FEATURE:
A Never for Ever Jewel…
PHOTO CREDIT: Clive Arrowsmith
The Brief Majesty of Kate Bush’s Night Scented Stock
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THIS is going to be a short Kate Bush feature…
which is kind of fitting, as the song that I am covering is very short. The shortest song on any Kate Bush album. Whereas Aerial’s (2005) Aerial Tal is 1:02, Night Scented Stock runs in at a mere fifty-two seconds! Not to be confused with the flower of the same name, Night Scented Stock is an instrumental song consisting entirely of layered, wordless vocals. It is a series of breathy and gorgeous sounds. There are a few reasons why I am writing about this song. I am thinking more and more about Bush’s catalogue, and the fact that very few of her songs are played. I was among those to congratulate her on Running Up That Hill (A Deal with God) going to number one after being featured on Stranger Things. It is a marvellous song but, since then, I feel radio stations have been playing it more than any other. Hounds of Love (the album it is from) is featured more than any of Bush album. I feel this rather narrow radio worldview of her music will remain rigid because songs like Running Up That Hill (A Deal with God) are successful and commercial. Think about 1980’s Never for Ever and how under-explored that is. Aside from Babooshka, not a lot else is played. Maybe Army Dreamers and Breathing, but you never get the deeper cuts played. I have also been thinking about song length and how an album like 50 Words for Snow is a more expansive work that allows songs to unfold and unfurl more gradually.
I love the fact that Bush, on her most recent studio album (2011), pushed so far away from the radio-friendly and immediate sound that many artists write. Whereas it takes guts to write longer songs and engage and keep people hooked, it might be even more difficult to write very short tracks and make them work. There are a few short songs/links on Aerial’s second side, a Sky of Honey. Up until Never for Ever, Bush had not written anything as brief as Night Scented Stock. If Bush had meant it as a sorbet or bridge between the beautiful and swooning The Infant Kiss and the haunting and affecting Army Dreamers, it is much more than that. I think, if she jumped from The Infant Kiss to Army Dreamers, it might have been a little jarring. The songs are very different in tone and sound, so you need a little bit of a transition. Consider the fact Breathing follows Army Dreamers, it is wise having this moment of heavenly escape and something almost otherworldly before we get there. To me, it is like being out at night and smelling the jasmine or perfume of flowers. Maybe a song that you could see sung at church or used as this sort of hymn. I am not sure whether Bush had this song intended as something longer with lyrics, or whether it was a late addition to Never for Ever that she couldn’t add to another song but did not want to scrap.
IN THIS PHOTO: Kate Bush in 1980/PHOTO CREDIT: Andy Phillips
I love her vocals on this track. Consisting of ‘ahs’ and ‘ooos’ for the most part, it coos and seduces! You get the impression of multiple voices twirling and tangling with one another. Everyone will imagine their own visuals and what the song is about. It is a fascinating standout in her discography as there are no lyrics. Bush has not really discussed its origins. Not the only instrumental she has written, it is so different to anything on Never for Ever. It shows how productive and varied her songwriting was around the time. Producing Never for Ever with Jon Kelly, Bush had a lot more freedom regarding what type of sound and songs could feature on her albums. This wouldn’t have been the case with The Kick Inside and Lionheart (both 1978). Although Night Scented Stock sandwiches between The Infant Kiss and Army Dreamers, it could also easily fit between The Wedding List and Violin (which would have allowed some brief calm before the rush and raw energy of Violin). It is this mobile and utilitarian song that you can use to bridge two very different numbers. I feel Night Scented Stock should be known more widely. Maybe it is too short for a radio spin, but it is under a minute long, so it could perfectly slip into the playlist without too much fuss. I feel people would be intrigued by it. It is a song that not many non-Kate Bush fans have heard. The more I think about Night Scented Stock, the more thoughts come to me. This feature has actually turned out…
LONGER than I thought!