Born on July 30: Kate Bush, the miracle of "Stranger Things"

Catherine Bush, as unclassifiable and unique as ever, was born in Bexleyheath, England, in 1958 and is now celebrating her 66th birthday.

Independent and demanding of herself and her audience, the English singer has never done things like everyone else. At the age of only 19, she became the first singer-songwriter to have her very first single, "Wuthering Heights," top the charts in her native country. For four weeks in a row, that's for sure!

With the patience of a master craftsman, she has only created about ten albums in her 45-year career and has only performed on stage twice, in 1979 and again in 2014 for a 22-concert residency at London's Hammersmith Apollo. She also graced the stage on a handful of occasions alongside David Gilmour (Pink Floyd), notably performing "Comfortably Numb" at the Royal Albert Hall in 2002.

Spanning between 1979 and 2011, each of Kate Bush's ten albums possesses a distinctive, often baroque-inspired tone. Despite the melodic complexity and apparent difficulty of access, the singer magically manages to reach a wide audience without ever succumbing to the easy option. "The Man With A Child In His Eyes" (from the 1978 album "The Kick Inside") and "How To Be Invisible" (from "Aerial" in 2005), "Babooshka" and "Army Dreamer" (from "Never For Ever" in 1980), as well as "Wow" (from "Lionheart" in 1978), "Sat In Your Lap" (from "The Dreaming" in 1982) and the title track from the 1993 album "The Red Shoes", "The Big Sky" (from "Hounds Of Love" in 1985) and "Between A Man And A Woman" from "The Sensual World" in 1989) are all gems that have stood the test of time.

Not content with influencing two generations of singers (Goldfrapp and Emilie Simon, among many others) and even a handful of fashion designers such as Alexander McQueen, she requires an effort on the part of the listener and only reveals herself after several listens. There remain, however, a few diehards who find her high-pitched voice absolutely unbearable, but as everyone knows, you can't please everyone...

Now completely free from the constraints of business, Kate Bush released two albums in succession in 2011 on her own label, Fish People: "The Director's Cut," versions of some of her songs closer to her original intention, and "50 Words For Snow," whose theme, set to piano accompaniment, is obviously snow.

In 2022, thanks to the fourth season of the Netflix series "Stranger Things," she won over Generation Z without even trying. Her song "Running Up That Hill (A Deal With God)" is a central part of this season, much to the delight of actress Wynona Ryder, who stars in it. It even went viral on TikTok. So, teens and young adults in 2024 will all know Kate Bush!

(MH with Stéphane Soupart - Photo :  © Etienne Tordoir)

Photo: To promote the album "Hounds Of Love," Kate Bush gave a rare press conference at the London Planetarium on September 9, 1985.