FEATURE:
The Nerves…and Then Laughter
IN THIS PHOTO: Kate Bush in 1980/PHOTO CREDIT: Patrick Lichfield
Imagining the Prospect of Speaking with Kate Bush
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OF course…
IMAGE CREDIT: Faber
it is not something that will happen to me, but there seems to be this common and shared experience from people who have either met or spoken with Kate Bush. Just on a little detour, I am going to write more about Kate Bush books and ideas as yet unrealised. One book that is coming out is a reissue of How to Be Invisible. Originally released back in 2018, it is coming back out with a new introduction/foreword from Bush herself. You can pre-order the new edition. It comes out in April, and it is selling fast. I like the fact Bush is revisiting and open to retrospection. There is a reissue of Hounds of Love later in the year, and I am not quite sure what is going to be included on it. She is happy to put How to Be Invisible back out there, so it might mean that she is clearing a path for new work. In the same way 2011’s Director’s Cut sort of ensured she could get something done she wanted to do for a long time – re-recording songs from 1989’s The Sensual World and 1993’s The Red Shoes – prior to starting on something brand-new. Maybe it is over-analysing, but I think that there has been a lot of looking back as of late. Of course, we saw Running Up That Hill (A Deal with God) used in Netflix’s Stranger Things, which dominated the charts in 2022. It at least introduced Bush’s music to a new generation. That Hounds of Love single took on a whole new life.
IN THIS PHOTO: Kate Bush in a promotional photo for 2011’s Director’s Cut/PHOTO CREDIT: John Carder Bush
With a book about the album, the album being reissued, plus the lyrics book coming back out, I get the sense that something will come later in the year from Bush. That is what people hope but, as we all know, she will bring something to us when and if she is ready. A reason why I am mentioning the How to Be Invisible lyrics book is because there is a new introduction. It is going to be something established and new fans are raving about. Another reason why I am interested in it is because of the new cover. I prefer the new design. The 2019 version has the title of the book and that was about it. It looked fine, but the new illustration and design is better and more striking. Via Kate Bush News, Jim Kay discussed his experience of speaking with Kate Bush on the phone. The two worked on the cover design, and his feedback about speaking with her seems to mirror what many have said:
“Jim Kay has posted a first look at the embossed cover of the paperback edition of How To Be Invisible and also a very sweet note about working with Kate on the cover design concept. The book is published April 6th. Jim writes: "A cover I did for Faber recently. I’ve just got to say, Kate Bush is the most delightful, funny, lovely person I have ever had the fortune of chatting to. I was SO nervous before the phonecall, but within 30 seconds you forget all of that, and she has you laughing. Thank you Faber for this opportunity, and thank you Kate, for everything. The cover was Kate’s concept, and it was an absolute pleasure to work for both her and Faber, it pulled me out of a pretty miserable place." Jim's Instagram page is here: https://www.instagram.com/creepy_scrawlers/”.
I can imagine how nervous one would be before calling Kate Bush. That sense of what to talk about and how it will go! Bush still uses a landline – as she explained in a great interview with Woman’s Hour last year -, and at least that would be more reliable in terms of signal and the call dropping out. What so many have said is that they feel this nervousness before speaking with Kate Bush. That is understandable. She is such a major artist and someone who has such a legacy. People get those nerves, but they are always melted really quickly. Someone with a great sense of humour who wants people to feel welcomed and warm, that hospitality comes across whether you speak with Bush on the phone or come to her house. When I spoke with author Tom Doyle last year for a podcast marking forty-five years of Wuthering Heights, he discussed meeting Bush in 2005. He was very nervous prior to arriving at her house. He also explained that, very quickly, she puts you at ease and makes you feel relaxed. This stems back to the earliest days. Bush’s mother especially was very hospitable when musicians and other people came to the family home. That seems to have rubbed off on Kate Bush. She is always very courteous and charming, and it does seem that Bush treats people like they are friends.
At the very least, there is no ego or any sort of barrier. Grounded and very much someone who has that common touch, I do like that quick shift from feeling quite fearful and nervous to be made relaxed and eased. Maybe not the case with all journalists Bush has been interviewed through her career, it seems that those that she likes and feels a connection with are made to feel very welcomed and embraced. This is not the case with many artists. You get a feeling of ego and distance with many. That is not what happens when you speak with Kate Bush. Jim Kay’s recollections are heartening to read. Bush never seems to be in a bad mood or having an off day when she is being interviewed or calling someone on the phone! The professionalism she shows at all times in one reason why she is so loved and respected. Although it will never happen for me, others will interviews and chat with Kate Bush in the years ahead. I am sure, no matter who they are, they feel nervous before speaking with her. I’m interested what Bush would open with when speaking with Jim Kay. Maybe there is small talk about weather and T.V., or she might have a particular opening. I know Paul McCartney often asks people who are interviewing him (by phone or remotely) where they are in the world so that it eats up a bit of time or puts the focus on them. Not in a rude way at all, it is just a good opening and can make people feel more relaxed. I envisage Bush having a routine or conversational route that she leads with, so that those who are clearly nervous are settled. It seems like speaking with the magnificent Kate Bush is…
A sheer delight.