# What's your favorite Kate Bush record? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [September 26, 2010, 10:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-kate-bush-record/555080 "2010-09-26T10:02:11Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Equipoise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/equipoise/32/151_2.png) [@Equipoise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Equipoise)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2010, 10:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-kate-bush-record/555080/1 "2010-09-26T10:02:11Z")
Represent! ---
**Author:** ![Equipoise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/equipoise/32/151_2.png) [@Equipoise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Equipoise)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2010, 10:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-kate-bush-record/555080/2 "2010-09-26T10:14:49Z")
Ooops, forgot to put a year in for the Kate Bush EP. It was released in 1983. [The Kick Inside](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Kick_Inside) (1978) [Lionheart](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lionheart_%28Kate_Bush_album%29) (1978) [Never for Ever](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Never_for_Ever) (1980) [The Dreaming](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Dreaming_%28album%29) (1982) [Hounds of Love](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hounds_of_Love) (1985) [The Whole Story](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Whole_Story) (compilation) (1986) [The Sensual World](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Sensual_World) (1989) [The Red Shoes](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Red_Shoes_%28album%29) (1993) [Aerial](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aerial_%28album%29) (2005) [On Stage](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/On_Stage_%28EP%29) (1979) [Kate Bush EP](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kate_Bush_%28EP%29) (1983) (US and Canada only) [Live at Hammersmith Odeon](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Live_at_Hammersmith_Odeon_%28Kate_Bush_album%29) (1978/1994) I put those 3 in because they were official releases. My favorite album by her is The Dreaming. It’s my favorite album by anybody. Ever. It’s my Desert Island album, if I could only pick one. ---
**Author:** ![multimediac17](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/839c29/32.png) [@multimediac17](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/multimediac17)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2010, 10:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-kate-bush-record/555080/3 "2010-09-26T10:43:51Z")
Oh FINALLY! A non-Beatles poll I can take a proper interest in! Kate Bush is among my four all-time favourite artists (alongside Michael Jackson, Madonna and Prince), and _Hounds Of Love_ is my favourite of her albums and my number one favourite album of all time. I recently completed a blog project in which I listed and wrote mini-essays on my 1001 favourite songs of all time, and _Hounds Of Love_ was the only album to have every single song from it in the list (the link is on my profile if anybody is interested - be warned, ramblings). It is, basically, the most perfect record I have ever heard. _The Dreaming_ is a close second among Kate’s studio albums (it is also a 100% perfect record), followed by _Aerial_, _The Sensual World_, _The Kick Inside_, _The Red Shoes_, _Lionheart_ and _Never For Ever_ in that order. Even the least amazing Kate Bush album is a classic. In conclusion, I fucking love Kate Bush. ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2010, 11:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-kate-bush-record/555080/4 "2010-09-26T11:41:32Z")
Bugger, didn’t realise you could have more than one choice. I voted for The Kick Inside but wanted to add Hounds of Love too. ---
**Author:** ![Lust4Life](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ecc23a/32.png) [@Lust4Life](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lust4Life)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2010, 12:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-kate-bush-record/555080/5 "2010-09-26T12:14:09Z")
My favourite is the obvious Wuthering Heights , never listened to her albums. ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2010, 12:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-kate-bush-record/555080/6 "2010-09-26T12:14:57Z")
Very tricky choice. _The Kick Inside_ was a fantastic debut by a 19 year old. Her next three albums are far lesser works. _Hounds of Love_ was a return to form and then she disappeared for a few years. Then she released _The Sensual World_ which probably has more good tracks than any other album. But I have a real soft spot for _Aerial_. I had all but forgotten her in terms of producing new music but in lots of ways it surpasses her earlier stuff. ---
**Author:** ![mack](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b19c9b/32.png) [@mack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mack)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2010, 1:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-kate-bush-record/555080/7 "2010-09-26T13:11:33Z")
My favorite is Hounds of Love. I bought the cassette just before leaving to deliver a friend’s pickup truck from NJ to a dock in Oakland, CA. I took 3 weeks to make the trip and listened to Hounds several times a day. My favorites off it are Watching you without Me and The Morning Fog - one of the great album-enders IMO. ---
**Author:** ![Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e47c2d/32.png) [@Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biffy_the_Elephant_Shrew)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2010, 1:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-kate-bush-record/555080/8 "2010-09-26T13:39:10Z")
> [@jjimm](#): > > Bugger, didn’t realise you could have more than one choice. Can you? I missed that too. I gave it to _Hounds of Love_ because the “Ninth Wave” suite is so mind-blowingly brilliant, even if _The Dreaming_ is a more consistently great album. _The Kick Inside_ would be third. ---
**Author:** ![gaffa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e68b1a/32.png) [@gaffa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gaffa)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2010, 6:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-kate-bush-record/555080/9 "2010-09-26T18:33:17Z")
I don’t have any children, so I can’t compare choosing a favorite Kate Bush album is like asking me to choose a favorite child. But I do have nieces. And I can choose a favorite niece. And I definitely like Shelby better than Ashlee, if only because Shelby’s boyfriend is not a racist idiot. _The Dreaming_ is Kate’s greatest album, while _The Ninth Wave_ side of _The Hounds of Love_ is Kate’s greatest creation. But I find myself listening to _A Sky of Honey_, the second disc of _Aerial_ more often than anything else. And it is a nearly unique musical creation - a “concept album” about peace, contentment and joy. From what I understand, it is harder to write about, or at least write compellingly about, being happy. People tend to view it as less worthy than misery. _A Sky of Honey_ is Kate’s answer to _The Ninth Wave_, a song cycle of joy and middle-aged contentment answering the fear and confusion (though ultimate redemption) expressed in the earlier work. ---
**Author:** ![Toxylon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f05b48/32.png) [@Toxylon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Toxylon)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2010, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-kate-bush-record/555080/10 "2010-09-26T18:39:50Z")
I voted for \*The Dreaming \*(didn’t realize the multi-choice app). It is not a perfect record (an outside producer might’ve made it so), but it is amazingly full of truly genious moments. Easily enough creative, original hooks to make two great Prog albums. It just doesn’t get old. Being a sucker for dramatic, '70’s Art Rock With Intricate Arrangements for All Instruments, I’ve never gotten into _Hounds of Love_. The synth bass lines are so boring! _The Sensual World_ is an amazing album, arguably the best bunch of songs Kate ever did. I’d rate _Never for Ever_ third, despite it’s not-so-great cuts among the super-classics. _A Kick Inside_ is as good, I think; Wuthering Heights made me go temporarily insane at age 15, upon first exposure. \*Red Shoes \*is not very good (although \*Moments of Pleasure \*is awesome), and _Lionheart_ is easily the weakest album by her. (I’m reading Under the Ivy right now and it seems she agrees). ---
**Author:** ![Lobsang](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobsang/32/4067_2.png) [@Lobsang](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lobsang)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2010, 6:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-kate-bush-record/555080/11 "2010-09-26T18:46:57Z")
I voted for the only one I am really aware of. And I had to search it on my ipod to put a name to it - Hounds of Love. It’s quite possible there’s another one I like better, but this one is the most obvious to me and I do like it. ---
**Author:** ![Equipoise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/equipoise/32/151_2.png) [@Equipoise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Equipoise)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2010, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-kate-bush-record/555080/12 "2010-09-26T19:02:52Z")
> [@jjimm](#): > > Bugger, didn’t realise you could have more than one choice.. I originally made it multiple choice, but then regretted it after posting because it goes against the intent to choose your ONE favorite album, so I didn’t call attention to it in the OP. ---
**Author:** ![DaveRaver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/daveraver/32/1078_2.png) [@DaveRaver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DaveRaver)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2010, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-kate-bush-record/555080/13 "2010-09-26T19:04:05Z")
When’s the Happy Rhodes survey? ---
**Author:** ![Equipoise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/equipoise/32/151_2.png) [@Equipoise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Equipoise)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2010, 7:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-kate-bush-record/555080/14 "2010-09-26T19:05:07Z")
A poll isn’t much of a poll when there are only 2 people voting. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Fried\_Dough\_Ho](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/a88e57/32.png) [@Fried\_Dough\_Ho](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fried_Dough_Ho)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2010, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-kate-bush-record/555080/15 "2010-09-26T19:22:06Z")
Another who didn’t realize you could vote for more than one so I started with _Hounds of Love_ (duh) but my close second would be _Sensual World_. Been a fan for years and lamented she hasn’t produced more since she got married and had a child… ---
**Author:** ![gaffa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e68b1a/32.png) [@gaffa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gaffa)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2010, 7:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-kate-bush-record/555080/16 "2010-09-26T19:33:48Z")
> [@Fried\_Dough\_Ho](#): > > Been a fan for years and lamented she hasn’t produced more since she got married and had a child… Technically speaking, we don’t know that she got married. She is \*that \*private. She did appear to be wearing a ring on her left “ring” finger when she arrived to Buckingham Palace for a royal to-do, but she has never confirmed marrying Bertie’s father. ---
**Author:** ![Equipoise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/equipoise/32/151_2.png) [@Equipoise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Equipoise)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2010, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-kate-bush-record/555080/17 "2010-09-26T20:27:37Z")
> [@gaffa](#): > > Technically speaking, we don’t know that she got married. She is \*that \*private. She did appear to be wearing a ring on her left “ring” finger when she arrived to Buckingham Palace for a royal to-do, but she has never confirmed marrying Bertie’s father. Hell, ardent, wired-in fans didn’t even know she had a _kid_ until he was, what, 2 years old or so? > [@Toxylon](#): > > Wuthering Heights made me go temporarily insane at age 15, upon first exposure. Same here. “Wuthering Heights” turned my world upside down, and completely changed it. I’d probably be living in some trailer park in Boondocks, Kansas, with no net access, and without any of the things that make my life better (my husband, Happy) if not for that song. ---
**Author:** ![Equipoise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/equipoise/32/151_2.png) [@Equipoise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Equipoise)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2010, 11:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-kate-bush-record/555080/18 "2010-09-26T23:16:54Z")
_High-fives **Le Ministre de l’au-delà** , **Taomist** , and **Toxylon**!_ ---
**Author:** ![weezimp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/a88e57/32.png) [@weezimp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/weezimp)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2010, 12:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-kate-bush-record/555080/19 "2010-09-27T00:19:21Z")
Did you deliberately omit from the poll the 2 rarities discs from This Woman’s Work? Not sure I’d have voted them faves, but there’s some good stuff on there. ---
**Author:** ![Equipoise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/equipoise/32/151_2.png) [@Equipoise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Equipoise)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2010, 12:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-kate-bush-record/555080/20 "2010-09-27T00:29:20Z")
Not deliberately, but I should have put them on. I think of them as part of the Box Set, which we own on both LP and CD, and not on their own. Blame Wikipedia. As truly great as the [Kate Bush page](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kate_Bush) is, they weren’t listed separately on the [discography page](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kate_Bush_discography), which is where I was copying and pasting from. I didn’t scroll down past the Singles, or else I might have put the Box Set(s) in the poll. That would be cheating though. I certainly would have voted for the This Woman’s Work Box Set! [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-kate-bush-record/555080.md?page=2)