian cover, the Japanese cover, and the Uruguayan cover, the Uruguayan cover being the rarest and most expensive due to its unusual head-on photo of Bush.

In the UK, it was released (twice) as a limited edition picture disc. This is housed in a full colour outer sleeve ('Kite' picture by Jay Myrdal). It sports a sticker declaring that it's a picture disc (cat. no: EMCP 3223). Two versions were actually released: The first edition has a circular sticker stating that it is a picture disc (usually in the top left hand corner). The second pressing (apparently aimed at the US market, where the first pressing had proven popular) has an oval sticker (usually top centre). The second disc also states "manufactured in the UK by EMI Records Ltd." as part of the copyright notice printed on the disc. The first edition does not have this wording.

Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[12]
Drowned in Sound8/10[13]
Encyclopedia of Popular Music[14]
Pitchfork8.4/10[15]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide[16]
Spin Alternative Record Guide8/10[17]

Contemporary reviews were full of praise for the album. Billboard magazine favoured the songs "Wuthering Heights" and "Them Heavy People" among others and said she wrote "evocative lyrics" and delivered them in "smooth and unrestrained vocals".[18] Crawdaddy said that "Bush's talent for soul-baring would be frightening were it not so ingenuous; she writes from a well of fantasy and feeling with a patina of experience, her concerns universal and womanly, not the usual wilted kitten yearning or last-rave bathos".[19] Stereo Review praised Bush for going against the grain in women's music. It favoured the songs "The Man with the Child in His Eyes" and "Room for the Life" but cared less for "Wuthering Heights" and "James and the Cold Gun".[20]

In later reviews, the album continued to receive universal praise. Pitchfork said of the album, "It is ornate music made in austere times, but unlike the pop sybarites to follow in the next decade, flaunting their wealth while Britain crumbled, Bush spun hers not from material trappings but the infinitely renewable resources of intellect and instinct: Her joyous debut measures the fullness of a woman’s life by what’s in her head." It spoke highly of every track, but had slight lyrical reservations for "Room for the Life".[21] In a BBC review, writer Chris Jones said in 2008, "Using mainly session musicians, The Kick Inside was the result of a record company actually allowing a young talent to blossom. Some of these songs were written when she was 13! Helmed by Gilmour's friend, Andrew Powell, it's a lush blend of piano grandiosity, vaguely uncomfortable reggae and intricate, intelligent, wonderful songs. All delivered in a voice that had no precedents." He says that the record company wanting to push "James and the Cold Gun" as the first single was a mistake as he labels it the album's "dullest track".[22] Allmusic's Bruce Eder said that the album is "the sound of an impressionable and highly precocious teenager spreading her wings for the first time" and called it "a mightily impressive debut."[23]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Kate Bush

Side one
No.TitleLength
1."Moving"3:01
2."The Saxophone Song"3:51
3."Strange Phenomena"2:57
4."Kite"2:56
5."The Man with the Child in His Eyes"2:39
6."Wuthering Heights"4:28
Side two
No.TitleLength
7."James and the Cold Gun"3:34
8."Feel It"3:02
9."Oh to Be in Love"3:18
10."L'Amour Looks Something Like You"2:27
11."Them Heavy People"3:04
12."Room for the Life"4:03
13."The Kick Inside"3:30

Personnel

Production

Charts and certifications

See also

References

  1. ^ https://www.discogs.com/Kate-Bush-The-Kick-Inside/release/414374
  2. ^ a b "British album certifications – Kate Bush – The Kick Inside". British Phonographic Industry. Select albums in the Format field. Select Platinum in the Certification field. Type The Kick Inside in the "Search BPI Awards" field and then press Enter.
  3. ^ "Hopper, Ricky". www.katebushencyclopedia.com. Retrieved 1 May 2019.
  4. ^ "BBC Four - The Kate Bush Story: Running Up That Hill". BBC. Retrieved 1 May 2019.
  5. ^ "Gaffaweb - Kate Bush - PHOENIX - The History of the Cathy Demos - compiled by Wieland Willker". gaffa.org. Retrieved 1 May 2019.
  6. ^ "wuthering heights | full Official Chart History | Official Charts Company". www.officialcharts.com. Retrieved 1 May 2019.
  7. ^ "BBC - Music TV - Pop on trial - 1950s-1990s". bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 12 August 2011.
  8. ^ "Kate Bush TV Interview". Ask Aspel. 5 September 1978. Retrieved 3 April 2007.
  9. ^ Young, Rob (19 August 2010). Electric Eden: Unearthing Britain's Visionary Music. ISBN 9780571258420.
  10. ^ "the kick inside | full Official Chart History | Official Charts Company". www.officialcharts.com. Retrieved 1 May 2019.
  11. ^ https://www.katebushnews.com/index.php/2018/02/the-kick-inside-is-40-years-old-today-the-story-behind-the-iconic-kite-cover-artwork/
  12. ^ Eder, Bruce. "The Kick Inside – Kate Bush". AllMusic. Retrieved 21 June 2011.
  13. ^ Lukowski, Andrzej (3 December 2018). "Kate Bush - The Kick Inside". Drowned in Sound. Retrieved 4 May 2020.
  14. ^ Larkin, Colin (2011). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music (5th concise ed.). Omnibus Press. ISBN 978-0-85712-595-8.
  15. ^ Snapes, Laura (19 January 2019). "Kate Bush: The Kick Inside". Pitchfork. Retrieved 19 January 2019.
  16. ^ Considine, J. D. (2004). "Kate Bush". In Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian (eds.). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (4th ed.). Simon & Schuster. pp. 122–23. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8.
  17. ^ Weisbard, Eric; Marks, Craig, eds. (1995). Spin Alternative Record Guide. Vintage Books. ISBN 0-679-75574-8.
  18. ^ "Gaffaweb - Kate Bush - REACHING OUT - The Reviews - The Kick Inside Reviews". gaffa.org. Retrieved 1 May 2019.
  19. ^ "Gaffaweb - Kate Bush - REACHING OUT - The Reviews - The Kick Inside Reviews". gaffa.org. Retrieved 1 May 2019.
  20. ^ "Gaffaweb - Kate Bush - REACHING OUT - The Reviews - The Kick Inside Reviews". gaffa.org. Retrieved 1 May 2019.
  21. ^ "Kate Bush: The Kick Inside". Pitchfork. Retrieved 1 May 2019.
  22. ^ Jones, Chris. "BBC - Music - Review of Kate Bush - The Kick Inside". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 1 May 2019.
  23. ^ "The Kick Inside - Kate Bush | Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved 1 May 2019.
  24. ^ a b Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. St Ives, NSW: Australian Chart Book. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  25. ^ a b Billboard Magazine, July 1978. Billboard magazine. 15 July 1978. Retrieved 2 September 2012.
  26. ^ "dutchcharts.nl Kate Bush — The Kick Inside". dutchcharts.nl. MegaCharts. Retrieved 2 May 2012.
  27. ^ a b "Hits of the World". Billboard. 29 July 1978. ISSN 0006-2510. Retrieved 12 August 2014.
  28. ^ "InfoDisc : Tous les Albums classés par Artiste > Choisir Un Artiste Dans la Liste : Kate Bush". infodisc.fr. Archived from the original on 7 November 2011. Retrieved 2 May 2012.
  29. ^ "Album Search: Kate Bush" (in German). Media Control. Retrieved 2 May 2012.
  30. ^ a b Oricon Album Chart Book: Complete Edition 1970-2005. Roppongi, Tokyo: Oricon Entertainment. 2006. ISBN 4-87131-077-9.
  31. ^ "charts.nz — Kate Bush — The Kick Inside". Recording Industry Association of New Zealand. Retrieved 2 May 2012.
  32. ^ "norwegiancharts.com Kate Bush — The Kick Inside". Retrieved 2 May 2012.
  33. ^ "swedishcharts.com Kate Bush — The Kick Inside". Sverigetopplistan. Retrieved 2 May 2013.
  34. ^ "the kick inside | full Official Chart History | Official Charts Company". www.officialcharts.com. Retrieved 1 May 2019.
  35. ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 75 | Official Charts Company". www.officialcharts.com. Retrieved 1 May 2019.
  36. ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 75 | Official Charts Company". www.officialcharts.com. Retrieved 1 May 2019.
  37. ^ "ケイト・ブッシュ-リリース-ORICON STYLE-ミュージック" [Highest position and charting weeks of The Kick Inside (reissue) by Kate Bush]. oricon.co.jp (in Japanese). Oricon Style. Retrieved 2 May 2012.
  38. ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100 | Official Charts Company". www.officialcharts.com. Retrieved 1 May 2019.
  39. ^ "Dutch charts jaaroverzichten 1978" (in Dutch). Dutchcharts.nl. Retrieved 2 April 2014.
  40. ^ "Les Albums (CD) de 1978 par InfoDisc" (in French). infodisc.fr. Archived from the original (PHP) on 11 July 2013. Retrieved 29 January 2012.
  41. ^ a b "Complete UK Year-End Album Charts". Archived from the original on 11 January 2012. Retrieved 12 September 2011.
  42. ^ "Kate Bush, The album - the Kick Inside, the single - Wuthering Heights". Billboard. 15 July 1978. Retrieved 1 June 2019.
  43. ^ "Canadian album certifications – Kate Bush – The Kick Inside". Music Canada.
  44. ^ http://www.infodisc.fr/Ventes_Albums_Tout_Temps.php?debut=2800
  45. ^ "French album certifications – Kate Bush – The Kick Inside" (in French). Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique.
  46. ^ "Dutch album certifications – Kate Bush – The Kick Inside" (in Dutch). Nederlandse Vereniging van Producenten en Importeurs van beeld- en geluidsdragers. Enter The Kick Inside in the "Artiest of titel" box.
  47. ^ > "New Zealand album certifications – Kate Bush – The Kick Inside". Recorded Music NZ.
  48. ^ "First artist to write every song on a million-selling album (female)". Guinness World Records. Retrieved 23 November 2018.
  49. ^ "Reaching Out". Gaffa.org. Retrieved 23 November 2018.
  50. ^ https://www.billboard.com/articles/news/60579/ask-billboard
  51. ^ "American album certifications – Kate Bush – The kick Inside". Recording Industry Association of America.
  52. ^ https://www.rte.ie/culture/2017/1024/914906-john-kelly-on-kate-bushs-hounds-of-love/
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