Customer Reviews

Red Shoes

5 star:		(40)
4 star:		(31)
3 star:		(9)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(11)

 

 

I must admit I was disappointed when I first heard this album back in '93. I thought it was too commercial, and none of the songs really gelled for me. The big singles Rubberband Girl and Eat the Music just seemed completely lifeless to me ... strange for Kate's music. The programmed drum beats were annoying, and some of the lyrics (esp Song of Solomon) made me cringe. I wanted The Red Shoes to be funkier, edgier, and more cohesive, all at once. I really tried to like it, but after a while I put it aside and decided it was simply one of Kate's weaker efforts, period.

Flash forward 10 years where I've recently started listening to The Red Shoes again, and I now have a new appreciation for this music. I've read a few posts here that have more or less said the same thing, so I wanted to chime in and say "me, too." Now these songs sound wonderfully rich, full, and wise ... even intense and scary in parts. There are subtle layers to the music that I never heard before (even though I was really listening for them!) Rubberband Girl and Eat the Music actually get me dancing around the room, and I'm almost moved to tears by Moments of Pleasure and especially You're the One. This album now sounds classic and touches me in a way it couldn't 10 years ago. It is the work of a mature artist struggling with life, and I would agree that maybe it takes a little life experience on the listener's part to really get into it. I know this is true for me.

The Red Shoes is hardly perfect, and it's one of the most divisive of her albums even among hardcore fans. But right now it is my favorite Kate album, the one I can most identify with. Listening to it again after all these years with a new attitude is almost like getting a new album from her. Anyway, this is the one Kate CD that I always see stacked in the used bin at record stores for cheap, and I wonder if others who have written it off would be willing to give it a second chance.

I know that many Kate fans have been disappointed with this album. I was so overcome with anticipation back in 1993 waiting for her next album that I was beyond comparing it to any of her other work. It's true that she definitely took a different direction, as she did in "The Sensual World", "Hounds of Love" (who ever thought that the experience of a person drowning could be made so lyrical and beautiful?), and "The Dreaming" (Kate's response to 'the public wants to hear some more piano-based songs'). I know the reason we love Kate so is that she continually experiments and breaks new ground. There will never be another "Hounds of Love" or another "The Dreaming", and would we truly appreciate it if she went back, re-worked those albums, and gave us an album every 2 or 3 years? My answer would be no. Kate is the epitome of a true musical genius, thus we can never expect her to conform to her previous albums' soundscapes. As for "The Red Shoes", it reveals the most personal side of Kate we've seen, perhaps mainly due to the death of her mother. The title track, based upon Hans Christian Anderson's faery tale of a tormented ballerina, is typical of Kate is that she draws upon a story of myth and then twists and molds it to make it her own (such as she did with "Cloudbusting" and "Wuthering Heights") The revelation for me on this album was "Moments of Pleasure"; when "This Woman's Work was released I remember thinking 'Kate would not be able to top the emotional stirrings of that song'. How wrong could I have been. Now, I can only pine for her next album.

Note to Duayne below- not all Kate fans are Tori-haters. I happen to like some of Tori's work. Some of the antagonism may have to do with all of the comparisions to Kate and Tori being labelled as the "new Kate Bush". I do wish all of the comparisions with Kate would stop. Kate remains incomparable, and Tori has her own style. Suffice it to say that some Kate fans, myself included, can be a bit batty regarding her. Also, she did pave the way for Tori, as well as Sarah McLachlan, et al. It's sometimes easy to forget that "The Kick Inside" was released in 1978.

It took a long time for me to get "The Red Shoes". I wasn't impressed with it at first; but I was pretty young when I had first picked it up. It was when I fell in love (and fell down hard) that I finally "got" this album.
I couldn't believe the sincerity, the maturity of it - the whole sensuality and most of all, the sadness. There's sadness written all over "The Red Shoes", even in hyper tunes like "eat the music" or "rubberband girl". Even the title song is a desperate cry, it's the story of a girl who tries to heal herself through music and dancing - and she can't stop; because "the red shoes" are on and they'll make her dance until she dies of exhaustion - just like the movie and the original tale itself.

I have just one warning about this album: If you're going through a hard time, if you just broke up with somebody, if you just lost something that was very dear to you - It'll definitely take you by the hand and lead you through it; but...
stay away from "You're the One".
I'm addicted to music and I have many favorite musicians/bands; but in my life, I've never heard such a painful song before - it's truly a murderer of joy.
All those layers and genius composition will be apparent in time once you start listening to it; but then it'll be too late - It'll grab you by the soul and shake you to the core. Trio Bulgarka, that wailing guitar and keyboard accompanied by Kate's trembling voice...
Trust me on this. Stay away from "You're the One" unless you want to cry for many days to come.

Unlike so many other reviewers, I love this album. Every song is wonderful. Kate Bush proves herself to be the exceptional songwriter and producer that we know her to be on "The Red Shoes"

I've tried to understand the issues people have had with the album, but every time I listen I can only hear solid craft.

This album isn't one that I can listen to very often, because it can be very sad, but the beauty in the songs and production are sublime.

Kate's new single "King of the Mountain" is amazing, and I'm looking foward to the new album!

One of the most missed artists of modern music reality is withought doubt Kate Bush . Although there are many ladies around who have the guts to fully open their souls and reveal their sensitivities to the fans ( Bjork , Tori Amos , Tanya Donelly , P.J Harvey ) Bush still stands out for being a person so dedicated and focused on human love , it makes me wanna cry everytime i realize it .

Considering the fact that " Hounds Of Love " was maybe the best british record of the 80's and " The Sensual World " a ( much much more than just a ) great album by a female singer-songwritter , her 1992 is undeniably not the earthshattering third masterpiece in a row . It had it's good moments and it had it's bad ones .

The epic sadness of " So It's Love " with it's haunting flutes and Clapton's guitar playing is so rich in feelings and deeply affecting while " The Constellation Of The Heart " has a greek tragedy touch in it with Bush discussing and arguing with the backing vocals about what she should do with the challenge of love . Furthermore , " Top Of The City " is powerfull and sweet and even the initially harmless latin folklore of " Eat The Music " features lines like " does he conceal / what he really feels ? / he is a woman at heart / and i love him for that / let's split him open ! " which make it highly addictive . On the other hand , " Song Of Solomon " ( in which Bush asks from her lover just his ' sexuallity ' ) is maybe too bold , maybe too vulnerable to make it , " Rubberband Girl " although catchy in a twisted way doesn't carry the emotion of Kate's past singles ( Cloudbusting , This Woman's Work ) while " Moments Of Pleasure " is somehow more easy to admire than to enjoy .

George Michael named his recent new album " Patience " because it took him eight years to deliver it . With that in mind , Bush should name hers " Lots And Lots And Lots Of Patience " though it's not the ( more than ten ) years that have passed since The Red Shoes' release that have made her fanbase so hungry for a new offering. It's the fact that this album was such an unexpected farewell which despite some uneven moments , it showed an artist on top form , interested in exploring new sounds and certaintly not a music career close to it's end .

When I first purchased this CD in '93, it didn't immediately grab me the way "The Dreaming," "Hounds of Love" and "The Sensual World" had, and I actually eventually sold it. Now that I've discovered it again a decade later, I can't imagine what I was thinking. Perhaps "The Red Shoes" just takes a little maturity and experience on the part of its listener to be more fully appreciated. Whatever the reason, "Rubberband Girl," "And So Is Love," "Moments of Pleasure," "Song of Solomon," "Lily," "The Red Shoes" and "You're The One" are now, in my opinion, some of Kate's greatest recordings, both lyrically and musically. When she sings "On a balcony in New York, it's just started to snow" in "Moments of Pleasure," I can't even explain the depth of warmth, joy, sadness, hope and regret that simultaneously spill forth. How can that happen?! Astounding. (P.S. - it will add some pleasure if you watch the classic 1948 film "The Red Shoes" that inspired this set.) Cheers, Kate! I'm not ashamed to admit I was dead wrong the first time around.

It's been said that part of being a genius is to dare more than anyone else, which means risking more and consequently falling on your face more spectacularly. Considering that the album has also turned out to be an unexpected (and probably final) farewell from music for Bush, no doubt too much has been expected of it. Working from not good to great, then:

The Prince contribution to this album is flat-out awful. Prince is cool, Kate is even cooler, but neither were having a good day when they attempted this collaboration. The lyrics are cheesy, the accompaniment is uninspired, the song is way too long, and Kate just seems to be getting from one end of it to the other without getting into it.

"Eat the Music", with its sprightly calypso feel and deliciously lurid lyrics, is a one-riff pony. Shave two minutes off, and it would no longer occupy the #11 slot on this album.

"The Song of Solomon" (I feel shotguns being leveled at me) is a perfect case of genius falling on its face. I've really tried to like this song over the years, but ultimately there's something off about it. Maybe I just find it boring, or too busy getting the Biblical quotations into the verses. A shame too, because the chorus is lush, rich and more what I would have expected all along. The lyrics are devastatingly and impressively frank.

"And so is Love" is a gloomy meditation on life and love, with hollow panpipes to emphasize the hollow soul of the narrator. This brings us back to the very good song range for Bush. The melody and chorus, and the whole mood of the piece, is quite effective in spite of being something of a bummer. The piece develops by adding parts as it goes, so it gives an impression of dragging somewhat.

"Moments of Pleasure" is essentially a piano piece, with strings, and features one of Bush's more affecting melodies and a powerful chorus. This song, more than most by Bush, seems a bit too personal, as if all of those lines of lyrics directed at specific band members seem like goodbyes that we are eavesdropping on unnecessarily. The loveliness of the song is also hurt by seeming forced in places and too long.

From here on out is smooth sailing, and ordering songs according to merit becomes too difficult.

"Rubberband Girl", the albums first single, is definitely a snazzy, bouncy thing with much more going on that a first listen discloses (listen with headphones). It's also Bush in her most winningly goofy mode (like "Them Heavy People") in quite a while.

"Lily", a magical invocation devoted to the old woman of wisdom who speaks at the beginning of the song, is definitely a song to get excited about. The orchestration is unprecedented for Bush, a marvelous amalgam of keyboards, shaker, (possibly electric) drums and all kinds of subtle vocalizations by Bush. The chorus is especially intense with its keyboards. If only she didn't growl like a cheesy cat and then moan "This is my place" this song would be an unqualified best ever by Bush.

"The Red Shoes", based on a fairy tale about shoes that would literally make you dance till your legs fall of (the red is blood), features an orchestration similar to "Eat the Music", but is full of all kinds of flourishes, washes of sound, and Bush cackling "yahoo". Given cover art reminiscent of Dorothy's "There's no place like home" shoes, and the theme of being danced to death, it's not a stretch to imagine that this is Bush's official announcement of, and justification for, her retirement.

"Top of the City" is, at root, a piano ballad like "Moments of Pleasure", but much beefier, both musically and vocally. Bush simply belts out the chorus, and the way that the music switches from brash and pounding (her vocals soaring above) to quieter and more meditative (vocals more tentative and frail) is especially good. Beautiful bass work as well. One of the best tracks on the album definitely.

"Constellation of the Heart" shows Bush putting her own spin on the kind of rock arrangement Peter Gabriel experimented with on III and So and has a wickedly wry middle section that pits Bush as a lone vocalist up against the vast wall of human voices that have been singing all along.

"Big Stripey Lie" tends to be my favorite on the album, and has the novelty gimmick of Bush playing guitar, although in fact the guitar work her is especially cool. Heavy drums (programmed and perhaps live also) and bass thump mercilessly along while feedback crunch comes out of a guitar and Bush sing-speaks in an almost religiously invocative manner. The chorus, by contrast, fills out with big washes of strings and screams, and then a feedback guitar solo. When the vocals return, Bush sings "Oh my god, it's a jungle in here" and later, "Hey all you little waves, run away, run away." An exceptionally unnerving song from a woman not at all known for her ability to unnerve. Fantastic.

"You're the One" is another of Bush's finest songs. The piano here is a very tough sounding electronic one that provides the foundation for a ballad about acutely-felt nostalgia for lost love. The emotional nuances of Bush's singing, the gradations of feeling she puts in this song directed to the one lost, is everything a fan could want. The long, slow build-up to the end, the shrieking of the last line ("Just forget about it already"), the marvelous Hammond organ and the moody conclusion of the song bring the album to a worthy finale on an eminently amazing career.

Hello,

This is a dance album - I will explain in a while. This is taking the sensual world even further. I think that this is a most stunning album, full of intensely beautiful music that celebrates a huge range of emotions, textures and colors in the way that only Kate Bush can.

1. Rubberband Girl - I know what she means, an ability to bounce back from bad situations or events. This song carries a very bouncy rhythm right from the beginning and just builds and builds in both momentum and depth and intensity, from the simple drum and guitar introduction, in comes Kate's vocals, slower and deliberate and so clear, and then adds instruments and effects as it goes. Brilliant song, I especially liked the touches of humor that Kate included.
2. And So Is Love - Asks the question "what's it all about?" This song is so deeply personal, so profoundly touching, and so intimate. The words, music and Kate's singing all express a range of beautiful sentimentality in a very powerful way. This song should move almost anyone.
3. Eat The Music - This is a truly sensual song, a subtle use of fruit as reference to human emotions, sensuality and sexuality, a driving beat, some great lyrics, lovely backing vocals. A very happy song, a celebration - a song to dance to.
4. Moments of Pleasure - A beautiful ballad, full of allusions, full of great imagery, again Kate shows off both her lyrical sensitivity and her own gorgeous sense of humor. Beautiful arrangement as well - a great dance song.
5. The Song of Solomon - Absolutely fabulous.
6. Lily - What a fantastically breathtaking artistic imagination Kate has. Another fine track, this track is pure drama. You should also try dancing to this song.
7. The Red Shoes - If you haven't got it yet then this should make it obvious. Calling upon Irish influences Kate makes the title track the theme that underlines in thick red lines the themes of the whole album. Listen to this and not dance, I dare you. Red shoes? They're dancing shoes.
8. Top of the City - Sounds like an artistic and emotional link from Moments of Pleasure, the sensation of altitude, time and space that it produces is quite incredible. Oh Kate!
9. Constellation of the Heart - Great opening lines, "takes all the telescopes and turn them inside out, and we point them away from the big sky". If this doesn't move you to think, fall in love and to dance, then nothing will. Great questioning yet motivational song, like so many of Kate's songs.
10. Big Stripey Lie - Innovative entrance and Kate's dramatically evocative vocals both frame this theme and add power to its stunning content.
11. Why should I love you? - What a soulfully sexy track, an amazingly and strikingly spiritual theme that just grows and grows in intensity and feeling. Of all the people the people in the world why should I love you? Lovely. The Prince touch just makes the song truly sublime and a dance track too.
12. You're the One - The last song on the last album Kate has made. A hauntingly beautiful song of separation and regret. The song that made me realizes why we all love Kate and her music. It's because it's she is with me singing only to me, just to me, just with me. That's a very powerful thing for an artist to be able to do - the effect can be tremendous. Anyway, this song is awesome - and you can dance to it too...

This effort found Kate delivering product in a "normal" deadline (for her....) of three years, oddly the same time-frame that had so frustrated her fans between the sublime Fairlight-opus of "The Dreaming" and her self-actualizing ultimate masterpeice "Hounds of Love". I suspect her then-new contract with Sony in the States was the impetus for such rapid delivery, and she herself faced personal troubles in that period, notably the breakup with longtime beau Del Palmer and the death of her beloved mother during the post-production period of the album and it's promotion.

Those of us displeased (at the time) with this effort should have born in mind that most human beings would never have offered up anything as good as this with such stress going on.

I don't want to berate individual tracks too much, but I cannot stand the Prince collaboration (abberation?) of "Why Should I Love You?", it sounds as if both artists were holding back and wanting the other to deliver the goods, which we never get....

What makes this album worth it's purchase price for me is down to three or four songs. The simplest (and incidentally the most sublime!) is "Moments of Pleasure" , a simple piano line and fleeting thoughts from Kate. What makes it soar ( and it does!) is the genius talent of late arranger Michael Kamen (reported to have scored a couple of songs on Kate's forthcoming effort before his death; we are very lucky!). He takes that simple piano theme of Kate's and constructs nothing short of a sonic universe from it. If you ever wondered the value of an arranger/conducter, this track is the ultimate proof! I wish Kate would release the track's backing by itself as a tribute, it's that damned good! The Beatles took that approach on their "Anthology" series when they offered the string quartet from "Eleanor Rigby" and the world got a major treat.

"Song of Solomon" is a thematic bookend to "Running Up That Hill" in it's honest and frustrated prodding of sexual politics and the supposed differences between males and females in love. It's also haunting and gorgeous and a little funereal (her late relationship with Del? None of our business really...). "Eat the Music" is incredibly self-indulgent but sometimes that makes for great records, and this case is the proof. It's only flaw is that it really does go on too long. "And So Is Love" is the companion peice to "Song of Solomon" and is quite lovely, featuring Eric Clapton on understated guitar.

Kate is reportedly ready to launch her new one at the time of this writing (01/05), and I, for one, am ready to set aside 11 years of waiting and a take positive look back at this last one. We should all be thankful she records at all, and give her our best and most patient ears and our many sincere thanks!

This album is very weak, perhaps even more so than Lionheart. There is one excellent, truly "Kate Bush" song (Moments of Pleasure), a couple of OK songs (Eat the Music, You're the One) but rest of the songs are uninteresting and the album doens't hang together. It appears that Kate wanted to break out of her insularity and bring in some folks from the real world (Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck, Prince) but their presence is intrusive and detracts from her magic. The Prince collaboration would make a decent Prince song but is a mediocre Kate Bush song. The entire album has a profoundly unsatisfying feel to it. For hardcore fans only, and even then just buy it for Moments of Pleasure and to complete your collection.