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91 of 95 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Like Bathing in Dark Chocolate, December 21, 2003
I'm too old to be going gaga over artistes. But I'll be damned if this woman doesn't evoke a whole lot of unwholesome thoughts in parts of me I had forgotten that I possessed.This lady and her music defy description. She's an angel, a seductress, a child, a sage, a siren, a confidant, a poet, and a mystic - all on the same album and sometimes within the same song. Her songs are like distillations of the most vivid moments in one's life. She sings with a soaring purity and an intensity that can only be truly appreciated when heard, yet never, ever shades over into maudlin sentimentality or melodrama. This is a balancing act she pulls off again and again, while never repeating ideas or getting trapped into creative ruts. I give up trying to guess which creative direction she will next take. Whatever it is, it's just bound to be stunning. Kate is hardly for everyone. She sings for the daring listener. She is the very antithesis of the mass-market plastic bimbettes belting out all those identical tunes threatening to smother the world in pabulum. She is arresting, gothic, quirky and audacious. Consequently, her music takes some getting used to. The listener must train his/her ear to Kate's peculiarities. The payoff comes when the peculiarities reveal themselves as something altogether numinous. In fact, she is one of those rare singer/songwriters who truly deserve the honour of being called an artist. I could go on fawning over her like this, at the risk of inanity and my self-respect. The only way to understand why her fans have been so consistently devoted to her for over twenty-five years is to listen to her music. And this is my one king-sized beef. How on earth can EMI justify the outrageous sum they are charging for this boxed set? Kate's music has a hard enough time getting out to the general public as it is without having to surmount this Himalayan price. Any dedicated fan already owns most or all of her albums, so must fork over almost $200 for some rarities. This price puts the set out of reach for any but the most well heeled. Existing fans can't justify it, potential fans won't spring for it, so it becomes a self-limiting niche collection. If you are a discerning listener convinced that rock music can achieve transcendence, don't yet have any of her albums, and can afford this compilation without suffering starvation for the next month, then just bite your lip, haul out your wallet and get this incomparable anthology. I promise you that you will never think of talent, desire, peculiarity or indeed, music, in quite the same way again. The only danger is that Kate may spoil you for just about any songstress who follows.
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18 of 19 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Some truly amazing music., May 23, 2005
"This Woman's Work" is a fantastic investment-- containing virtually all of Kate Bush's available recorded output up until 1990, it allows an artist of extraordinary importance and talent to be appreciated in a historical context.
Bush's growth over her first six studio albums is nothing short of stunning. I'll avoid writing full reviews of each album here (I've written them under each album), but take a moment to discuss each.
Her debut, "The Kick Inside", extremely strong and moving, while it shows a bit of insecurity in performance (her voice is somewhat immature and has a tendency, in its upper register, to get a bit harsh) and lyrics that would later be drastically improved upon, Bush is fully realized as an artist-- from her hit "Wuthering Heights", an intriguing and amazing swirling pop song to the albums powerful opener "Moving" to its standout track, the beautiful "The Man With the Child In His Eyes", its amazing that she was as young as she was (some of the material was recorded when she was 16 or 17). The followup, "Lionheart", shows clear signs of being rushed, and isn't the leap one would hope it to be above its predecessor. Still, Bush has grown in confidence as a lyricist exploring a number of different moods and thoughts, including a bold for 1978 song about closeted homosexuality (the stunning "Kashka from Baghdad").
Bush began her real growth as an artist with "Never For Ever", as she began fusing her old sound with a more confident delivery and better arrangements. The result is a far more varied and interesting album, from the tense chaos of "Babooshka" to the psychotic pulsings of "The Wedding List" to the delicate sensuality of "The Infant Kiss". This exposition in mood continued on "The Dreaming", an album of experimentation and mood, largely a dark effort, it is difficult to digest at first, but moments such as the horrific "Pull Out the Pin" and the delicate "Houdini" stand out.
Bush's masterpiece, "Hounds of Love" is next, a two sided album-- the first an exposition in mid-tempo pop, clever arrangements, and fantastic, self-assured vocals-- "Running Up That Hill (A Deal With God)", the title track, and "Cloudbusting" all stand out with their fantastic arrangement. The second side, a story of a woman drowning and experiencing her life suffers from occasional over-reliance on production techniques and samples, but shines on the pretty "And Dream of Sheep", the haunted "Under Ice" and the simply amazing "Jig of Life". Its followup, "The Sensual world", probably never could have lived up to its level, and suffers from sloppy sound, but it does have what may be Kate Bush's most beautiful piece, the truly breathtaking "This Woman's Work", and other standouts like "Rocket's Tail" and the funky "Heads we're Dancing" make this uneven effort worth a listen.
The bonus discs contain most of the rarities from Bush's back catalog-- b-sides (around a dozen of them), soundtrack pieces (several), two French sung songs, a couple a-sides and re-recordings, four live tracks from the "Onstage" EP, and a handful of remixes. The material is of mixed quality, some of it is pleasant enough but was wisely kept off the albums ("The Empty Bullring", "Under the Ivy", "Burning Bridge"), some of it stands up with Bush's best material (the quirky "Ran Tan Waltz", the lovely "Warm and Soothing", the a capella "My Lagan Love"). The live tracks are interesting to have, and I'm glad to have the remixes, although I really could care less about remixes as a rule. Unlike many folks, I actually prefer the original vocal on "Wuthering Heights", I think the youthful sound in her voice fits the piece better.
If there's a complaint to make, its that this needs a reissue with some remastering (the sound is good but could be better in light of modern remastering) and the material that was recorded after its release. But aside from that, this set is a fantastic value, its worth paying a bit extra for it-- I dug up an Australian copy which was quite a bit cheaper. But regardless of price, the material on here is essential.
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23 of 26 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
If you've haven't heard the singled, you've missed out!, July 21, 1999
I first got into Kate Bush when "The Dreaming" was released, and bought all her albums immediately thereafter. I reserved my copy of "Hounds of Love" the day its release was announced. (I think I was the first person in Kansas to own it.) When the boxed set came out, I was living in Dallas, Texas, and I already had most of the singles (and those wonderful, unreleased B-sides) either as British 45s, or on 12-inch US re-mixes. There were only four of the songs in the boxed set that I didn't have on vinyl. Nonetheless, I bought the boxed set with my final paycheck, before I moved back to Kansas City, and never regretted paying nearly 200 bucks for basically four new (unheard before) songs. Sure, I could have used the money for more practical things--food, gas, rent, or some such fleeting nonsense--but, I survived, and had some great music to keep me company--and I still have it, when anything else I could have spent the money on would have been gone long ago. I have almost 700 CDs in my collection now, but if I were stranded on that proverbial deserted/desert island, and could only rescue one of them, it would be "Hounds of Love"; the entire album being the best music ever written and recorded by a human being, in any genre, hands down. 'Course, if I could, I'd grab the whole bloody boxed set! I have yet to hear anything by any other artist that comes close to the power and intensity of Kate's work, or any other artist who consistently has achieved such quality throughout their entire career. Don't take the time to think about it. Just buy this box!Keith Russell, Synthetic Sky Studios, synthsky@aol.com.
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