Moira Shearer in Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger’s visually ravishing Technicolor masterpiece, The Red Shoes (1948)
An article on the British Film Institute‘s website, in association with their current season of gothic films, delves into Kate’s back catalogue to “discover how the darker side of cinema influenced some of her greatest hits.”
The article touches on Wuthering Heights, The Red Shoes, The Infant Kiss, Hounds of Love and The Dreaming, citing the influence of films such as Night of the Demon, The Innocents and The Shining on these classic songs. Read the full article at the BFI site here.
Caleb Lane
I am so thrilled that Alex Davidson took the time to highlight this facet of Kate’s work for those who might not be aware of it. In my perception, her output has always been synonymous with all things cinematic, though certainly not merely because of her influences. Her music as its own entity, never mind her consistently innovative visual projects (including promo videos and, particularly since 2005 onwards, album artwork), is worthy of comparison to anything found in the canons of history’s finest filmmakers. Why? Because her songs have time and again proven to be more than songs; they’re stories, ones we’re always eager to return to.
ARoseGrowingOld
Very good article, but needed to be a bit more up to date by looking at the impact of Luc Besson’s ‘The Messenger’ on ‘Joanni’
Nanette
I’d say it was more of a summary than an in depth article. I think a film studies student could produce an excellent master’s or doctoral thesis on Kate Bush and film — there’s certainly a lot of material to work with.
Nanette
Addendum to note that Ron Moy’s “Kate Bush and Hounds of Love” does talk a bit about Kate and film, although that isn’t the book’s main focus.
Robert
And although not in the gothic genre, certainly Disney’s films were an influence, with the song “in Serach of Peter Pan” containing references to both “Peter Pan” (although arguably, it might equally be the book or play ) and “Pinocchio,” the latter with a direct quote from one of the film’s songs, a rarity for Kate Bush.
Harry Horton
The article brings me back to my December posting where I wish one of UK networks would air about a half an hour fantasy or mystical program with Kate Bush’s ‘December will be magic again’ as the central musical piece and significant theme for such a half an hour program. I thought I would go a little further here on this idea. On Christmas eve when all the festivities finally wind down—-and at around 12:30 a.m. or 1:00 a.m. in the growing dead quiet of night, presenting such a Kate Bush half an hour mystical program with the December will be magic song—this time period would be ideal for all the night owls to view on T.V. for such a time slot. Christmas morning would be the next event to follow the December will b Magic program some hours later. In any case everytime I hear december will be magic such a Christmas eve T.V. story like program scenario comes to mind. Thus another opportunity to create a story setting for a Kate Bush song—such a half an hour mystical T.V. program could bring forth.
davie
Well, I am interested in this because I feel in many ways Kate’s videos are a piece of unique work that travel alongside the song. What I mean is that often her videos stay in the memory. If I mention the song Babooshka to anyone they will often recall the double base in the video. If Wow is mentioned a picture is conjured up of Kate’s circular arm movement. More recently the use of puppets in connection to 50WFS has an iconic element to it. I have heard Kate say in interview that she is telling a story within a song and I feel the portrayal on screen offers more depth and creates a multi layered piece of art.
neil
She also met film director Michael Powell who directed The red shoes and refers to a meeting with him as the man she meets at the ‘lift waving his walking stick’ in Moments of pleasure.
Harry Horton
Not only simply film Kate Bush’s artistic presence is emmeshed within, but other areas more significant and substantial like literature and religion. Her subject matter easily graces those disciplines with a creative intuitive aplomb. One outstanding example of this are two songs she did each on a seaparate album: “The Fog” from the Sensual World, and secondly (2) “The Morning Fog” from Hounds of Love. The subject of the Fog could be kate Bush’s connection to the Eck Master for guidance through ‘the spiritual and psyche fog’ of her own humanly karmic situations within her mind and soul, and the world around her. The subject of Morning Fog encompasses divine light and love, spiritul freedom and power and being born again spiritually into & while living in the lower worlds.
What is unique and original and fascinating about the two songs, is that the subject matter in the two songs—moving from darkness of the soul to divine light of love and kindness, contained within the two songs,—-is thus the singular individual subject that—extends over two songs and over two albums. The Fog is on the Sensual World album and the spiritual subject matters continues as a continuation of the spiritual matter of the Fog, into the album Hounds of Love, and into the song: Morning Fog. Its like the two songs are multidimensional in that the parts of the Fog and Morning Fog are one in the same components of the same song. I don’t think that has ever been done in rock and roll music with all of the thousands of songs and albums out there since the mid 1950s. The spiritual principle of moving from darkness to spiritual light, as the transition of the subject of dense fog which the Fog inhabits, as it transits to the subject: Morning Fog with divine light: the ancient Greek tragedy: orestes has a similar part to this just mentioned spiritual transition: The furies with black capes, transit to new higher consciousness spiritual beings called the Eumenidies. This occurs, when the eumenides put on white capes that previously replaced the furies black capes. The black capes represent darkness and ignorance, spiritual depravity and the white capes, enlightment, love and higher spiritual essence. And as such the furies metamorphasize into new beings called the eumenides, a new identity for the former furies the eumenides are. It is well worth to ask some academic people in Greek mythology and literature to assess this spiritual subject area same and individual yet spread over two songs and two albums in Kate Bush’s musical repetoire.
And also just as notable, the Fog is contained within the album with the title the Sensual World. What is highly fascinating about this album cover is that the major negative spiritual principle, called: “attachment to the attributes of the earth world around us”, such attachment invites the morass of difficulties, spiritual karma, and traps and obstacles, evils as such, that create spiritul darkness, pain and karmic and evil situations within ourselves. The ‘sensual world’–title connotes easily such Eckankar phenomena known as attachment. And its ingenuos with Kate Bush, that The darkness of a spiritual fog exists alongside and thus within the principle of attachment to the lower world earth as the album title the sensual World represents. The Sensual World being the album title that contains the song The Fog.
It also funny that her two songs the Fog and Morning Fog, that is loaded with such thorough pristine spiritual essence are songs created within the rock and roll industry. An industry that is well known for its sordid drug and alcohol abuses, occasional suicides overdoses and downright murders, that frequent the industry from time to time. But in any case, on a more brighter note, the unsual expansion of this fundamnetal spiritual subject over two songs and two albums is unique and singular in muisc and occurs with Kate Bush. No other musician or artist has done that to my knowledge and this gives Kate Bush another item of unparalelled creative genius inherent within her works. I think it neat experiment if one could convey the knowledge and content of this posting to some people in Greek mythology, psychology, theology and the arts to see what their thinking is on this aspect of Kaate Bush’s music involving the attributes and transitional nature of the Fog and Morning Fog songs. Never the less its one more further creative area amidst others of hers, that stands out as singular and fascinating and creatively rewarding.
One other additional separate subject area; The web site: You tube: “Susanna Hoffs uncut interview with ET.” In the interview Susanna Hoffs relates experiences of song writing creativity, stage performances items and other aspects of her life and musical career. An ET interview it is, and I think she would be a great contributory singer to the Kate Bush concerts this late summer in London at Eventimapollo London. She is well versed in many aspects of performing. Just my two bits on that one. And as such, One more venture into my imagination with that one.
Harry Horton
With the other harry Horton May, 09, 2014 in mind centering on kate Bush’s songs the The Fog and Morning fog and the spiritual transition phenomena inherent in their presence in Kate Bush’s albums and musical creativity. THe following from the author ROllo May his book Love and Will. THe following quote comes from page 127 and the section of the book: Love and the daimonic. THe quote: “The daimonic fights against death, fights always to assert its own vitality, accepts no “three score and ten” or other timetable of life….the daimonic will never take a rational “no” for an answer. In this respect the daimonic is the enemy of technology. It will accept no clock time or nine to five schedules or assembly lines to which we surrender ourselves to as robots.” End quote. One can also add to the above ROllo may content. Kate Bush’s subject matter of karma and its resolve into spiritual rebirth accepts no standard structure of conventional artistic convention like taking such singular subject matter and cramping it into one song on one album. Rather within her creative process and the daimonic she expands and extends the spiritual subject matter over two songs and two albums. No nine to five schedules the daimonic accepts, as ROllo may writes and with that in mind, similarly in regard to kate Bush, no using one song format for such an unfolding important spiritual subject matter as karma states of being and their resolve into divine essence>>>>> as the songs the Fog and “the Morning fog” convey and represents. The one song format is restrictive, uncreative and dull in a sense, and the subject leaps beyond the boundaries, pushing the boundaries and destroying the boundaries,—- with the appearance of the two songs and two albums relating the same subject area that originally could have been confined to one song itself. (2) The above brings also memories at when kate Bush started her career, she would not accept a rational no from the EMI higher ups on what her debut song should be. She stubbornly asserted Wuthering Heights should be her initial release song. While the EMI execs wanted her to go with James and the Cold Gun, title something of that effect, for her initial release. This stubborn refusal is essentially the healthy daimonic going into action in service of her spiritual and creative spirit. As Rollo May says the daimonic will accept no 9-5 schedules, or assembly lines, or in the case of Kate Bush no EMI song release schedules. So this (1) i. —stubborn of her control over her music and ii.—what songs she wanted released according to her daimonic creative nature, as was the case with the fight with Wuthering HEights and the EMI execs back in 1978-79 along with (2) the above fundamental subject transition of karma and its resolve with new spiritual being as indigenous to the songs the Fog and Morning Fog of kate Bush’s. On her albums the Sensual World and Hounds of Love. THese two areas , (1) and (2), are rich expressions of the genuine daimonic within Kate Bush’s creative nature. And with that a rich connection to the creative psyche and spirit of her soul and inner being, her daimonic that is as found with (1) and (2). So (10 and (2) are clear expression of the daimonic within kate bush’s creativity and with it genuine spiritual essence inherent within her creative actions.
Thus these aspects of Kate Bush’s music and creative spirit are also found within the RollO may areas of love and the daimonic. And love and the daimonic accepts neither time segment confines of death in human life also. One can throw that important area in with similarity to the content of the post presented here.
Harry Horton
Once again bouncing around the internet on the issue who would be a wonderful addition as a back up instrumentalist and vocal for kate Bush during her concerts this August and September. And once again I can’t pry my mind away from Susanna Hoffs. I’m starting to get obsessed with her and her musical viablity. I found the following songs that she did on the internet. “Matthew Sweet& Susanna Hoffs _ I’ve seen all good people/Y…” Daburcor. This is a song done by the group Yes back in the sixties and or very early seventies. A really gorgeous and unique voice she has. . On this song she has a childs voice in tonal quality mixed in with an adults voice facet of her voice. That quality makes me think of the fact she would be great on Dream of Sheep, Morning Fog, man with the Child in His eyes. Where such a blend of the child like tone with her adult sustaining quality voice would be a great dimension harmonic wise. Also the second song: “Susanna Hoffs – Catch the Wind (Red Roses and Petrol s…?” warriorrecords also relates a real soulful and meditative quality to her music. Other songs that are okay are: Everybody knows this is nowhere. And “Maggie May” TJMatty donater. I could envision her on stage with kate Bush in August-OCtober, as a strong support for Kate Bush’s singing. In any case, for all the people that did not get tickets for the concerts, hopefully news will come that Kate Bush could give more concerts in 2015 and those people can get a chance at a ticket. maybe some rolls or lists of those people left out for the August-October London concerts can be obtained. And they get a first draw on future Kate Bush concerts. If any of that news is coming, I hope this web site jumps on the issue and relates such info which I think would happen.