Five songs that show off Kate Bush’s unmatched vocals
There are few musicians quite as distinctive or influential as the wonderful, weird and witchy Kate Bush. Working closely with master of movement Lindsay Kemp and Pink Floyd songwriter David Gilmour, the future art-pop star spent the 1970s honing her artistry, creating a swirling sonic world of synths and literary influences. But by far, the most distinctive element of Bush’s sound was her voice.
From the moment she released her debut single, the record-breaking, chart-topping, awe-inspiring ‘Wuthering Heights’, it became clear that Bush was a vocalist to be reckoned with. She took Emily Brontë’s tale to new heights, quite literally, allowing her voice to soar high and low over her magical piano playing. Her stellar debut seemed difficult to follow up, but Bush was never one to back down from a challenge.
In the years that followed, she continued to cement herself as one of the most talented and inventive voices in pop music, literally and creatively, as she pushed it into new realms with thoughtful lyricism and bouncy synths. Her magnum opus came in 1985 with Hounds of Love, an entire record of arty, synthy goodness that showed off Bush’s talent behind the microphone and the mixing desk.
Decades later, Bush’s voice is still unmatched in the world of pop. Her vocal range is just as impressive now as it was when she released ‘Wuthering Heights’ back in 1978, her catalogue is just far more populated with examples of her singing prowess. As a result, picking out the best performances from throughout her career is a difficult task, but we’ve narrowed it down to just five songs that show off her trademark wails and wavers below.
Kate Bush’s five greatest vocal performances:
‘Wuthering Heights’
It would be impossible not to include Kate Bush’s debut, the soaring ‘Wuthering Heights’ on this list. Released in 1978, the song introduced us to the wondrous world of Bush, the magic she wields each time she sits behind a piano, her literary approach to songwriting, and the wandering vocals that would become her trademark. The track borrows its story from the Emily Brontë novel of the same name, but Bush makes it entirely her own.
Over twinkling keys and sonic shimmers, Bush pushes her vocals to impossible heights, her wails encapsulating all of the emotions of Heathcliff and Cathy without ever losing control. The song immediately showed off Bush’s ability to tell a story through her vocal delivery and her ability to climb further up the scale than any of her pop peers. It also set her success into motion, becoming the first self-penned song by a woman to hit number one in the United Kingdom.
‘L’Amour Looks Something Like You’
Not long after debuting with ‘Wuthering Heights’, Bush unleashed an entire album of vocal show-stoppers on the world with The Kick Inside. The second side of the record featured a sensual track called ‘L’Amour Looks Something Like You’, which finds Bush equating her partner with the entire concept of love. “The thought of you sends me shivery,” she sings, “I’m dressed in lace, sailing down a black reverie.”
Aside from the sultry depictions of sticky love and masked lovers, ‘L’Amour Looks Something Like You’ is also one of Bush’s greatest vocal performances. She sings impossibly high one more, containing all of the lust of the lyrics into her wavering delivery. Her dreamy, nasal vocals almost conceal her words, allowing the love within them to stay between her and her partner.
‘There Goes a Tenner’
For those who are familiar with the song, ‘There Goes a Tenner’ might seem like a strange choice to include on this list. It’s not the best example of Kate’s technical skill behind a microphone, and it lacks her trademark wails and wavers. But that’s exactly what makes it so impressive — it shows off a different side to Bush, demonstrating her range and her willingness to get weird with it.
‘There Goes a Tenner’ almost sounds like Madness instrumentally, combining bouncy pianos and synths in a playful attempt at pop. Bush shrugs off her characteristically dramatic, airy singing in favour of a cockney accent and spoken delivery, occasionally providing background vocals for herself. “Uh-oh!” she repeats in a twee voice. It’s one of the strangest offerings in Bush’s catalogue, completely different from the style she set out for herself and all the more impressive as a result.
‘Hounds of Love’
In 1985, Bush delivered one of the most important releases in the art-pop genre with Hounds of Love. The record spawned the near-constant hit ‘Running Up That Hill (A Deal with God)’, the dreamy ‘Cloudbusting’ and a killer title track. The latter is one of the most striking vocal performances in Bush’s catalogue, showing off her true range as a vocalist, from perfectly placed growls to seamless background vocals.
We have more than enough evidence that Bush can push her voice up high, but ‘Hounds of Love’ also asserts her talents in a lower range. “The hounds of love are hunting, I’ve always been a coward” she sings, dropping her voice down low, “And I don’t know what’s good for me.” Her backing “doo-doo”s and occasional grows show further range to her vocals, each as seamless and polished as her airier wails.
‘This Woman’s Work’
‘This Woman’s Work’ isn’t just one of Bush’s best vocal performances; it’s a strong contender for the best song in her entire catalogue. Starting out with a series of soft vocalisations, the track provides a man’s perspective during childbirth, the fear he hides for the sake of his partner, the encouragement he provides her with and the regrets he reflects on from his own life, which will now drastically change.
Bush’s vocals are impossibly tender for those encouragements, promising, “I know you have a little life in you yet, I know you have a lot of strength left.” But as her words wander to the husband’s thoughts, they become more strained and weighty, begging, “Oh, darling, make it go, make it go away.” It’s another song that shows off Bush’s vocal range, as well as her ability to convey real emotional weight through her voice.
